Originally published August 2, 2009 at 6:55 PM

Kayleigh Perkins wins Seafair Unlimited-Lights race, makes history

Black Diamond driver, 21, becomes first woman to win a final heat in Seattle's 60-year-old event

Seattle Times staff reporter

After having had a perfect season, Kayleigh Perkins was having an imperfect weekend.

But once the 21-year-old driver and her crew finally worked out the bugs in her boat, her Sunday turned into one of the most memorable of her life.

The resident of Black Diamond, who had won the previous four Unlimited Lights races this season, got her first-ever victory at Seafair, taking the winner-take-all final heat in the UL-72 Foster Car/Vitamin Water.

Along the way, she also became the first woman to win a final heat of a limited or unlimited race at Seafair.

"To be able to say I won Seafair is unbelievable," she said, visibly shaking with excitement as she talked to reporters on the dock. "How cool is that?"

She has been a rising star on the limited circuit for years and is having her best season to date. But engine problems helped relegate her to the wild-card heat Sunday afternoon, meaning she had to finish in the top three to qualify for the eight-boat, winner-take-all final. She did, winning both.

Perkins seems an obvious candidate to someday join the unlimited circuit, and if she does, she'd be the second female to drive an unlimited. Brenda Jones did it in the early 1980s.

"I do [want to]," she said. "But it's got to be the right team at the right time. I want to be able to have as much fun as I'm having now."

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