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Google, the large Internet search engine corporation, became involved in elections by promoting democratic processes around the world. With sections for engaging voters, protecting elections, and equipping campaigns, Google began a webpage specifically on information about U.S. elections including resources on how to use better search terms to get information about the election process and election trends.

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Amtrak, a national railroad train corporation, has been in operation as a passenger railway since 1971. Congress passed the Rail Passenger Service Act of 1970, which established the National Railroad Passenger Corporation to take over the intercity passenger rail service that had been operated by private railroads and formed Amtrak. Amtrak offers customers an opportunity to split commutes from rural areas by parking cars at the station and taking a train from convenient locations.

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The Shakey's Special was an unlimited hydroplane first raced in 1973. Tom Martin, Seattle restaurant owner and owner of the first Shakey's Pizza, was a sponsor and a driver of unlimited hydroplane speedboats. Martins's debut race in 1973 was in Shakey's Special; he was unable to finish the race, however, due to mechanical problems.

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The Pride of Pay ‘n Pak was a line of hydroplanes that competed in unlimited hydroplane racing. The Pride of Pay ‘n Pak emerged from the efforts of David Heerensperger. After Heerensperger started a new electrical and plumbing company in 1959, with backing from Stan Thurman, owner of the Pay ‘N Pak home improvement chain, he became sponsor of the Miss Spokane Hydroplane Racing Team in 1963 after responding to an ad. The boat’s name was changed to the Miss Eagle Electric and went on to finish third in 1963 Harrah’s Tahoe Regatta and fourth in 1964 Seattle Seafair Regatta. In 1969, the Pay ‘N Pak Stores, along with T & T Electric, and Heerensperger’s companies Eagle Electric and Buzzard Electric all merged into a new Pay N Pak Corporation. After the merger, Heerensperger managed the Pay ‘n Pak operations in Spokane, WA and the sponsorship of the hydroplane racing team. The Pride of Pay ‘n Pak was the first boat from the racing the team that featured an outrigger design. The Pride of Pay ‘n Pak was redesigned in the 1970s with dual Hemi automobile engines instead of conventional piston aircraft engines. The team won the points championship from 1973-1975 and sponsored the first winning turbine powered hydroplane from 1980 to 1983. The 1980 design of the U-25 Pay ‘N Pak crashed during the 3rd race of the season and was the last boat to carry the name Pride of Pay ‘n Pak.

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The Miss Budweiser, the name of a racing boat, has encompassed more than twenty boats over it’s run in the American Power Boat Association over the course of four decades. The owners, Bernie and Joe Little, cultivated a friendship with August Busch III who used Budweiser to sponsor the team.

The first Miss Budweiser hull debuted in 1956 and utilized the U-12 hull as a build. This hull was replaced by the U-13 in 1963. The team finally won their first race in 1966, winning the Atomic Cup in Tri-Cities, Washington. The team then won the ultimate prize of the league, the Gold Cup, in 1973. The Miss Budweiser would continue racing and appearing in other festivals and events until 2004. This is when the sponsorship was pulled, and Miss Budweiser went into retirement.

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Driven by Bill Wurster, who first began driving hydroplane speed boats in 1972, the VALU-MART failed to qualify in the 1973 Gold Cup race in Tri-Cities, Washington.  The 1973 Gold Cup race consisted of 15 boats. Two boats didn’t qualify during the race, the VALU-MART II and Redman Too. Hydroplane speed boat racing began in the 1920's, but gained popularity for a second wave when boats were upgraded with airplane machinery and parts after WWII. This trend continued after the Vietnam War and records continued to get broken by new advances in technology.

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Bill Muncey, a well regarded racer in the history of hydroplane racing overturned his Atlas Van Lines boat at the World Championship race in Acapulco, Mexico, and died on October 18, 1981. Bill drove the Atlas Van Lines boat known as the Blue Blaster from 1977 to 1981 winning 24 races and two championships in the Blue Blaster. Atlas Van Lines sponsored the boat in the 1970's and 1980's. After Bill's death, the Blue Blaster was preserved but was no longer sea worthy. In 2010, the Hydroplane and Race Boat Museum acquired the Blue Blaster and spent the next four years restoring it with the intention of returning it to the water and honoring Bill Muncey's memory. In the summer of 2014, the Blue Blaster returned to the water after it was newly christened by Muncey's wife, Fran, during Seattle's Seafair. 

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The Pay-n-Pak U-25 Turbine was a revolutionary boat in the world of hydroplane boat racing. Owned by Dave Heerensperger, this boat was the first to use a single turbine power plant on its U-25 hull design in the Unlimited class of racing. The new boat debuted in 1980 but in its first race flipped during trials and was unable to compete. After a series of high places, it finally won its first race in 1982 making it the first non-internal combustion engine to win an Unlimited race. Shortly after this historic win, the boat was involved in a crash with several others and it’s driver John Walters was severely injured. Shortly after, Heerensperger sold his team and retired from the sport. 

The Pay-n-Pak U-25 remains one of the defining boats in Unlimited Hydroplane Racing history. Eventually, all of the other boats would mimic the U-25 and feature a turbine engine.