This year’s Madison Regatta will feature the same number of Unlimited hydroplanes (11) that competed last year. But for the average fan, the differences will be noticeable.

Three teams will not be back from last year while three teams are set to make their Madison debut. Three teams have new paint jobs, one has a new driver and one now has a new name.

Even for seasoned fans, the changes can be confusing. What follows is a fan’s eye breakdown of the 2009 fleet.

The U-10 USA Racing Partners, the U-13 Spirit of Detroit and the U-50 Spirit of the Navy will not compete at Madison in 2009, all for different reasons.

The death of owner Kim Gregory to pancreatic cancer last August has left the U-10 team in flux. Gregory’s son and crew chief Matt Gregory had hoped to compete in 2009, but situations beyond his control have forced the very fast boat to the shore.

Dave Bartush has also beached his boat, the U-13, for financial reasons. Bartush had originally intended to run the boat primarily on its home waters at the Detroit Gold Cup when he purchased the team in 2005, but has campaigned the complete circuit each of the last three years. All indications are that the team will not run at all this season.

When the U.S. Navy dropped its sponsorship of the U-50 in the offseason, owner Greg O’Farrell opted to not run the boat this season. Driver Brian Perkins, along with the rest of the team, have moved to O’Farrell’s other boat, the U-48 Albert Lee Appliance which brings us to ...

O’Farrell ran his U-48 at only the two Washington state races with David Williams at the helm last year. With the U-50 beached, O’Farrell will take the bright yellow and green boat to all six races on the schedule this year.

Former Miss Madison and Miss Elam Plus driver Nate Brown will make his return to Madison as an owner when he brings the U-17 Our Gang Racing team to town. The team has not run outside of Washington state since its inception in 2007, but will run the whole circuit this year with Brown’s nephew, Kip Brown, at the wheel.

Also new to the sport is the U-22 Matrix Automotive Systems, owned and driven by Mike Webster. The Reading, Pa., team has spent two years getting ready and will make its debut at Madison.

Except for a brief foray into green and black, Fred Leland’s U-100 race team has consistently sported a distinctive red, white and blue American flag paint scheme in one form or another since the early 1990s. This year, the team has undergone a personality change of sorts, with new paint on not only the boat, but the truck and trailer as well. Former hydro owner Jim Harvey has also joined the team as team manager.

While not as extreme, the U-37 Schumacher Racing team has also undergone a change in appearance. Gone are the old-school checkers that adorned the sponsons in 2008. In their place is a new yellow paint scheme that is more conducive to sponsorship logos and lettering.

Dr. Ken Muscatel spent the entire offseason rebuilding his U-25 Superior Racing hull, the former Miss T-Plus that Steve David drove to two wins. Unfortunately, that hull will not be ready for the first two races of the season.

But never fear, Dr. Ken is still scheduled to race at both Madison and Detroit after renting the U-100’s sister hull which was built in 2000 — meaning Leland’s Captain America red, white and blue paint scheme will still be on the water.

J. Michael Kelly jumps from the now drydocked U-13 to the U-7 Formulaboats.com team this year. The 29-year-old Kelly finished fourth in the national standings two years ago and replaces 2006 National Champion Mike Allen in the U-7 cockpit.

The U-7 team will campaign this season under the name Graham Trucking, reuniting Kelly with the Seattle-based company. Kelly has driven under the Graham Trucking name each of the past four seasons while with Bartush’s U-13 team.

Owner Ted Porter has run the U-7 under the Formula name since the team’s inception in 2006, but has always been open to taking on a full-time sponsor.