Speedboat September 2016

SPEEDBOAT MAGAZINE

DRAG RACE DRAMA!

CARDS

Gettin’ Crazy at Nashville’s Old Hickory Poker Run

BOOGIE

FEVER!

Central California’s Flatbottom Blowout SEPTEMBER 2016

SEPTEM BER 2016 $4.99US/CAN

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Speedboat Legends Champion Throttleman Bobby Moore

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TABLE OF CONTENTS September 2016

COLUMNS 8 RAY LEE 10 ALEXI SAHAGIAN 14 INDUSTRY NEWS 62 NEW PRODUCTS

30 THREE WISHES

FEATURES

50 CATALINA SKI RACE

18 OLD HICKORY FUN RUN

Australian skier Wayne Mawer wins the 68th annual competition.

Hundreds of boats converge on the Cumberland River for a weekend of friends and fast fun.

56 SPEEDBOAT LEGENDS

Speedboat tests three handsome thoroughbreds from Caliber 1, Cobra and Hallett.

44 CIGARETTE RENDEZVOUS Performance Boat Center’s second annual party for owners of Cigarettes is s-s-s-smokin’!

Speedboat pays tribute to Bobby Moore, who practically invented the position of throttleman.

24 BOYNE AGAIN The small town of Boyne City, MI, attracts some gigantic muscleboats to its latest poker run.

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Cover and Table of Contents photos by Jeff Girardi/Freeze Frame Inset cover photo by R. Michelle Percival

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Speedboat.com To find your nearest location to purchase a copy of Speedboat Magazine go to: www.WheresMyMagazine.com

Published by DCO Enterprises, LLC Publishers Ray Lee ray@speedboat.com

Chris Davidson chris@speedboat.com

Editor Brett Bayne brett@speedboat.com

Senior Tech Editors Jim Wilkes jim@speedboat.com

Alexi Sahagian alexi@speedboat.com

Tech Editors Greg Shoemaker Jim Wilkes Valerie Collins National Sales Ray Lee Director ray@speedboat.com Art Director Gail Hada-Insley

BRETT’S COVE 64 SPOOKY The former Cole Factory Boat comes out of hiding, courtesy of owner Steve Faist.

66 BOOGIE FEVER Central California’s Flat Bottom Boogie draws old-school muscleboats to Club Royal Oak on the scenic Kings River.

72 REMEMBERING AL ALCORN Friends and family pay their respects to the late V-drive enthusiast with a touching memorial on Big River, CA.

76 LUCAS OIL IN AUGUSTA The Lucas Oil competition celebrates its 30th Anniversary on the Savannah River.

Editorial: Speedboat Magazine assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material. All manuscripts, materials, photographs and artwork submitted are at mailer’s risk and must include self-addressed envelope with proper postage if requested to be returned. All letters sent to Speedboat will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication and copyright purposes, and are subject to Performance Boats’ right to edit and comment editorially. All rights reserved. Reprinting in whole or part is expressly forbidden, except by written permission of the publisher.

Helicopter Services Fred Young fyoung@live.com

Photographers Todd Taylor, Pete Boden, Randy Nuzzo, Kenny Dunlop, Paul Kemiel, Jeff Girardi, Mark McLaughlin Operations Manager Michele Plummer and Subscriptions michele@speedboat.com Webmaster Craig Lathrop craig@speedboat.com

Web Design Blair Davidson Market It Mobile, Las Vegas, NV blair@speedboat.com

Editorial Offices 9216 Bally Court Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 (888) 577-2628 (BOAT) SPEEDBOAT MAGAZINE (ISSN#1941-9473) is published 8 times plus a bonus issue this year by DCO Enterprises LLC. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Domestic $34.00 for 8 times plus a bonus issue, Canada $56.00 for 8 times plus a bonus issue, International $60.00 for 8 times plus a bonus issue. All prices are for one year and in US funds.

For subscription info: call (888) 577-2628.

PRINTED IN USA These rates represent Speedboat’s standard subscription rate and should not be confused with any special rates or premiums otherwise advertised or offered.

Postmaster: Send address changes to Postmaster: Send address changes to Speedboat Magazine, 9216 Bally Court, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730.

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OBSERVER’S SEAT RAY LEE

Until We Meet Again

In late July, Speedboat Magazine traveled to “Music City,” aka Nashville, TN. Not necessarily for the guitars and banjos but to cover the Old Hickory Fun Run, hosted by Event Producer Chad Collier and the Tennessee Powerboat Club. This was our first time covering this particular event and my first time to Nashville. As a huge fan of music, I was excited for the new adventures of both the boating event and the entertainment that this city promised to bring.

Speedboat photographer Todd Taylor and I left for Nashville, with cautious optimism for great coverage. But I had been monitoring the weather reports all week and it didn’t look promising.

The icons on my iPhone weather apps continuously showed the little lightning bolts and rain droplets coming from the clouds throughout the entire time we were scheduled to be there. Those very conditions greeted us as we landed late 8

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Wednesday night in northern Tennessee.

The next day was Day One of the three days scheduled for this event, hosted by Sam’s Bar & Grill at the Blue Turtle Bay Marina. There was supposed to be an “Early Bird Cruise” through the lock at the dam on Old Hickory lake, followed by a raft-up in “Skinny Dip Cove.” But the rain altered those plans a bit, deterring some to keep their boats either at the docks or on their trailers. However, it had been explained to me by a Nashville native that if we didn’t like the weather,

wait ten minutes because it would change. We found this advice to be both accurate and helpful throughout the course of the weekend.

Friday arrived to find more participants in town and ready to roll - rain or shine. This day had a lunch run planned out to “Awe Daddy’s” at Gallatin Marina, followed by a raft-up at “Two Foot Cove.” And what a raft-up, it was! John Woodruff of Windship fame and I took Chad Collier’s Sea Ray cruiser out to the cove to stage up and wait for the rest of the fleet to join us.

“We don’t have beaches here so we raft up. We do this almost every weekend but we invite everyone out to join us for this particular weekend. It’s just what we do. We like to have fun,” explained Collier with his unmistakable hometown drawl.

The rains came and went, as John and I watched the raft up grow and grow from both sides of the cruiser.

It stretched out as far as it could and then, when it couldn’t stretch any further, another row was started. It was mighty impressive. But what was even more impressive was the southern hospitality that we received. And not just from the folks in nearby boats but also from the ones several spots down!

Whether it was a sandwich plate being placed on my lap, a cool beverage being shoved into my hand or just hearty handshake—it was the people of this event that stood out to me most and what I will remember always.

Which is why this run was bittersweet. The people here were deeply affected by the recent loss of a pair of their own—boating enthusiasts Anthony and Tammy Reece of the wildly popular 42' candy green Statement vee bottom, Saddle Up. They weren’t just some

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ON THE DYNO ALEXI SAHAGIAN

Fuel Pressure Drama Dear Alexi: I have an Eliminator Daytona with a custom motor in it. My issue is that I can't seem to get my fuel pressure correct. It seems to jump around and move, and it’s different at idle than cruising. I'm pretty sure I don't have a 100 psi at wide open as it reads. It’s a Livorsi gauge. I am new to boating, so I figured I would write in.

Thanks!

John Mowen Reno, Nevada Well, I can only assume that your fuel system is somewhat normal, as far as the oscillation goes. If you have a vacuum hose going to your fuel pressure regulator, it will move around. Usually at idle it will be lower (i.e., 40 psi and at wide open if boosted, say 50 psi). It is a vacuum or boost-referenced regulator designed for that. If it is a static type, the fuel pressure should stay at a fixed (i.e., 45 psi).

As for reading 100 psi at wide open, I highly doubt that is correct. I would have somebody at a shop or a qualified

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buddy take a look at the pressure with a mechanical gauge. Simply remove the electric sender and verify it mechanically.

You will most likely see that the pressure gauge reading is off. I would guess that it’s about 40 psi high. This is because the sender must match the gauge. Although they all look similar, they are rated at different bar (atmospheres). So get the correct part number from your provider that matches your gauge. Usually there are 0-15 psi, 0-60 psi 0-80 psi, and 0-100 psi pressure gauges from various brands. I always recommend getting their specific sender with the gauge. It’s never good if you mix—unless, of course, you are an OHMs volt meter master and qualified to pre-test them. Once this is all verified and you still have a oscillation, check for any loose lines, fittings, filters, etc., that could be drawing air in. Also, check your fuel pressure diaphragm. It's the round item on the fuel block, rail or pressure regulator that you need to look into. And remember, be safe messing with fuel, as it is a fire hazard and may cause major injury if not handled by a professional.

Water Flow Issues Dear Alexi: I have a Fountain vee bottom equipped with two supercharged carbureted engines that came in it. One seems to run

at 130 degrees and the other is at like 200.

It seems as though every summer, the temp on that starboard engine creeps up 20-30 degrees but stays in that range. It is weird because I changed my water pump impeller and back flushed the system. All seems OK. My engine builder says the engines seem to be OK. We are all at a loss here in North Carolina and don't really have a resolve.

What are your thoughts?

Kevin Jenko Raleigh, NC It seems as though you have done your proper service and even went so far as to back flush your engines, but there may be a few other items to check. I would have a look at the water pickups on the transom, assuming the water does not come in from the drives. Also, take a look at the drives and water inlets if it does not have the transom mount pickups or bottom pickups. Look for any restrictions, impact, etc., to assure flow has not been disrupted.

If all of that looks good, review the inside plumbing from the gimbal housing passage to the pump and the pressure side of the pump. Many times if you use aluminum fittings on your boat, corrosion can start without notice.

It is like a human artery. It gets clogged with plaque over time and then you lose flow. After searching around, I believe that you will find a fitting adapter or passage that is restricted and it will solve your heating imbalance issue.

The key is that your engine seems to get hotter each summer. The corrosion restricts the inside diameter a little each winter as it grows to block your water passages. I hope that helps you find the culprit.

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Industry News BRETT BAYNE

SCOPE Plans 19th Annual Poker Run

Founded in 1992 by Ron Songrath, the Southern California Offshore Powerboat Elite (SCOPE) group used to make regu-

lar runs from Long Beach to Catalina until it reached an impasse with the city.

“The Long Beach run was extremely

successful,” Songrath says. “The problem was that ten years ago, we had around 165 boats attend. The City of Long Beach just started taking spots away from us for slips, and started leasing out on an annual basis. That was the killer, and it really ruined it in Long Beach for us.” The group then started running the event from San Diego.

But now SCOPE has found a new home base, using slips at the Maya Hotel, and is planning to stage its poker run from Long Beach again on Sept. 23-25.

“Honestly, Long Beach is the ideal place to hold the poker run,” Songrath said.

“It’s such a central hub and makes for a great event.” For more information, visit scopeinfo.com.

Sunsation Welcomes New Dealer Sunsation Powerboats welcomes its newest dealer: Shipyard Marine, Northeast Wisconsin's leading marine dealership and service center, with locations in Green Bay and Oshkosh.

Since 1989, owner Andy Howitt has directed the growth and success of the company by representing virtually all of the major performance performance boat brands.

“I’ve always been a high performance kind of guy,” said Howitt. “Over the years, we’ve featured Fountain, Donzi, Outerlimits and Formula. As the market continues to evolve and boaters needs grow, we've expanded our inventory to include both luxury and recreational craft. That’s one of the main reasons we’ve joined with Sunsation.”

Sunsation President Joe Schaldenbrand said he was aware of Howitt’s excel14

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lent customer service reputation and was excited to welcome him as a dealer. “When the opportunity came about for Sunsation and Shipyard Marine to join forces, we knew that Andy and his team would be the perfect extension of our

commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction.”

Visit shipyardmarine.com to order your new Sunsation 29CCX, 32CCX or 34CCX. [Continues on page 82] speedboat.com

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Old Hickory Fun Run Hundreds of boats converge on the Cumberland River for a weekend of friends and fast fun.

N

ashville did a commendable job putting all other poker runs to shame as it staged its

Fourth Annual Old Hickory Fun Run, presented by Kia of Murfeesboro and the Tennessee Powerboat Club.

A massive amalgam of pals, parties, and a perfect poker run, the event raised money for Operation Stand Down Tennessee, which benefits veterans and their families.

The event was scheduled to kicked off on Thursday, July 28, with a lunch run up the Cumberland River to down16

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town Nashville, but rain dictated that the run be made by auto rather than boat.

“That’s how the event started,” said event organizer Chad Collier. “We just hung out with each other, and spent time to reflect with our friends. It wasn’t really organized.” The weather cleared enough on Friday to allow a lunch run by water, during which a helicopter captured photos of the fun. That night, a traditional party in downtown Nashville took place on a rented rooftop at the Rock Bottom Brewery.

The official poker run was the highlight on Saturday, but the rains had brought a

lot of debris in the water, causing participants to proceed with extra caution.

“Between the debris and the fact that the water in the river and lake had gotten kind of high, we made a decision not to run very far on Saturday,” Collier said. Instead, boaters assembled a huge tie-up in two massive rows, back to back, creating a 30-foot alley between the two rows—and stayed in that configuration for most of the day. “There were probably 100 on both sides,” Collier said. “The alley was as long as a couple football fields. We always try and get tied up with sterns facing each other. We can provide a protectspeedboat.com

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Photos by Ray

ed area to float around and keep enjoying the company of our fellow boaters, which is why we all do this—the love of our friends and of our boats. This creates a more intimate setting for us to spend time with our power boating family.”

Saturday night brought a charity auction, at which signs, sports memorabilia, musical instruments and other goodies were auctioned off to the highest bidders.

Explaining the Old Hickory Fun Run’s immaculate safety record, Collier said the group usually travels in groups of 10-15 boats that do not pass their pace speedboat.com

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boat. “Whatever the pace boat goes, you have to follow it,” he says. “I put people as pace boat drivers who I trust and who know how to drive on our lake. I tell everyone to stay in their group and stay behind the pace boat. That’s how I can control speed. And so far, everybody has followed that rule. We don’t have a bunch of hot-rod jockeys here.”

Among the participants was sponsor Devin and Julie Wozencraft of Wozencraft Insurance, who brought their daughter Leilani and their new Skater to Nashville for its maiden voyage. “Wozencraft is as great a broker as he is a boater, and I con-

Lee & Todd Taylor

sider him a good friend,” Collier said. “He is a straight shooter and that is all I can ask for from an insurance dealer.”

The event raised almost $50,000 for Operation Stand Down. “We can’t wait to get them the check and start talking about next year’s event,” Collier said.

“They will be a long time funding partner with TPC as their groups of staff and volunteers were so helpful and professional.

I want to say thanks to their entire group and they are a credit to vets everywhere.”

To read Speedboat publisher Ray Lee’s personal account of the event, see Page 8 of this issue.

S P E E D B O A T | September 2016

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Old Hickory Fun Run

Scott Shogren and Greg Weber in a 2016 Mystic owned by Vinny Foglia.

Above: R.B. and Fran Hixson in their 42’ Fountain Lightning, Team Frantastic. The boat is powered by twin Mercury Racing 1075 SCi engines.

Mark Gardner drives his Cigarette Top Gun, powered by twin Mercury Racing 1,100s.

Above: Aaron Kaluger and Rona Barker catch air in their 28 Nordic.

Right: Justin Goode of Knoxville, TN, in his 31' American Offshore.

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Steve and Maureen Zapf of Cincinnati, OH, in their Hustler 388 Slingshot.

Will Hyder of Morristown, TN, pilots his Checkmate 28'Convincor.

The “card stop girls” handed out chips clad as patriotic showgirls.

Tiffiney Renfroe (left) and Kasey Nichols display the latest issue of Speedboat Magazine. Tiffiney is the wife of Beau Renfroe, who along with John Woodruff and Dan Jape put on the Pirates of Lanier Poker Run.

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Old Hickory Fun Run

Andre and Callie Trudell in their 43' Donzi, powered by twin TCM 1025 motors.

Rick (“Chewey”) and Cathy Malone drive their twin outboard-powered DCB F26.

One of the highlights of the Fun Run was the massive raft-up on Friday. The boats assemble in two rows with sterns facing each other.

Justin Frick of Olmsted Township, OH, pilots his 38' Cigarette.

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Below: At the Fun Run lunch stop, sponsor Jet’s Pizza provided about 300 pepperoni pizzas to for boaters (one pizza for every four people on your boat). Pictured are some of the many volunteers who are members of Operation Stand Down—along with some of the veterans themselves, who are proud to be able to help.

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Old Hickory Fun Run Stephen Miles’ Fountain.

Left: This 2013 27’ Shadow Cat is owned by Donnie Fulmer, whose DJI Marine Audio is one of the sponsors of the Old Hickory Fun Run. Donnie was recently pronounced clean after a battle with lymphoma; this was his second consecutive poker run following his bout with cancer.

Event sponsors Devin and Julie Wozencraft in their new twin outboard-powered Skater.

Project Mayhem, a 2013 MTI, is owned

by Mark and Britney Godsey, whose GoldBond Worldwide is another event sponsor.

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Michael and Michelle Sommer in their 37' Active Thunder.

Sponsor Nashville FlyBoards performed at the event on Friday and Saturday, delighting the crowd with their acrobatics.

Ronald and Carla Brown of Mount Juliet, TN, in their Catera center console.

John Myrick Jr. of Eads, TN, in his 33' Wellcraft Scarab.

Jonathan Fisher in his 30' Spectre, powered by twin Mercury 300s.

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Boyne Again Photos by Pete

Boden

The small town of Boyne City, MI, attracts some gigantic muscleboats to its latest poker run.

T

he Boyne Thunder Poker Run recently celebrated its 13th annual event on lakes

Charlevoix and Michigan, raising money for the sick and disadvantaged. Located about 60 miles north of Traverse City and 60 miles south of the famous Mackinaw Bridge, Boyne City is known for its ski-lodge accommodations in the winter months, but when summer rolls around, it becomes a playground for powerboats.

Event co-organizer Bob Mathers— 24

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owner of Bob Mathers Ford in Boyne City—notes that the appearance of heavy fog on Thursday put a damper on the scheduled poker run.

“Mother Nature was being a bit of a nuisance as we made our way up to Bay Harbor for lunch,” he says. “But after lunch, it finally it cleared up and we came back.”

On Thursday night, participants gathered for dinner at the scenic Eagle’s Nest restaurant on the top of Boyne Mountain. “That turned out to be great,” Mathers says. “The weather had cleared,

and it was just beautiful.” Friday brought more rain, and with it more challenges— particularly because of the street show, which this year featured an array of classic cars and hot boats. “The rain came and went, but some people cancelled because of the weather,” Mathers says.

“Even so, everyone who was going to be part of it showed up.” That included a total of nine Fountain boats on display.

“I used social media to get people to vote for their favorite Fountain. The guy who won the award on Fountain Friday was tickled pink.” speedboat.com

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Canadian Dave Scotto in his SL 50 vee-bottom Outerlimits, powered by Mercury Racing power-adjustable 1350/1550 engines.

Nick Wolgast catches some air while driving his 30' Sunsation.

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Boyne Again

Above: Bob Barnhardt drives his 50' Nor-Tech vee, Team Predator.

John Frolic in his 47’ Apache, Kemosabe.

Above: Carl Hardt in his 32' Skater, powered by triple 300X outboards.

Left: Heath Peterson in his 46' Cigarette.

Below: John Davy, 35’ Nordic Flame, Vertical Integration.

Above: local eye doctor Pete Oppermann and his family in their Outerlimits. He acts as one of the commitee members for Boyne Thunder.

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Boyne Again

Boats docked at the Boyne City Marina.

Left: James Doss pilots his 34' Saber.

Below: Brian Humphries in his 38' Scarab.

Bottom: An aerial view of boats docked at the Charlevoix Marina.

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Three Wishes Caliber 1 265 Silver Bullet Cobra 270 Python Hallett 290

Lake Havasu’s Desert Storm Poker Run and Shootoout is about as much fun as you can

legally have on the water. Fortunately for our staff, it represented an opportunity to grab some of the coolest boats on the lake and put Bob Teague behind the wheel to see how fast they would go. If we had three wishes for boats attending this power-filled cavalcade, these three would absolutely fill the bill. We snared a pair of the best deckboats availaible on the market and an outboard-powered version of Hallett’s innovative midcabin cuddy. Why choose just one? We’ll take all three!

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Caliber 1 265 Silver Bullet Fast, stable and roomy, this impressive machine is simply one of the best deckboats on the market.

The gorgeous, fully capped Caliber 1 deckboat that readers glimpsed in our May issue (“L.A. Boat Show”)—and again in our June swimsuit issue (“Sexxy Se7en”)—will recognize the builder’s sumptuous 265 Silver Bullet displayed to the right of this paragraph. It’s the same boat, and we keep showing it to you because, well, we really like it. But this time things are different, because they’ve put us behind the wheel. The good news is, we like it even more now. This machine drives every bit as good as it looks.

First, a bit of history. The boat’s history can be traced back to at least 2006, when an early version of the hull was tooled by Brent Leach, son of Eliminator Boats President Bob Leach, under the monicker of Next. Working with partner Brian Shindley, the pair developed a stylish model called the X-265 that featured a deck with a deep cockpit and a uniquely soft, sculpted flow. It incorporated a unique and ultra-convenient rear boarding concept with steps below the water line, rendering the standard fold-down ladder virtually obsolete.

Now retooled and redesigned, Caliber 1 has kept the best of what made the 265 outstanding while making modifi32

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Caliber 1 Custom Boats 905 Port Drive Lake Havasu City, AZ 86404 (888) 780-8282 caliber1customboats.com coastmotorgroup.com

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Caliber 1 265 Silver Bullet

Our Silver Bullet had an absolutely amazing JL Audio upgraded sound system. The immaculate poker-run interior, with premium stitching and seating, will be standard until next year. There’s ample storage on this boat, and the 565 motor (below) helps it perform astonishingly well.

cations to both the bottom and the deck to create a masterwork of deckboat ingenuity. For a limited time, the company is offering its “poker run interior” configuration as part of its standard package; it includes premium stitching and bolster seats for the driver and passenger and upgraded seating all around. Our model featured upgraded Gator Steps on the standard nonskid flooring, which adds both comfort and style to the boat. The rear stairwell access on both port and starboard sides continues to be one of the coolest things about the boat; two “jump seats” on either side of the rear bench fold down to make boarding a breeze. The boat is extremely roomy and comfortable, with plenty of creature comforts and generous storage on board, including two large ski lockers. The rear locker is nearly two feet deep and about nine feet long.

Standard features on the dash included Livorsi Monster and Vantage Views gauges, including GPS. We enjoyed a Stage 3 upgraded stereo with JL Audio 7.7 speakers and a pair of 12-inch subwoofers, among other sound goodies.

The deckboat is available in all versions, with power options ranging from mild to wild; the Silver Bullet we drove is the fully custom and capped model with a Merc Racing 565 with the XR and ITS box.

(Bob Teague of Teague Custom Marine has reportedly driven one rigged with his own 1,000-hp powerplant, and said it ran phenomenally.) The 565 performs exceptionally well on this boat. Our ride was steady and solid, and it absolutely hugs in a turn. The faster you turn in it, the harder it hooks—at any speed, it leans into the turn instead of out, as some deckboats do. Great performance, great looks, great comfort, great roominess. Did we mention great?

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Cobra

270 Python

Jeff Bohn puts 1,000+ hp in his new deckboat for the first time—with marvelous results.

Cobra’s 28-foot deckboat arrived on the scene during a time when the builder already had a 280 Python in its stable…so owner Jeff Bohn and his team settled for calling it the 270 Python—very possibly the only time in history that a speedboat company has actually understated the size of its product. But what the 270 lacks in its nomenclature, it makes up for in virtually every other respect.

Cobra debuted this relatively new model a couple of years ago, and our first encounter with it was chronicled in the March 2015 issue of Speedboat.

Our tester at the time came equipped with a Mercury 565 with a Bravo drive

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Cobra Performance Boats 5109 Holt Blvd.

Montclair, CA 91763 (909) 482-0047 cobraperformanceboats.com

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Cobra 270 Python

Standard features on the Python include a large integrated swim step, hydraulic engine hatch hinges and a beautiful wraparound, distortion free windshield made of 100% acrylic. Our tester featured the upgraded Alcantara fabric and cupholders with mood lighting.

and 31” prop, after getting on plane with relative ease (4.88 seconds), Bob Teague clocked a top speed of 84 mph at 5,400 rpm. This year, Bohn & Co. provided us with a version that was just as impressive aesthetically, but with Teague’s own 1050 motor coupled to an SCX drive with Imco standoff box and hydraulic steering on the gimbal.

For some reason, memories of our 84 mph ride last year seem a little foggy after achieving 108 mph at 6,200 rpm in the newer machine.

What an amazing ride! This setup (which included a Mercury labfinished five blade prop) got us on plane in about the same time as the previous boat, and was no slouch in the holeshot department either, reaching 70 mph after 15 seconds and 80 mph in 20.

“This was the first 270 Python with 1,000+ horsepower,” says Cobra’s General Manager Hernando Rodriguez. “We were pleased. You do sacrifice a little speed with the SCX drive, but it gives you the extra security of knowing that it can handle the 1,000 hp motor.”

The 270 Python features a 104-inch beam—an inch wider on both sides than the 28, in fact. Like our previous tester, the interior is a veritable work of art, with standard hideaway bimini and a variety of options, including upgraded Alcantara fabric, cup holders with mood lighting, Isotta Carlotta stainless-steel steering wheel and an upgraded Rockford Fosgate sound system with bluetooth headphones, Alpine amplifiers, subwoofers, etc. It’s also equipped with an Extreme triple axle trailer, so it travels well on land as well as by sea.

The Python accelerates nice and hard, planes out beautifully, doesn’t have a lot of lift, it turns nice and level. From the fit and finish to the performance and beyond, it’s a stunner.

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Hallett

290

The builder of award-winning I/O-powered fast family boats tries an outboard version.

Among the many selling points of the 290 by Irwindale, CA-based Hallett Boats is its patented bottom design by Michael Peters, making it “probably the most incredible 29 on the planet,” according to Hallett’s Jerry Barron. The new hull design debuted in 2012 to widespread acclaim.

Barron acknowledges that for most of its existence, Hallett has been known primarily as a company revered for its I/O-powered lake rods, but he’s aware of the potential customer base for outboards. So our test 290 was actually built on spec to introduce Hallett’s customers to a configuration featuring twin Mercury 300s. Most often, you’ll find the boat powered by

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Hallett Boats 4800 Rivergrade Road Irwindale, CA 91706 (626) 969-8844 hallettboats.com

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Hallett 290

Our outboard-powered 260 was proudly displayed at the 2016 Los Angeles Boat Show. The boat features a massive amount of storage, plenty of room in the midcabin section, and an enhanced rear-seating arrangement made possible by removing the stern drive (see bottom photo).

a Mercury Racing 520 or a 600 SCi; our most recent 290 test featured a 540 (top speed 82 mph @ 5,500 rpm). That version, like our new test boat, was a midcabin cuddy-style arrangement, with two bucket seats for driver and passenger and a rear bench. But the outboard setup actually helped Hallett modify the seating arrangement in the back of the boat for an enhanced passenger experience. “We were able to take the engine compartment and basically cut it in half,” Barron explains. “We really stretched things out to create a loungetype seating in the cockpit. What we have now is a wraparound lounge that creates extra seating and a lot more walk-around room.”

The 290’s midcabin section is comfortable, with sofas large enough for two or three full-size adults with room for a built-in ice chest.

Access from the cuddy into the bow area is also pretty large—no problem for a large adult to pass through from the cockpit through the midcabin and into the bowrider. There’s also ample storage all through the boat, from the tip of the nose in the bow on back.

By design, our outboard-powered 290 was essentially an optionfree version, which makes it all the more affordable. And it’s still plenty fast: Teague got 78 mph @ 6,200 on GPS, taking 5 seconds to plane and a respectable 20 seconds to reach 70 mph). “I don’t think you’re going to find a boat on the planet—stern drive or outboard— that planes faster than this particular boat,” Barron says. “You can plane this boat with the motors trimmed up, down, halfway out, it doesn’t make a damn bit of difference. It’s just up and gone.”

No matter how you power it—or how many options you put in— the 290 remains an outstanding all-around recreational boat for the whole family.

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1-year $34.00 – 9 issues Canadian rate: $56.00, International rate $60.00 (U.S. Funds)

4/29/16 8:21 PM

Cigarette rendevous

by Brett

Manire •

Photos by Pete

T

Boden

his was our second bands for discounted food at our res- boating friends and do other activities year in a row host- taurant and bar. One fun gathering was together on their own. It’s really cool.

Another great party was at Coconuts ing the Cigarette Owners’ at The Fish & Co. restaurant; about 30

Rendezvous event at Performance Boat Center, and it got both bigger and better this year. For one thing, the boat count jumped from around 52 to 67. And the array of models was incredible: We saw Bullets, Café Racers, Top Guns, Gladiators and Tigers, as well as several 46 Rough Riders and a 50 Marauder. Very nearly every make and model in Cigarette’s history. It was totally badass!

This event largely focuses on the social atmosphere. It’s unique—there’s no registration fee, we didn’t charge for dinners, and in fact, we even had an open bar for a while. We gave away T-shirts, and attendees were given wrist-

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boats showed up for that. The owner of the bar got up on stage and gave a bunch of shout-outs to Cigarette owners and to Performance Boat Center. I hung out there with them that afternoon.

On Friday, we threw a pool party at the Redhead Lakeside Grill. We handed out koozies and sunglasses, and had beach balls to throw in the pool. There were girls in bikinis and slinky dresses walking around. It was a joy to be poolside and have some drinks and cool off while listening to the DJ playing music.

That night, attendees got to meet Cigarette Boats owner/president Skip Braver and his service expert, Bud Lorow. A lot of these people have become

Caribbean Grill, which has a unique swim-up pool bar and a terrific Caribbean-style restaurant at the lake.

Families with youngsters got to hang out at a kid-friendly area with a sandy beach while I took a group to Horny Toad’s Bar and Grill and we had another pool party there with a DJ. Then we cleared out the showroom, set up tables and had yet another DJ and another dinner.

After the event, people took the time out of their busy schedules to call and email me that they had a great time, and that to me is over the top and makes it all worthwhile. It really makes me look forward to planning it for next year! speedboat.com

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Performance Boat Center’s second annual party for owners of Cigarettes is s-s-s-smokin’!

Left: Rick Duge of Chicago in his 46 Rough Rider, powered by 1,200-hp engines.

Above: Mark Pickett’s 38 Top Gun. Right: The Picketts with their friends, the Kirks.

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Cigarette Rendevous

Top: Brittney Adkison, Mackenzie Manire, Terri Adams, Nikki Cushman and Missi Coil enjoy the pool party. Above: Cigarette President Skip Braver, Bud Larrow and Derek Walkham in the AMG Cigarette.

Above right: Darren Oben in his 38 Top Gun. Middle right: Chris Harbison in his 46' Rough Rider, powered by 900-hp Mercs.

Bottom right: Brian Gardner drives his 38' Top Gun.

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Cigarette Rendevous

Gary Atz in his 38' Top Gun, Chasing Fate.

Mike Sayers’ 39' Top Gun, purchased from Performance Boat Center.

Top: Kent Waisner of Kansas City in his 39' Top Gun. Above: Jeremy Morris’s 38 Top Gun, purchased from Performance Boat Center.

Below: Brandon Burgess of Wisconsin drives his 39' Top Gun, previously a Mercury Racing test boat.

Meeting for lunch at the popular Redhead Lakeside Grill.

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OBSERVER’S SEAT RAY LEE [Continued from page 8] names on a news report. These were friends.

The outpouring of emotion, tributes and respect was overwhelming. The familiar logo of that skull wearing a red cowboy hat and kerchief was everywhere you looked. Women and men had their toenails painted candy green in loving memory. Eyes welled up with tears whenever their names entered a conversation, which happened a lot! Donations for the families were flooding in and free Saddle Up branded T-shirts were flowing out.

This community was hurting and this was their therapy. Godspeed “Antnee” and Tammy… “Until We Meet Again.”

Saturday was the main event of the Poker Run but it was cut short, even before it began. Producer Chad Collier was up with the sun to monitor the conditions of the course for the day. Due to the heavy rains in the last few days, the lake had been littered with debris. Collier made the difficult (yet wise) decision to reduce to run to only a couple nearby card stops for the sake of the boaters and their equipment.

However, no one really seemed to mind. This just meant that the day’s raftup and pizza party would start that much sooner. Yes, that’s right…Pizza Party! This event offers a complimentary pepperoni pizza to each of the boats that are registered into the event. Extra pizzas were available for those with larger crews.

(Antacids not included.)

We definitely enjoyed our time in Nashville, both on the waterway and on Broadway, and we especially enjoyed all of the new friends that we met there.

Special thanks go out to Chad and Heather Collier and Clint and Kelly Goff for accommodating two boatless hobos from the west coast all weekend long.

“Y’all are awesome!”

We hope to be at the Old Hickory Fun Run 2017 with the hundreds of likeminded people that are looking to have a good time with great folks, for the short time that we’re there. After all… Isn’t that what it’s all about?

“Until We Meet Again.” speedboat.com

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SPEEDBOAT |

September 2016

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Ski Race

Catalina Australian skier Wayne Mawer wins the 68th annual competition.

Story by Brett

Bayne Photos by Todd Taylor and Daren Van Ryte

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Men’s Open Mike Avila (below) pulls Wayne Mawer (inset) to victory and the overall win.

Men’s Open Nordic President Randy Davis pulled Todd Haig (inset) to a third-place finish overall.

M

r. Warpath, a 43' Fountain driven by Mike Avila and

pulling Australian skier Wayne Mawer, took top honors at the 68th annual Catalina Ski Race.

Avila and his crew raced in Men’s Open Class, which featured the two next-fastest teams: See Spot Run (driven by Sean Clancy and featuring Aussie skier Ben Gully) with a time of 50 minutes, 45.82 seconds, and Nordic Racing (driven by Randy Davis and featuring American skier Todd Haig) with a time of 51 minutes, 46.00 seconds.

Haig, who has won the title 12 times—most recently in 2014, in a spectacular split-second decision—last year had to settle for second place behind skier Jake Tegart, who was pulled

by Mike Avila. Avila dashed Haig’s efforts again this year, forcing him into a third-place finish behind both Avila (with skier Mawer) and driver Sean Clancy (with skier Ben Gully).

Finishing fourth overall was Intermediate Men competitor Sean Moore, driving the 42' Fountain Extreme Insanity with observer Brent Wisemantel, navigator Molly Moore and skier Cameron Osborne from Australia, with a time of 54 minutes, 13.91 seconds. Finishing second in the class was the Fired Up Outerlimits (with driver Craig Cleaver pulling Aussie native Jack Harrison, who skied to the class win in 2015.

Highlights from other classes included: • Women’s Open: The class was won by Jody Campbell, who pulled Australian skier Rachael Stapleton in the 42' Fountain Bad Bones with a time of 1 hour, 2 minutes and 40.64 seconds. Their crew included Rory Brown (observer) and Jason LaBahn (navigator/throttles). In second place was Gordon Jennings driving Nordic Racing, a 42' Nordic, with American skier Katelin Wendt; they were victorious in the class in 2015.

• Veteran Men driver Lee Spindler, owner of Schiada Boats, drove his 42' Schiada to the class win (and fifth overall) pulling Australian skier Daniel Cotton.

• Senior Men: Skier Jack Lynch of England topped the class, and was the sixth finisher overall, driven by Ryan Sharman in the 36' Apache Fra Diavolo.

• The Junior Boys entry Geri’s Beach House, a 38' Fountain, was won by driver Gene Welter with Australian skier Luke Harrison.

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Catalina Ski Race

Masters Driver Art Kaiser pulls USA skier Lee Squire to the win in their class.

Masters Bob Leach, president of Eliminator Boats, drove this 30' Eliminator, pulling American skier Jay Gotfredson.

Intermediate Women Driver Wayne Lee pulled Aussie skier Shantelle King to victory in the 42' Fountain Rampage, assisted by Ron Songrath on throttles.

Open Day Cruiser Driver Mike Maginn pulled USA skier Jeff Maginn (far right) to the class win in this 26' Scarab.

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Catalina Ski Race

Over and Back Ed Herbst drives skiers Scott Brooks and Tom Perry for the win.

Expert Men M&M Marine (above, with skier Darren Reilly) took the class win, while Junkyard Bill (below) followed close behind.

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Intermediate Men Driver Sean Moore pulled skier Cameron Osborne (far right) to victory in their class.

Expert Men competitor Turbosonic (above), a 38' Formula with driver Lucian Lyall and navigator Kylie Lyall.

• Over & Back driver Ed Herbst, in the 40' Hallett Mr. Terrible, took the class win driving skiers Scott Brooks and Tom Perry, representing both Great Britain and Australia, respectively. They were followed a couple of minutes later by driver Ross Kennedy in the 38' Scarab Team Kennedy, pulling American skiers Don and Brett Kennedy. • Sportsman: Colin Morris, driving the 21 Cyclone Wilson Racing, nabbed first place with a time of 1 hour, 15 minutes and 6.11 seconds. He pulled American skier Brett Leonard.

In all, the race featured no fewer than 10 Fountain hulls, the most of any single brand. Other popular models represented in this race included Formula, Nordic, Hallett and Schiada.

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legends

Interview by Brett

Bayne Photography by Paul Kemiel

In our seventh installment of our Hall of Fame series, we salute champion offshore legend Bobby Moore, the man who virtually invented the job of throttleman. Until the late 1990s, Moore was the most winning throttleman in offshore powerboat racing history. His titles were earned at the helm of many different hulls, with a wide variety of drivers, and all over the globe. Now 76 years old, Moore talks with Speedboat Magazine about his estimable racing career.

Bobby Moore

S

lip into the imaginary helmet of the pro-level offshore throttleman and consider the challenges at hand:

• You must never get too comfortable in the seat of your season’s ride, for you will most surely be uprooted to some other boat, beside some other wheel man, in the short term.

• You will have no control or influence over the relative skills of that cockpit partner, who will rely on you to judge just how much throttle he can handle to bring his million-dollar plaything to the brink of disaster, without crossing the line.

Above: Bobby Moore at an offshore race in Chicago, 1991 (left) and at his North Carolina home today (right).

Below: PTM Express, a 47’ Apache deep vee hull driven by Phil Meshinsky with Moore on the throttles, races to a first-place finish in Bay City, MI, in 1988.

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e

• Your workplace is an ever-changing, unpredictable environment in which the swells sometimes reach housesized proportions, and speeds climb to upwards of 100 miles per hour.

It was under these chaotic conditions that Bobby Moore—at one time the most winning throttleman in offshore powerboat racing history—earned his reputation as the sport’s deadliest hired gun, winning 12 National and World Championships. His titles were earned behind the throttles of ten different boats, sitting next to ten different drivers.

Moore was riding mechanic for Dick Bertram (Bertram Yacht Company) in 1964, and won some races before being recruited by Holman-Moody (of the big, bad Ford 427 fame). A year later, he was riding alongside Don Aronow and maintaining his race boats.

Moore’s first racing title came in 1970, alongside Bill Wishnick. He wrapped three more titles around a stint in the Vietnam War—his duty call was, of course, powerboat operation and maintenance—before retiring from racing in 1978. He set racing aside for 10 years to build up Bobby Moore Custom Marine in North Miami Beach, then staged an astounding comeback, winning eight more titles in ten years.

Among the boats he raced during this comeback: • PTM Express, a 47' Apache deep-vee driven by Phil Meshinsky. Their firstplace finish, with an average speed of 80.47 mph in Superboat Class, was one of the highlights of the 1988 offshore race in Bay City, MI. • Eric’s Reality, a 48' Cougar cat owned and driven by Charlie Marks. Their average speed of 97.12 helped them clinch numerous APBA races in Fort Meyers, FL, Grand Haven, MI, and Traverse City, MI, in 1989.

• Spirit of Amazon, a 48' Cougar cat owned and driven by Eike Batista. The pair took the boat to victory in 1991 at OPT Offshore races in Chicago, IL, and Cocoa Beach, FL. • Katana, a 46' Skater driven by Kimitoshi Hosotani. The team won the 1994 Offshore World Championships in Key West, FL, in Open Class.

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Katana, a 46' Skater, wins the 1994 Offshore World Championships in Open Class with driver Kimitoshi Hosotani and throttleman Bobby Moore.

Moore’s son Billy has carried on his father’s legacy, throttling the 42' MTI Team Qatar with driver Ali Al-Neama during the 2013 Super Boat world championships, as well as PersuCat Racing, a 44' MTI driven by Paul Boudreaux in OSS 750 Class.

Bobby Moore is now retired and living in North Carolina with his wife Joanne, but generously agreed to speak with Speedboat Magazine about some of the highlights in his truly illustrious career.

Speedboat: After retiring from racing the first time, you opened a shop in Miami Beach, and now your son Billy lives on Florida’s West Coast.

Bobby Moore: That’s true. My shop was

caption in Miami on 188th Street, next door to Cigarette, for about ten years. But I’m originally from North Carolina, near New Bern, which is where the Hattaras Yacht Company is. I moved back up here because I still have some family up here.

I ended up working for David Woods,

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Speedboat Legends

Above: Owner/driver Charlie Marks with Bobby Moore on the throttles take first place piloting the 48' Cougar cat Eric’s Reality in Superboat class with a 108.34 mph average at the 1989 APBA race in Traverse City, MI. Left: Marks and Moore after their win. the guy who owned Pier 57 of Tennessee from 2001 to 2004, I guess it was. But for the last ten years, David quit racing, and he didn’t need me around. So my son Billy and I opened a little shop here just east of New Bern. I sold some Skaters and rigged them in my shop. We would buy the hulls from Douglas Marine Skater and rig them. We built a complete boat that we tested and made sure was working well and delivered some good speed.

I rigged a 32, a 36, a 40 and two 46s. We did some other work, too. But that was our main income for a while, selling boats. We also sold a few used boats.

SB: So you were essentially a Skater dealer in North Carolina.

BM: Yes, and down in Florida, too. Once we got up here, he didn’t have anybody in this area. And I still had customers from down in Florida. They’d call me and want advice, and sometimes they’d actually bring the boat up here if they wanted some different rigging done to it. They’d have us do it.

SB: Are you still involved in selling boats?

BM: No, I’m 76 now, so I’m sitting on the 58

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couch. (Laughter) I try to keep up with the NASCAR circuit, the Formula One and the Indy car series. That’s my main entertainment. I fish a little bit locally.

We’ve got a small fishing boat that we use. My oldest son, Bobby Jr. who is 46, lives next door to me. He’s the captain on the ferry up here. He’s got two kids.

Billy moved back down to Florida because he wanted to be involved in the high-performance boating, and it wasn’t happening around here. He now works down at Pro Marine Boat Sales in St. Petersburg. He got a chance to work for Todd Warner, who owns Statement Marine and Pro Marine.

SB: You’ve always been known as Bobby. Is your real name Robert?

BM: No! It’s actually Bobby Gene. I was named after Bob Steele and Gene Autry, a couple of famous actors in Western films.

SB: Do you miss racing the big offshore boats?

BM: Yeah, I do miss it. I really loved racing, especially if I was in a good team— and I was lucky enough to be on many of them over the years.

SB: How did you carve out a niche for yourself in the beginning?

BM: I started out racing with Dick Bertram in 1964 as the riding mechanic.

I was 23 years old and there were about 10 mechanics working in the shop there.

I was the youngest, but the most eager.

Mr. Bertram asked me one day, “Bobby, how would you like to go to Europe for the summer with me?”

I said, “That sounds good. What are we going to do?”

He said, “I’m going to ship the boat there and we’re going to race the circuit over there for three or four races.”

And that’s what we did. We had a pair of 409-c.i. Daytona twin-turbo engines on V drives on a 31 Bertram. We shipped it to Europe, then flew over and picked up the boat in Livorno (a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of Tuscany, Italy). There was a big race every year from Viareggio over to the island of Corsica and back. We ran that race and won both legs of it. Actually, we spent the night in Corsica and raced back the following day. (Italian designer) Sonny Levy was the most competitive person there. He had a nice boat with a pair of speedboat.com

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big engines in it. But he couldn’t outrun us! I guess we had more technology and Bertram’s engines were very strong twin turbos. Back in ’64, they were making big horsepower and they still make big horsepower!

SB: The following year, you went to work for Holman-Moody, which was a famous American builder of race cars and marine engines.

BM: Yes, they were an engine company outside of Charlotte, founded by John Holman and Ralph Moody. They did all of Ford Motor Company’s racing back then. They had a big shop by the airport and they did all of the stock car racing.

That was when I started racing with Bill Wishnick, head of the Witco Chemical Co. in New York.

SB: In fact, it was with Wishnick that you captured your first racing title.

BM: Yes. That was in 1970, because I got drafted at the end of 1966—even though I was married and had a daughter by my first marriage, and owned a house and had a great job working for HolmanMoody flying all over the country racing.

I got drafted and had to go to Vietnam from 1967 to 1968. Anyway, I got through that and made it back. Then I took a job working for the Italian race crew headed up by [Vincenzo] Balestrieri. I had flown over and met those guys and they offered me a good salary. They wanted me to spend about half a year living over there in Italy. It sounded good, but I’ve lived over there and know what it’s like.

I didn’t want to spend that much time over there.

Afterwards, I ran into Bill Wishnick, who had assembled a crew out of California. I ran into him at Allan Brown’s New Year’s Eve party in Miami and he said, “Bobby! Why didn’t you tell me you were back?” He asked me what I was doing, and I told him I had been working with the Italians. So Bill offered me a job, and I took that deal.

I started racing with him in 1969. We had a good season, and in August of that year, we were racing in L.A. It was rough out there, and I said to Bill, “Let me help you throttle,” because back then the boats were hard to drive. Even speedboat.com

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Speedboat Legends

Above: Spirit of the Amazon, a 48' Cougar cat with Eike Batista driving and Bobby Moore on the throttles, tackle the Pacific Ocean at an OPT Offshore race in Long Beach, CA in 1991. Right: Moore, Batista and crew chief Randy Robinson celebrate a win in Cocoa Beach, FL, the same year.

though they had power steering, it was still tough. You were struggling to drive it, throttle it and trim it. He just wasn’t skillful at doing it all particularly well.

The only one who was really good at it was Bob Nordskog, and he used a foot throttle. He was a tough old geezer, I tell you! He was impressive. We beat him in a lot of races. He couldn’t outrun us, but he was always very competitive, like Betty Cook was. She and John Connors were outstanding racers.

Anyway, toward the end of the season, around August, he let me start throttling the boat for him. The following year, we won just about everything.

We won the National Championship.

Then, in 1971, we took the boat to Europe for Cigarette. We had a Bertram in ’70, and in ’71, we had a new 32 Cigarette. It was a lot more stable and a little bit faster. We took it to Europe and won the first five races over there.

SB: What was that experience like?

BM: Well, going into the Cowes-Torquay Race [in the U.K.], I swear the seas were 20-25 feet. You couldn’t run more than 60

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15-20 mph out there! It was extremely dangerous, and there were no safety boats anywhere. Also, you had a very long way to travel across that open sea.

If we’d had an engine get swamped, it would have been really bad news. After about 20 miles, Bill said, “The hell with this! We’re going to have stop and come back. We’ll race another day. If we get swamped out here, we’re gonna die!” We had a British guy named Ray Bolman as a navigator, and he got so pissed off he started cursing and carrying on. I thought I was going to have to throw him overboard. (Laughter) SB: Are you still considered the winningest throttleman in offshore racing history?

BM: I was up until the late 1990s. Then Steve Curtis and Johnny Tomlinson took that honor. I’ve known Johnny since he was about 19 years old, and his partner Mike worked for me for about a year in the 1980s. When he got out of high school, he came down and got a job with me working in the shop and was a good worker. He and Johnny had gone to school and graduated together, and eventually launched

their own business. But if I was 30 years old, I could compete with anybody.

SB: They eventually bought out your company, is that correct?

BM: Oh yeah. I decided it was better to sell it to them, because I knew them.

SB: You’ve participated in an uncountable amount of races, but is there one that stands out as being particularly memorable?

BM: One of the top ones was probably the Sarasota race in ’96. I was racing with Jim Robinson in the 46' Skater Nuff Respect, which was powered by four MerCruiser 1000SC race engines. It wasn’t real rough, exactly, but when you got out there and started running fast— 120-130 mph—let me tell you, it got tricky. Jim was in a pissy mood that day, which made me kind of anxious because he was the kind of guy who, if he didn’t like something, would just quit racing for the year! So I took it easy. I didn’t want to scare him or hurt him or let the boat get away from him in that tricky water. And Matt Alcone and Jerry Gilbreath [in the defending Superboat World Champion speedboat.com

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Alcone Motorsports] were about threequarters of a mile in front of us.

Jim said, “Bobby, why are we running like we’re running? I thought we could outrun that boat.” He was right—we had beaten them every race.

I said, “Well, I didn’t want to scare you by spinning the boat out….”

He said, “Oh, hell!”

We finally met them as they were coming out of the south turn, and Jim said, “Do you think we can catch them before the finish?”

Well, it was about a 13-mile run. I said, “I don’t know, but we’ll try. I’m gonna drop the damn hammer on it.”

And I did. And the faster we went, the better the ride it was. We were at 155 mph in the back stretch and in 4-foot seas. Of course, we had Jim Robinson’s own safety helicopter flying overhead, so if we got into trouble—spun out or barrel rolled or whatever—we might have a chance of living.

Meanwhile, Matt and Jerry had their helicopter over them. But we ran so fast on that back stretch, when we got to the north turn, we were very close behind them. And they didn’t see us because of the helicopter, but they were running as hard as they could. Their boat was pretty fast. It only had two engines, a pair of 1,300-hp Sterlings, in it. And it was fast—it would probably run as fast as we could, but not in the rough, because our boat was heavier with those four engines, and we had more torque.

So when we came out of that turn, I could see the finish buoys about a half mile ahead of us. I passed them about 300 yards before the finish, got by them and won the race. When we did that, that was just satisfying. Jim Robinson looked over at me and said, “I can’t believe this damn boat! What you did there, I couldn’t believe it!” Of course he was a good driver because he could fly a jet fighter, he had a G-4 Gulfstream jet. He had a helicopter. He flew all that stuff. He had 13 fighter jets at one time.

The government made him get rid of them—he gave them to the museum up in Oshkosh, WI. That was probably one of the most satisfying races I ever had. speedboat.com

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New Products BRETT BAYNE

Nighttime Illumination Vivid Industries of Laguna Beach, CA, is offering an anchor light with integrated deck lighting, appropriately named, the Big Stick, offers a new alternative to the traditional anchor light. Four models of the Big Stick are available for purchase: 4-, 5- and 6-foot models that plug into the stern light socket on most boats, and a 4-foot model that can be hardwired to work with an external mount, allowing adjustments in height for boats such as pontoon boats in the event of low clearance.

Unlike other similar products, the Big Stick is proudly made in the United States.

A majority of the materials used to make a Big Stick are American made, all the way down to the bezel, which is built from extremely strong 7075-T6 billet aluminum. The anchor light on the Big Stick is USCG 3NM approved (but can be seen from an even greater distance). Distinct features to the Big Stick include: • A 20" separation of the integrated deck lighting from the masthead light to

eliminate a “state of confusion” between the two sources of light.

• Deck lighting that can be ran whilst underway thanks to the 20” separation (but it is always important to know the lighting rules of the waterway you are operating on) • Deck lighting that can be dimmed to the driver’s preference or turned off if so desired (with the masthead light remaining on at all times) • Multiple colors and lighting modes for the deck lighting all in one.

• 1-inch outer diameter acrylic tubing that makes up the body of each Big Stick.

• RF remote that is used to control the deck lighting and the many colors and modes that comes with it.

Not only is the Big Stick useful to help find your friends on the water (thanks to the numerous color options in the deck lighting), but it also increases the safety of the vessel. The deck lighting can be run even when underway (with certain

colors) thanks to the 20" separation, adding more light to your boat making it easier to see. It is important that the operator knows the lighting rules and regulations of their waterway. The anchor light on top is USCG 3NM, but it can be seen an even greater distance adding to the safety of the vessel. If you’re looking for a product to stand out on the water, or to improve your safety, look no further than the Big Stick.

For more information, call (570) 8848438 or visit vividindustries.com.

LED Grab Handles Custom Boats Unlimited of Larwill, IN, has introduced its new line of LED Grab Handles. The NFX-S1 Handles were designed to offer boat enthusiasts some exciting “never-seen-before” options when it comes to accessorizing your boat and taking your boat’s interior to the next level.

The handles are machined from 6061-T6 aluminum and feature integrated LED lighting. For a true customized look, you can choose from a natural brushed finish, a polished mirror finish, or a color anodized finish (red, green blue, orange, or purple).

Various LED color options are available as well to create almost any color combination imaginable. The handles are available in three different standard lengths of 10.5", 62

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16.5” or 22.5" (mounting bolt spacing).

With simple two-wire, 12-volt hookup and supplied installation hardware, setup is a breeze. The LEDs use very little battery power and are guaranteed to last over 50,000 hours.

The patent pending NFX-S1 Handles feature three acrylic lenses which are located on both sides and the underside of the handle and extend the full length of the grip area. The lenses diffuse the LED light flawlessly to create a uniform glow and eliminate the common LED “hot spots.”

Undesired hot spots are the result of varying light intensity created from the spacing between individual LED chips. The lenses are also UV resistant so they won’t discolor

over time.

The NFX-S1 Handles are machined and assembled in the USA and come with a lifetime warranty. For more information, call (877) 338-2297 or visit CustomBoatsUnlimited.com.

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Brett’s ‘SPOOKY’ COLE

ALSO: • Al Alcorn Tribute • Lucas Oil in Augusta

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SPOOKY S

teve Faist has a long history as a “wheeler-dealer” of boats.

He loves to buy them, fix them up and then sell them. Years ago, Faist had a blown gas Placecraft tunnel jet as part of his muscleboat collection. As the story goes, race legend Tony Scarlata called a friend of Faist’s and alerted him to the pending sale of a famous Cole factory boat called Spooky that was up for grabs in Michigan. The ad said: “Will trade for a Placecraft.”

“I called the guy and talked to him.

Mind you, this was back in the days when there were no cell phones,” Faist chuckles. “We were making videos of our boats and swapping VHS tapes.”

Eventually Faist drove to Wichita, KS, to swap boats. “We traded minus motors,” he says. “It was a wild trip.

We left on a Friday morning to go to Wichita and we were back in my driveway by noon on Sunday.”

The engine has been upgraded a few times, but the current motor runs on gasoline. “A lot of people think it’s an alcohol boat, but it’s not. The engine is just a Chevrolet.” After sitting dormant for many years, Faist finally finished putting it together a few years ago, and has had it out about four times since.

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The former Cole Factory Boat comes out of hiding, courtesy of owner Steve Faist.

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Photography by Brett

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Bayne

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Photography by Brett

Bayne

Shannon Amaral’s 1971 17'10" Sanger Circle Runner, powered by a LS6 454.

Boogie

FEVER

Central California’s Flat Bottom Boogie draws old-school muscleboats to Club Royal Oak on the scenic Kings River.

L

dreams’ for them and their flatbottom ocated 20 miles south- people come in the gate than last year.”

Among the people entering the gates boats,” Degenhardt said. “This is what east of Fresno, in the city of Kingsburg, you’ll was Jason Merritt, who in 2013 grabbed they used to be able to do back in the

find Club Royal Oak— an RV park along Central California’s Kings River. The venue recently played host to Flat Bottom Boogie, a combination show-andshine, meet-and-greet and speed exhibition that gathers V-drives and jetboats together each July for a nonstop, party-filled weekend. Speedboat was on the scene to capture images from this fun-filled event, the seventh annual festival to hit the park.

Attendance was up, which seemed to please organizer (and Club Royal Oak owner) Alan Degenhardt. “This year we had 25 percent more boats than last year,” he told Speedboat. “We had more than 400

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the honor of Flat Bottom Boogie Man, having the fastest boat—a 1989 Mako with a blown and injected 468 BBC engine.

For various reasons, speed is measured by time, not mph; Merritt crossed from point A to B on the river in just 3.2 seconds this year, once again earning him bragging rights and the “Boogie Man” title. His closest competitor came close, with a time of 3.22 seconds.

Club Royal Oak is the ideal location for an event like this, with plenty of campsites, a fitness center, restroom facilities with showers, horseshoes and truly beautiful scenery. “I can’t tell you how many times that guys in their 50s and 60s told me that this was the ‘field of

1960s and ’70s, right on this river. Those days have come back to them now— they couldn’t do it until a few years ago, when we brought this event forward.”

The lifestyle of the folks at Flat Bottom Boogie was evident by their friendly attitude, and how helpful and encouraging they were to each other.

It led to a very positive three days. And now, according to Degenhardt, sponsors have shown interest in helping the event expand beyond Kingsburg; expect to see a Flat Bottom Boogie next year in Long Beach and perhaps a few other locations. The entire staff of Speedboat Magazine thanks Club Royal Oak for hosting us! speedboat.com

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Brian Dunn in his 2014 Bullet TR4, powered by a Dart 540 BBC. Will Binder drives his 1977 Hondo, pushed by a 540 blown BBC.

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Boogie Fever

The 1989 Mako (with blown injected 468 BBC) owned by Jason Merritt, the 2013 and 2016 “Flat Bottom Boogie Man.”

Sponsor 805 Brewing Company’s display.

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Above: Larry Kelton displays his 1978 DiMarco, powered by a 540 blown injected BBC built by Ken’s Automotive.

Right: Wayne Safechuck’s 1973 Kurtis Kraft runner bottom V-drive. “It sat in someone’s backyard for over 20 years,” he says. “I repainted it and put a new engine in it.” It’s a 468-c.i. Chevy with steel crank, Carillo rods, 871 blower and 850 Holleys. Spinning a two-blade prop, he was clocked at 117 mph on an eighth-mile course.

Below: Twisted, a 1978 Hondo T-Deck Runner Bottom, powered by a 468-c.i. BBC. It runs on pump gas.

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Boogie Fever

Above: Gary Gebert drives his 1987 Mako, powered by a 470 BBC built by Lew Larson.

Left: Daniel Kerber of Fresno shows off his 1981 Hondo runner bottom, which he drives at NJBA races in Top Eliminator and Super Eliminator classes.

Bottom left: Orin Lewis’s 1987 18' Pantera 1987. On board are his son Beau, 10, and some friends. The 60-mph boat has a crate 350 with a Panther jet.

Bottom right: Dave Trantham’s 1979 Hondo picklefork hydro V-drive with a 581-c.i. engine. It’s a Dart block with 871 blower, and built by Norm Grimes.

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Nanette Moreno of Jet Renu effortlessly applies a sparkling shine to Jeff Worthen’s beautiful Biesemeyer. Left: The chrome, before and after polish is applied.

Among the exhibitors showcas- cess is the fact that they are the direct is marketed through the company’s ing their boats and products manufacturer, in charge of all its own growing dealer network.

“All of our products are universal—they at Flat Bottom Boogie: Jet Renu researching and testing in laboratories. of Corona, CA, maker of numerous cleaning systems for the watercraft and motorsports industries. Nanette Moreno and her team not only sold their proven cleaners and waxers, but demonstrated to showgoers exactly how well the products worked on their boats. The luster and shine she summoned—even on boats that weren’t necessarily filthy—was remarkable to witness.

One explanation for Jet Renu’s sucspeedboat.com

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In addition, they’ve got an elaborate testing network across the country. “That’s why we know it works,” says Moreno.

In addition to Jet Renu’s familiar color-titled products (Green, Purple, Yellow), the firm showed off its new Restoration Kit, which packages together everything you’ll need to make your boat look like it just came off the showroom floor. It includes Jet Renu’s C1 polish, C2 glaze and C3 sealer wax, and

never go out of style or season, you get a great bang for your buck, and they’re long lasting,” Moreno says.

Her latest product introduction is Stank Away, which removes odors and restores the original smell to neoprene for water sports enthusiasts who use wetsuits.

For more information, or to find a dealer near you, please visit jetrenu.com.

You can also find an “order button” on Jet Renu’s official Facebook page.

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Remembering

Al Alcorn Friends and family pay tribute to the late V-drive enthusiast with a touching memorial on Big River, CA.

Photos by Mark

McLaughlin

B

eginning in the early Two years ago, when Al was diag- er bling on display; by all accounts, 1990s, Al Alcorn and nosed with a liver disease, the family everything was going great—that is, his family threw a sprang into action. Joe and his brother, until about 2:30 on Saturday afternoon.

V-drive party on Father’s Day weekend at an RV park along Southern California’s Big River.

His son Joe remembers the meets fondly: “Dozens of flatbottoms showed up to it,” he says. “We did it for about 12 years straight—it got bigger and bigger every year.” Alas, the tradition was stymied several years ago, due to rising costs and the growing popularity of other groups’ V-drive meets.

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Al Alcorn Jr., wanted to throw one last Alcorn bash as a tribute to their dad, the proud owner of a blown alcohol flatbottom. Regrettably, Al Sr. died about a month before the meet, scheduled for summer 2016, so the event turned into a memorial to the beloved patriarch.

Attendees with about 40 boats showed up to pay their respects. There was a live band, great food, event shirts for sale and plenty of big-horsepow-

That’s when Joe crashed his boat, a 1980 DiMarco T-Deck, powered by a 572-c.i. blown injected alky motor. The boat was demolished, and Joe broke four vertebrae in his back, along with four ribs.

“The only reason I’m alive is because of my life jacket and my helmet,” he says.

Joe is currently recuperating at home, but his spirits are high, and he’s already talking about plans to mount another V-drive gathering next year. speedboat.com

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Below: Tommy Huff in Black Rat, his 1973 Hondo XH 511 straight deck, powered by a 427-c.i. race motor built by Lew Larson.

Left: A banner at the event pays tribute to its late founder, Al Alcorn.

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Remembering Alcorn

Left: Joe Alcorn’s 1980 DiMarco T-Deck before and after the crash that landed Al’s son in the hospital. “It came up, chined and stuffed the nose,” Joe says. “The boat disintegrated and I flew out. The only reason I’m alive is because of my life jacket and my helmet.” The boat’s 572-c.i. blown injected motor was salvaged. Above: Joe, recuperating at home, displays a remnant of the boat’s transom.

Below: Brian Church in his 2004 Hondo T-Deck, powered by a 468-c.i. tunnel ram motor.

Bottom: Albert Albani drives his 1976 Litchifeld.

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Left: Steve Rubideaux drives his 1989 Cole TR2, powered by a 540 Brodix alky engine. Below: Brent Valance in his 1980 Hondo T-Deck; it’s got a 468-c.i. big-block Chevy.

Left: Shane Westerfield in his 2012 Cole TR4, powered by a 557-c.i. blown gas Arias.

Below left: Steve Baker’s 1976 Sanger, Ivory Hunter. It’s got a 427-c.i. big-block Chevy.

Below: Chris Braum pilots his Spitfire circle boat competitor; it has a 540-c.i. alcohol motor.

caption

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Augusta

Southern Nationals The Lucas Oil competition celebrates its 30th Anniversary on the Savannah River.

Photography by R. Michelle

Percival

–

S

cott Lumbert repeated marked the 30th anniversary of an event marks the midway point of the Lucas his Top Fuel Hydro win that draws one of the largest crowds for an Oil Drag Boat Racing Series, known as

this year at the Augusta Southern Nationals drag boat races—matching last year’s speed of 262 mph in the MAVTV/ Spirit of Texas machine, owned by David Kirkland of Garland, TX. Lumbert’s ET was 3.4954, compared to last year’s time of 3.536.

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outdoor event to the area each year.

“I don’t know of any other boat race in the country that’s had the same local sponsoring group for 30 years,” said race chairman Dayton Sherrouse.

“That’s a milestone not only for drag boat racing, but for any outdoor special event to maintain for so long.”

The Southern Nationals officially

the world’s richest drag boat race, with a total purse covering all classifications estimated to be over $135,000. (That’s including $12,000 for the winner in Top Fuel Hydro class.)

Daryl Ehrlich was the runner up in Problem Child, owned by Eddie Knox; his ET was 3.7198, with a speed of 244 mph. The #1 qualifier was Tommy speedboat.com

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Below: MAVTV/Spirit of Texas and Problem Child duke it out for the lead.

Right: Winner Scott Lumbert, driver of the MAVTV machine.

Thompson’s Nitrochondriac, which recently set a drag boat record by hitting 263 mph with an elapsed time of 3.48 in San Angelo, TX, on June 27. On elimination day, though, both Nitrochondriac and Problem Child experienced mechanical issues—and neither made it across the finish line.

This year’s race added a third day of competition to the mix: Friday and Saturday were qualifying days, and Sunday speedboat.com

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continued to be an elimination day.

Throughout the weekend of racing, temperatures were sweltering, and racers could be heard to say that “the devil went down to Georgia” because of the hotter-than-Hell weather conditions.

In Top Alcohol Hydro, it was Tommy Thompson’s #1 qualifier Untouchable, driven by Steve Streeter of Scottsdale, AZ, that prevailed, with an ET of 4.752 and a speed of 180.38. Runner up was

Total Kaos, owned and driven by Rick Allen of Ft. Smith, AR. Top Alcohol Flat was won by Spirit of America, owned and driven by Spike Gorr of Lake Havasu City, AZ, with an ET of 5.6327 and a speed of 137.38 mph. Runner up was Tony Scarlata in Shazam, driving for Tommy Thompson.

In Pro Mod action, Hillbilly Xpress, owned and driven by Jimmy Booher of Rogers, AR, took the win in the class.

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Augusta Summer Nationals Pro Eliminator Winner Rick Conklin in Calculated Risk.

Modified Eliminator Winner Joe Peroceschi in Smokin’ Joe.

Quick Eliminator Winner Ed Anderson in Red Hot.

Stock Eliminator Winner Bill Glisson in Steak & Shake.

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Top Eliminator Winner Barry Salsman in Amazin.

Pro Mod Winner Jimmy Booher in Hillbilly XPress.

Pro Outlaw Winner Tom Brasher in Desperado.

Top Alcohol Flat Winner Spike Gorr in Spirit of America.

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Augusta Summer Nationals

Top Alcohol Hydro Winner Steve Streeter in Tommy Thompson’s Untouchable.

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Industry News

[Continued from page 16]

BRETT BAYNE

Parker to Host Hot Boats Pirates Den Resort of Parker, AZ, is gearing up for its latest Hot Boats on the Parker Strip event to take place Oct. 1-2 at the resort.

There are no noise restrictions on all registered boats, and no side-by-side racing. The event, which will feature a “show and shine” exhibit, requires a $40 boat fee, which includes a T-shirt.

Waterfront camping fees range from $35 to $60 per night.

For reservations, call Lori at (928) 667-3102, or email lori@ piratesdenresort.com. Space is limited to the first 100 paid entires.

Algae Bloom Closes Lake Elsinore

Lake Elsinore, a popular playground for speedboats located between Los Angeles and San Diego, has been closed to boats, fishing and swimming after water-quality officials detected harmful levels of toxins related to blue-green algae. At press time, it was reported that the lake would be closed until further notice.

Similar algae blooms have also resulted in the closure of other California lakes, including Pyramid Lake in Los Angeles County, Lake Temescal in Oakland and the Delta’s Discovery Bay.

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