Dave and Bobby Switzer: Switzer Wings

There seems to be about 8 pages here on BRF about Switzer Boats, but I can't find anything about Dave and Bobby Switzer.

Here is a note from Bobby about the 1952 Stock Outboard Nationals where Bobby won DU.

Friday, November 30, 2012 4:05 PM
Dear Ron,

We, you and I never got to know each other very well what with the distance we
love apart.

My introduction to the Hill name came from you dad inspecting my DU 'Stock outboard
back in 1952. I had a borrowed engine from Milt Anderson out of the
Jack Maypole racing camp. My Merc 25 was faltering from a cracked
filter stone that was sucking air and causing my engine to sputter during
my elimination heat where I was not pre-qualified from my Region 7 race
because the engine was sputtering during that race too. I took it to Mercury
and they called me a week later and said there is nothing wrong with it.

So I took a chance and ran in the qualifying DU heat, to come in 5th place
and that was all I needed to qualify to be in the finals. And when the guys
from the Jack Maypole racing group saw that I was in first place at the start
of that qualifying heat and heard the motor sputtering along falling back 1 place
each lap, they offered me one of their spare power heads to use in the finals.

I'll never forget, I had to run about 800 ft to the judges tent to change the
serial number on my entry fee to match the borrowed engine, then run back
to jump into my Switzer Craft DU Bullet. I made the finals and came in first
place much to the dismay of the guy " Jiggs Jerson" from Neenha 'Wis who
won the Region 7 race where I first experienced the sputtering problem.

Now, to the good part of the name Hill. Your dad inspected my borrowed
engine and questioned its configuration because it had 8 reeds instead of
the usual 4 on the reed cage on the crank. Some of the inspectors wanted
to disqualify me for the 8 reed cage. Then your dad, Russ Hill, came to my
rescue by pulling out some Mercury factory spec sheet to learn that it was
one of the only 50 made (to make it a legal engine) and only a selected few
had... not me, since as you know I borrowed it from the Jack Maypole camp
and he and Carl Kiekahfer were more than close friends.. Jack Maypole was
one of the largest Johnson Outboard Dealers in the Chicagoland area. and
stored Merc engines for Chet Todd the Mercury Distributor for IL;.

Your dad told all the inspectors in the tent that my motor was a KG-9- HD

I guess the HD was the symbol for the 50 made with the 8 reed cage.

Any, while others were quick to disqualify me, your dad said: "Wait a minute"

This could be one of those 50 HD's and it is a legal engine.

What a great dad you had..

I'll never forget him!

Yours truly,

Bob Switzer