British Anzani A & B Stock & Alky Racing Engines

[F HARRIS]

I do remember your name. The 1968 forest lake race I was commodor of Midwest Power Boat Assn and my racing days were coming to an end. In my years prior I raced the excellent drivers like Bill Seebold, Dick Pond, CLayton Elmer, Raymond Jeffries, Dub Parker, Bud Jones and many more. How many our left I dont know but would sure like to here from any of them. It was by chance I found Quincy Weldings web site as I am trying to restore a 40H I purchased from KO Turner I think he lived some where in Texas. We installed CD ign on it and it ran super. I need a tower housing as I have a gear box. thanks for your earlier reply Floyd

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Yes KO Turner was a Baytown Boat Club member Floyd. Raymond Jefferies and his son died in a plane crash I believe around 1969. Dub Parker died in a house fire I think in 1980 or 81. I talk to Clayton frequently. I'll let him and some of the others know what you are looking for and maybe they can help. Grandpa Seebold was looking for a carb for his PR a couple of years ago and he was able to get it together and running when Clayton sent him one he had still in the box.

After the Sunday's events were blown out at Forest Lake, the 2nd half of the '68 Nationals was held at my Dad's house here in Texas. Most of the qualifiers came down and we had a great time.

[John Schubert T*A*R*T]

Yes KO Turner was a Baytown Boat Club member Floyd. Raymond Jefferies and his son died in a plane crash I believe around 1969. Dub Parker died in a house fire I think in 1980 or 81. I talk to Clayton frequently. I'll let him and some of the others know what you are looking for and maybe they can help. Grandpa Seebold was looking for a carb for his PR a couple of years ago and he was able to get it together and running when Clayton sent him one he had still in the box.

After the Sunday's events were blown out at Forest Lake, the 2nd half of the '68 Nationals was held at my Dad's house here in Texas. Most of the qualifiers came down and we had a great time.

Wayne,
I thought that Dub died in a plane that he was piloting. If Ralph Donald reads this, I know that he knows for sure.

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

Wayne:

I believe you are mistaken about Dub Parkers death. He also died in a private plane crash. It was several weeks I think, before the plane and his body were located in a very remote area in either Alabama or Georgia. I believe this was in about 81 or 82 as the PRO Nationals were held in Lakeland Fl., that next summer and they were called the "Dub Parker Memorial" or something similar. Ralph Donald will surely chime in on this shortly. I believe he is out of computer touch this weekend.

Bill Van

[Master Oil Racing Team]

You guys are right I'm sure. For some reason I kept thinking it was in a house fire, but that didn't make sense. The plane that Raymond died in was a light plane with much more horsepower than it needed. He wanted a fast responsive plane like boats he raced. If I remember correctly there was talk that he thought he could fly it out of a stall with sheer horsepower. But then my memory seems to have some skips.

[David_L6]

As Bill said, Dub Parker died in a plane crash in the very early '80's.

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

Tim Chance said you were going to turn up some day and tell us about that engine!! Welcome Sir! Welcome!

When I was a teenager that Anzani twin was some kind of rumor out this neck of the woods. It was beyond sight and mind of anything I could visualize way back then. Where I grew up in Selkirk when the NOA came "up" north class A and B was just crowded with Anzani engines with a smattering of Harrisons later into the mid 1960s. The Anzani was the dominating engine that gave larger classes and their owners twisted necks just watching them rocket by with their crescent shaped stacks howling.

When I inherited the Mark 2 Anzani equipment through Bill Tenney's estate I had no idea that the main components for such a twin were already there. For most of the time I was concentrating on restoring A and B Anzani engines. It was Tim Chance coming up with a brochure picture of the Anzani Twin block C after some discussion of the engine had already taken place on the board that got the ball rolling to get it back into one piece again that did it.

Just before Christmas of 2006 the complete mockup of the twin was put together and posted that sure put a lump in Tim Chance's throat. Tim mentioned that he knew the fellow that single handly started the motor too that had passed away some 5 years previous. Tim also mentioned that he was going to try to get a hold of you Phil and see if he could get some pictures of the engine to post here as all I had to go by was the otiginal Tenney brochure picture and some dead reconing on my part that seemed it was going in the right direction. I too am sure going to look forward to seeing pictures of you with it? you have of the engine, the engine and boat and it all in you in action with it hopefully too?

I am sure looking forward to seeing more of your pictures and stories on here as soon as you are able to do so.

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

Floyd: It is with regrets that I have no Merc 40H parts left. As I changed up to Merc 30H and 55H engines back in the 1970s I sold my KG9s and then the 40Hs to junior upcoming racers here and from what I know they scattered over the years with some even ending back in the USA in the hands of collectors. Parts for Merc 40Hs do come up on the AOMCI website as well as on EBay auctions with some frequency see it seems so keeping an eye on those sites could very well produce the parts you need.

I am pretty sure that my mentor in racing, Ted Coates (from Selkirk, Manitoba club -MORA) who was a C-Service, C and D stock racer here marched me up to you and introduced me to you back in the 1960s as was his habit with me with everyone he knew he felt I should also know which to him was everyone! I take it then that Don Tarnowski was the Midwest Powerboat presdient a few years before you in that case. Seeing you again would be a pleasure. I am not sure if you knew but Ted Coates passed away last year at Victoria, BC where he retired to quiet a number of years ago at age 87.

[Bill Van Steenwyk]

Wayne:

I don't think you are entirely mistaken about a house fire taking a boat racers life some years ago, as I seem to remember something about that also. Been too many years and lost brain cells ago to recall the specifics though. Perhaps someone else will remember something about this and fill in the particulars.

I do remember Ralph Donald speaking about Dub's death in the plane crash, and if I remember correctly he was surprised that Dub's life would end that way, as he was an experienced pilot, and I seem to remember there was something unusual about the circumstances. Perhaps he will chime in about it when able.

[Donald]

Dub died on Dec. 30, 1980 in a plane crash near Perry Fl. He and a friend were returning from a diving trip in the keys. No one really knows what happened, but they had refueled at Sarasota on the way back to Gadsden and were in a heavy rain storm when the plane went down. There was speculation that Dub had suffered from the bends from diving and then flying, but I believe he either had a heart attack or just flew into the ground. Wayne is partially right about Dub being in a fire. His shop behind his house caught fire and Dub was burned pretty bad when his clothes caught fire as he tried to save some of his equipment. He was laid up for several months. It is interesting that I had an inquiry recently from a Steve Kouski, which came through APBA, about the Dubinski boats. It seems he had owned one at sometime in the past wondered if any were any still around. To my knowledge there are none left.