I always felt this BU was the turning point in my racing HISTORY.
My dad and I built this boat during Easter Week when I was in college in Arizona...In those days I stayed out much later than I do now....but every morning My OLD MAN had me up at 7 to work on this boat for Carl Myers....
Some morning I could not tell a table saw from a drill press...but by Friday we were painting her...
I raced her a time or two that year in BU...Then we headed for the Stock nationals in Beaver Falls, PA...Carl drove the BU to a Divisional win, but on the trip to PA was involved in ahead on accident in Nebraska....and was in the hospital, lucky to be alive at the the time of the Nationals...
My dad and mom and me went on to Beaver, after picking up the pieces of wrecked boats in Nebraska... I qualified this BU..and finished 4th in the finals...
When Charlie Strang went to weigh me in, I got on the scales, with jacket and helmet I weighed like 255.....BU weight was like 355....Charlie looking at the boat and engine....and told Edgar Rose, don't weigh Ron's boat...I know the 20-H weighs almost 100 pounds...
It was right after that that Charlie started listing to my "CRAZY" ideas...I went on to break the ARR runabout record with this boat...
This picture was at Sparks, Nevada, 1966...I was running a BU with the B Alkies...I got second...(A BIG MONEY RACE in those days....but the lake was smaller than most mall parking lots...).
Mercguy: Note the fin!!!!
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