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Thread: Ketzer Racing Team

  1. #31
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    I live in the swamps in Hernando, Charley, with all the other poor, old folks. Do you happen to remember who raced F-117? Vernon Ashley raced their boat one time. Here's a picture.

    Attachment 57127

    Attachment 57128

  2. #32
    Team Member Master Oil Racing Team's Avatar
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    I can't get any of the pictures to open on your last two posts Steve. Where was that picture taken with our trailer in the background. I've been racking my brain and can't figure where it was. What's it say on the side of the O3 boat? Is that one of Spec's rigs?. By the look of the paint scheme on our trailer and the C Marchetti hydro on top I'm guessing 1971.

    Been on jobs so I haven't scanned the Roostertail yet. Maybe tomorrow. Was good to talk to you.



  3. #33
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    Thanks, Wayne. No pictures. Mm-mm-mm. That was the first time I tried attaching pictures to a "quick reply"; don't know what I did wrong or how that works, but I'll attach them below in another post. I'm not positive where that picture was taken, either. As usual, I have no date or place on the back, but I thought Alex. Yeah, it was either '71 or '72, because my hair was still military length. Not sure about the 03.
    Last edited by Ketzer; 04-16-2014 at 04:53 AM. Reason: corrected date

  4. #34
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    Default Bass Man and the F-117

    Here are the pictures for Eileen and Charley Bradley mentioned above in the last few posts. Thanks, Wayne, for pointing it out. So it's Steve Ketzer in Japan, circa 1947, and Vernon Ashley driving F-117 and cousin Mikey holding up the stern on the right hand side; not sure who the other guys are or where it was taken.

    DSC01200.jpg

    DSC01199.jpg

    DSC02024.jpg

    DSC01205.JPG

    img015.jpg

    img016.jpg

  5. #35
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    Default Soooie-Pig, cont.

    Soooie-Pig, Cont.: The bells on our C-flathead were just a little smaller in diameter and thicker, due to the casting, than most flatheads—I don’t know who made them—but it had a higher pitch. There could be several flatheads out running, but you could hear ours distinctly if it was on the course pushing Soooie-Pig. The green windshield went away after I raced Soooie-Pig for the first time, I think at Monroe, LA. I hit the clock well, hit the first turn in second place, and then I hit the water, but not before busting through the green plexiglass (thereafter clear, aviation grade) and ripping out the throttle, although it and the cable remained attached to the boat. Dad and Uncle Ed got Soooie-Pig dried out and patched up, and I was out for the second heat. I finished the race, but not in the money. Interesting how those flips go. For me, there was a fraction of slo-mo when I felt the sponson dig and the boat lift up, and seemed to have plenty of time to think, “Uh-oh, here I go,” and then there I went, into the hyper-speed of being thrown out and tumbling beneath the water; that is, going from all that sensation, sound, color and smell into the darkness beneath the surface and then corking up, eyes like Kennedy half-dollars, back into it all in a flash. Very exciting stuff, but not the type of excitement anyone but a fool would desire.

    Yeah, I flipped Soooie-Pig on my first shot, but in my defense and according to Bill Van, that Goff-Hagness had a history of being upside-down and had the patches to prove it. Bill said the right hand sponson was built a touch shorter, shallower than the left, specifically so as not to dig in the turns, but, oddly, seemed to have the opposite effect. Also, the difference in sponson height accounted for the rocking motion on the straights as it spilled off air from one side to the other, which never proved a problem going at our speeds, but had it gone considerably faster, again, according to Bill, that rocking would have gotten out of control with disastrous results on a straightaway. One of Bill’s friends nicknamed the boat “Coffin Craft,” due to its design (the interior was about the size of a coffin) as well as its history of accidents. But there’s always a but, and here it is: Dad, true to form, never flipped Soooie-Pig, and he raced it much more than I did. Maybe she just wanted someone who knew how to drive her, and, apparently, Dad was that someone.

    So I went to Iceland, and suddenly Iceland was in the news, but it had nothing to do with me. Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky were playing chess in Reykjavik while I was in Keflavik doing my Life Support thing and eating in the Navy chow hall which served much local fare, including lamb, fish, and chicken fried rabbit (the Navy has the best food in the military). I also became a Marine while there, or at least an augmentee. The Jarheads had nothing else to do but train and wait for the Russians to attack, so they figured they’d snatch up enough Flyboys for a backup platoon and turn us into Marines—they had no idea how inept Flyboys were at warfighting, at least, warfighting on the ground. I spent a year in Vietnam and didn’t carry a weapon; then there I was carrying a weapon in Iceland, a regular Barney Fife.

    Also, during that year plus in Keflavik, a volcano on the island of Heimaey blew its top, and you could see the tower of white smoke from the base. That made world news, along with the Paris Peace Accords. Otherwise, I enjoyed the Northern Lights and all the library time. Most troops hated Iceland—but I enjoyed it. No snakes, spiders, chiggers, ticks, or sweltering heat and humidity: How can you not like that? Upon leaving Iceland, I would be discharged, and I had a month’s worth of leave built up that could have been parlayed into a trip to the U.S. to visit the folks and go to a few boat races, but Europe was so close! So with a military hop to Frankfurt , a Eurail Pass in my pocket, and a mere 500 bucks, I toured Europe for a month, sleeping on the train, in youth hostels or pensions that cost just a few bucks a night. After visiting eight or so countries, I caught a military hop out of Glasgow back to Keflavik with no more than two bucks in my pocket.

    Back home, in 1972-73, the Ketzer Racing Team was “driving on,” having fun, and making friends. Along with the Kansas City and St. Louis folks, Dad got to know more racers from Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas, including Jerry McMillian from DeWitt, Arkansas, Joe Bolton and his son in Texarkana, and Arthur McMeans, Little Arthur, and Lyndol Reid from Louisiana. I’ll make an addendum later if I can figure out where they raced and how they did.

    (Steve Ketzer with Joe and Bobby Bolton.)
    052.jpg

    ("Big" Arthur McMeans getting ready to go for a ride in one of our boats, Mickey McGuire and Steve Ketzer getting him ready.)
    031.jpg

    (An old picture of some, even then, old boat racers: Arthur McMeans and Tommy Goslee, can't remember the others.)
    033.jpg
    Last edited by Ketzer; 05-04-2014 at 03:46 AM. Reason: Remembered Bolton name.

  6. #36
    BoatRacingFacts VIP John Schubert T*A*R*T's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ketzer View Post
    Soooie-Pig, Cont.: The bells on our C-flathead were just a little smaller in diameter and thicker, due to the casting, than most flatheads—I don’t know who made them—but it had a higher pitch. There could be several flatheads out running, but you could hear ours distinctly if it was on the course pushing Soooie-Pig. The green windshield went away after I raced Soooie-Pig for the first time, I think at Monroe, LA. I hit the clock well, hit the first turn in second place, and then I hit the water, but not before busting through the green plexiglass (thereafter clear, aviation grade) and ripping out the throttle, although it and the cable remained attached to the boat. Dad and Uncle Ed got Soooie-Pig dried out and patched up, and I was out for the second heat. I finished the race, but not in the money. Interesting how those flips go. For me, there was a fraction of slo-mo when I felt the sponson dig and the boat lift up, and seemed to have plenty of time to think, “Uh-oh, here I go,” and then there I went, into the hyper-speed of being thrown out and tumbling beneath the water; that is, going from all that sensation, sound, color and smell into the darkness beneath the surface and then corking up, eyes like Kennedy half-dollars, back into it all in a flash. Very exciting stuff, but not the type of excitement anyone but a fool would desire.

    Yeah, I flipped Soooie-Pig on my first shot, but in my defense and according to Bill Van, that Goff-Hagness had a history of being upside-down and had the patches to prove it. Bill said the right hand sponson was built a touch shorter, shallower than the left, specifically so as not to dig in the turns, but, oddly, seemed to have the opposite effect. Also, the difference in sponson height accounted for the rocking motion on the straights as it spilled off air from one side to the other, which never proved a problem going at our speeds, but had it gone considerably faster, again, according to Bill, that rocking would have gotten out of control with disastrous results on a straightaway. One of Bill’s friends nicknamed the boat “Coffin Craft,” due to its design (the interior was about the size of a coffin) as well as its history of accidents. But there’s always a but, and here it is: Dad, true to form, never flipped Soooie-Pig, and he raced it much more than I did. Maybe she just wanted someone who knew how to drive her, and, apparently, Dad was that someone.

    So I went to Iceland, and suddenly Iceland was in the news, but it had nothing to do with me. Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky were playing chess in Reykjavik while I was in Keflavik doing my Life Support thing and eating in the Navy chow hall which served much local fare, including lamb, fish, and chicken fried rabbit (the Navy has the best food in the military). I also became a Marine while there, or at least an augmentee. The Jarheads had nothing else to do but train and wait for the Russians to attack, so they figured they’d snatch up enough Flyboys for a backup platoon and turn us into Marines—they had no idea how inept Flyboys were at warfighting, at least, warfighting on the ground. I spent a year in Vietnam and didn’t carry a weapon; then there I was carrying a weapon in Iceland, a regular Barney Fife.

    Also, during that year plus in Keflavik, a volcano on the island of Heimaey blew its top, and you could see the tower of white smoke from the base. That made world news, along with the Paris Peace Accords. Otherwise, I enjoyed the Northern Lights and all the library time. Most troops hated Iceland—but I enjoyed it. No snakes, spiders, chiggers, ticks, or sweltering heat and humidity: How can you not like that? Upon leaving Iceland, I would be discharged, and I had a month’s worth of leave built up that could have been parlayed into a trip to the U.S. to visit the folks and go to a few boat races, but Europe was so close! So with a military hop to Frankfurt , a Eurail Pass in my pocket, and a mere 500 bucks, I toured Europe for a month, sleeping on the train, in youth hostels or pensions that cost just a few bucks a night. After visiting eight or so countries, I caught a military hop out of Glasgow back to Keflavik with no more than two bucks in my pocket.

    Back home, in 1972-73, the Ketzer Racing Team was “driving on,” having fun, and making friends. Along with the Kansas City and St. Louis folks, Dad got to know more racers from Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas, including Jerry McMillian from DeWitt, Arkansas, Joe Bolton and his son in Texarkana, and Arthur McMeans, Little Arthur, and Lyndol Reid from Louisiana. I’ll make an addendum later if I can figure out where they raced and how they did.

    (Steve Ketzer with Joe Bolton and Joe's son, can't remember his name.)
    052.jpg

    ("Big" Arthur McMeans getting ready to go for a ride in one of our boats, Mickey McGuire and Steve Ketzer getting him ready.)
    031.jpg

    (An old picture of some, even then, old boat racers: Arthur McMeans and Tommy Goslee, can't remember the others.)
    033.jpg
    The guy in the lower right sitting in the folding chair looks like Walt Blankenstein.

  7. #37
    Team Member F-12's Avatar
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    Don't think Walt had black rimmed glasses......
    Charley Bradley


  8. #38
    Team Member Master Oil Racing Team's Avatar
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    It's not Walt John. I never new Arthur McMeans, but I know his son Jr. I have pics of him at Diamondhead which I will post later.



  9. #39
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    Steve-I just read your post about going to Vietnam. My brother was a F-4 pilot at Cam Rahn Bay during that period. I was about 18 and living with my parents. He said the same thing about how he was treated when he got home. People were so mean to him when he got back. Spit on him when he was walking through the airport. We had a welcome home party for him and his best friend from high school came up to him and called him a Baby killer. I told the guy to get his *** out of the house! I was in my first year of college and there were war protests every day. Loved and supported my brother but thought the govt. handled it very badly. They haven't changed, have they? Glad you made it back in one piece.

    Eileen Van Steenwyk

  10. #40
    Team Member smittythewelder's Avatar
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    What an outstanding storyteller you are, sir; this is a fascinating thread!

    FWIW, back a couple of pages you have photos of a boat you called "The Barn Door," and wondered what it was and where it came from. It looks very much like a version of the Hal Kelly plans-built "Wetback." All of the Wetbacks I ever saw (and I helped build a couple) were 9'10" A/B Stock models, but the boat in your photographs is plainly larger than that. It might be that Hal Kelly offered a set of plans for a larger version, or maybe your boat had been scaled-up by the builder, whoever he was.

    Love to see all the photos of round-bow hydros, which for my money were far prettier than today's boats. The Goff-Hagness boats (nearly all were hydros, though there were two or three alky runabouts) were absolutely gorgeous, still a high point of plywood boatbuilding craftsmanship by Larry Goff of Tacoma, WA. The joinery of the multi-strip deck, designed to accomodate the compound curve of the bow area, was so beautiful that I hated to see them finished with anything but varnish!! Ron Hagness, running a very strong D Looper had some deck-to-deck battles with Howard Anderson in his Marchetti, also running a Quincy, in the late Sixties.

    Love the airplane photos, too. About fifteen years ago I just missed a chance to get a nice C-190 at a good price, right before all small airplane prices in the States shot up when the Brits and Europeans started buying them up. Oh well, the price of av-gas has gotten so high now that a big tub like a C-190 would be a pretty price ride. A shame.

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