An Amazing Story: Part 2

[Master Oil Racing Team]

The first heat of 350 hydro was full of excitement and close racing.

Denny Henderson and Benny Aylor both had their Yamato's in top form. Denny took and early lead and I was chasing him, with Benny Aylor right there on my tail. There must have been a hole in the water or something as Denny lost it and his boat careened off to the right. I was pushing Denny very hard and he went into the turn very hot. It all happened so quickly, I only saw Denny's boat shoot off and I scanned the water to see if he was in front of me. Of course this is in split seconds. When I looked to the right to see where Benny was I saw Denny back in his boat. So I thought he just blew and engine and pulled off the course. (According to the story Louis Collins had in the District 15 news, about the same thing happened to Benny. I had fed Louis the info. but it apparently came from Benny who told us after the race. Denny can maybe expound on this.)

Anyway...It was just a couple of seconds and we were away from the turn and I took over the lead as we completed the first lap. I didn't see Benny anywhere close when I looked back at Denny, so I wasn't pushing it anymore. Surprisingly, Benny had recovered and was driving hard down the front straight. He pulled along side of me just starting into the turn. I got hard on the throttle had took the Aerowing to its limits. I had good acceleration, but both Denny and Benny had me on top end. If I could get a good jump off the turn maybe I could hold Benny off. It was a 1 mile course with average turns so there was a chance I could pull it off. Unfortunately, I dropped and sponson and dumped in the turn.

So now I was in the water, floating with my hydro and saw Denny making up time very quickly. After he recovered, Denny began chewing up the water, caught and drove through the pack to a second place. He was gaining on Benny all the way to the finish. I'm floating there and trying the piece together all the events in the last couple of minutes. I tried to make the second heat, but my hydro was too damaged so I came back in. Denny won the second heat, and the Texas State Championship.

When everything settled down, I had to go talk to the Denny and Benny to figure out what was going on. I can't remember everything but we must have had some pretty good laughs all around. When Denny hit that hole, he was thrown out of his boat, but he had a death grip on the wheel. He hit the water and bounced back in. As soon as Denny got back under control, he got back in the race. Denny came back into the pits without any shoes, as the water took them away when his legs hit it. I'm not real clear though on the reference to Benny doing "the same thing". David Weaver, is it you that has a contact to Benny? I forget, one of you east coast guys does, so maybe we can get a full report if Denny can't remember.

sorry I don't have pics of Benny. 1st is Denny, 2nd is me.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

So the long 1977 season ended and it was time to hand out awards. Lone Star Boat Racing Association did dual sanctions with APBA since becoming affiliated with it, but it was still an independant sanctioning body with its own rules. The whole time I raced boats, the banquet was held in Baytown. It was held in a banquet hall at a motel until Baytown Boat Club built their new building which is still in use today for racing events. Our first banquet there was probably around 1970.

Awards were for the Texas State Championships held at Barbon, high points in each class, high point hydro, high point runabout, overall high point, sportsmanship, pit man of the year, and I think there were special awards for scorers, refs, etc. A great time was had by all.

1st pic. Officers who had to sit at the head table. L-R
Lucky Lund, Butch Levine and Patty Levine, Martha Yates, Ray Yates, Commodore Steve Jones, Judy Jones, Betty and Dick Hassler .

2nd. "Little Ray" Yates receiving his "Rookie of the Year" plaque, Steve Jones, Ray Yates

3rd Butch Levine, Martha Yates, Baldy Baldwin. I think my Dad must be laying it on pretty heavy about the high point overall winner. I think it was Artie Lund.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

On Sunday morning following the banquet and awards ceremony from the previous night, Lone Star had its annual meeting. Just like APBA we went over old news, then took up new matters and rules. Since the weather was a little bit rough at the last race at Barbon, there were no new records to approve. So 1975 will remain as the last year any LSBRA records were set. We had a racing commission, but LSBRA was only alky, so the meetings could be concluded in just a few hours.

1st pic is Bruce Nicholson addressing the body. You can see familiar faces in the background. Too many to name.

2nd---Outgoing Commodore Steve Jones in the foreground and Ray Yates in background.

3rd. Incoming Commodore for 1978 is Joe Rome.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Joe had asked if I had more of the banquet, which I do, plus more of the meeting. The meeting the next day was the first for Tim Butts being an actual member of the Lone Star Boat Racing Association. Joe wanted me to post more pics, but I have been worrying about getting stuff done for the DePue Renion so that's where I've been. When I get a break, the meeting pics will be on the LSBRA thread and AN AMAZING STORY will resume at the Dallas Boat Show in 1978.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

I will post pics of the Dallas boat show next. It's been too long since I visited this thread due to trying to get photos to Ron for the Reunion. So now I will set the stage for 1978.

My Dad, Baldy Baldwin, had convinced Carl Rylee to put on a UIM spectacle at Alexandria. My Dad put the bid in for OA through OF in 1972 as a continuation of what we were working toward to professionalize Alky racing in the U.S. We were awarded OA, OD and OF for 1973. Every year my Dad put in for all the same classes in the hopes that we would at least get one. In 1976 we got OA, OD and OF. Things were looking good. In 1977 we got OD. In 1978 we were awarded OB, OC and OE. The hottest classes in UIM for the alky burners was OA, OB, and OC so we were extremly excited to have two of them, and the addition of OE would get us some great publicity because of the press that followed that class. These were some great drivers that would get press due to the ON's and OZ's that were at the same races. Things were to get heated up due to outboard politics before it was over, but it was a great way to start the year off to be planning for another spectacular event at Dayton, Ohio.

The UIM OD World Championships would be held in Berlin, but at a different venue that I had raced the previous two years. So we were looking forward to a great year of not only racing, but bringing new blood and international racing to the U.S.

[wboxell]

wayne do you or joe (anybody else?) have the qual times for OB at dayton in 78? i didn't make the top five but as the saying goes the older i get the faster i was! i remember i tried turn 1, wide open with the pipes up and didn't make it. the boat rolled up on its side and tossed the valve belt. i got another shot and let the pipes back for the corners. seems like it was close but not good enough?

wish i could jump into the one week time warp and be back at depue.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

I will look Bill. I know I have some of the qualifying times. It was done each lap for 3 laps.

I'm like you Bill. You're one of many I didn't get to really talk to. A warp time would be good.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

I was wrong about how it was done Bill. There were 2 attempts allowed. It was either 2 or 3 lap attempts and the best times were picked. 27 boats entered, but only 21 went out on the course. Jeff Hutchins and Skip Birbarie scratched. Apparently Bob Luke from Seattle was a no show.

Here are the best qualifying heat times for each boat up to your postition Bill.
1 Denny Henderson 159.0
2 Dan Kirts 159.8
3 Benny Aylor 200.4
4 Malcolm Harden 201.0
5 Craig Lawrence 203.2
6 Wayne Baldwin 204.0
7 Tim Butts 204.1
8 Jerry Kirts 204.2
9 Troy Dunn 204.8
10 Dub Parker 205.1
11 Terry McCartney 208.1
12 Bill Boxell 208.7

Four of the top five only ran one heat. The first go around I was no. 5, but Benny Aylor cut his time by 5 full seconds in his 2nd try, moving him all the way to third. I only cut my time by 1/2 the second go around so I got bumped to 1st alternate. My boat was totally wild. & it was all I could do to keep it from flipping. We loaned it to Guisseppe Landini who put a 3 blade Rolla on it and it totally changed the handling of the boat. He might have won the world championship had he understood English, but he got tossed in the first heat because he pulled into the pits after crossing the finish line instead of coming around the bottom turn again before exiting.

[wboxell]

wayne, i couldn't remember what the format was other then against the stopwatch. when my rotary valve belt came off after taking the green, i then probably got two laps later. where the quals one boat at a time, or a few at a time on the course?

i remember watching one of the final heats (OB) and dan kirts was coming to the front. when coming down the front straitaway he jerked his boat hard right (couple lengths behind) to cross the wake and rooster tail of the boat he was about to pass. wow! that aerowing danced like crazy but didn't trip. my buds and i looked at each other and thought it's dan kirts! what do you expect!

[wboxell]

thanks wayne. as i said earlier, i got faster as i got older