Favorite Win, Favorite Loss (The One That Got Away)..

[Ron Hill]

Master Oil talked about this thread....but I decided to start it...

Favorite Loss: DePue, Illinois, 1967. I've driving for Harry Bartolomei. I'm leading D Hydro, I can see the flagman bring out the checker, and the motor "STICKS" from running out of fuel...

Harry tells me for the second heat, because the einge has stuck rings, "Don't back off"....Harry lights the motor, I never back off for four laps at DePue, including making a start...I win the heat...A one heat win gives me a second..I've lead 8 and 15/16 laps, and get second....

Best win: I win Chicago to Milwaukee to Chaicago with twin Evinrudes...My father and brother raced Evinrudes...I won this MAJOR race with EVINRUDES...First Evinrude win in the MODERN "CHARLIE STRANG" Era...

Havasu, Parker, John Ward...Berlin....were other great wins...but Depue was the lowest...Chicago was the highest!!!

[Master Oil Racing Team]

I liked the concept of this thread and I thought it would take off. Carl Lewis started to do his wins & losses on the other thread, but timed out. Sure been gone a long time Carl. So I guess I'll jump start it and maybe others will follow.

My favorite win was my first NOA World Championship in 1971 at Alexandria, La. It was A hydro and I had a 250 cc Konig with a single pipe sliding on a converging elbow. The boat was my 10 8 Marchetti "Spider". We were running 78 by our Keller and Jerry Waldman and some others were seeing 80. Bobby Olsen was the favorite. I think he was the defending champ, although I am not positive. We figured we didn't have a chance. I got some good starts though and ended up setting a new record. When I got to the scales my Dad was standing there looking at me when I took off my helmet. He never said a word of congratulations. He didn't say anything. He just stood there grinning and it was his eyes that said it all. They were just completely overflowing with pride. I'll never forget that look, and the way that win made him feel is why it's my favorite.

I can't call the last half lap of the final heat of the 1977 UIM OD World Championships my favorite loss because it's the one that haunts me. You can read about it in detail in An Amazing Story. But here's one that I guess you could call my favorite loss, and it not only had a funny part, but helped launch Tim Butts on his boat building career.

It was also at Alex. It was the NOA World Championships in A hydro the next year--1972. I was the defending champ, and again was running my same rig. We had talked to Tim about building us an AB Aerowing, but he wanted to build a CDF boat so we took delivery of the first one "Hookin' Bull" at that race. Tim loaded up in the qualifying heat and didn't know how to spin in a tight circle to break the prop free, so he watched from the infield. The boat was "Ruthless II" fitted with a 250cc Konig. This combination would later go on two win 5 or 6 Nationals and a UIM World Championship.

His rig was faster than mine so Tim loaned it to me for the finals. It was amazing how fast it was through the turns compared to my Marchetti. The only thing I didn't like was he had the right side cut low to match the left. I liked to rest my hip on the right side of the Marchetti so I wouldn't bounce around when the sponson slapped hard in a turn. I won the first heat easily and broke the record I had set the previous year by three or four miles per hour. It was just under the B hydro record Tim set in the same boat at this race.

We were coming up for a flying start in the second heat and I was in the middle. I was wide open behind the pack and heading for a hole to blast through right at the start. Then just before we reached the line the inside boat moved slightly to the right while the boat on the outside of the hole moved to the left. That completely closed the hole and I began riding up on both roostertails. I don't even remember who the drivers were. They did not do it on purpose, and neither realized they had shut the door on me. All I knew was that I was about to blow over for the first time and I was trying to figure out when to leave the boat. But....it never climbed up. It just stood on its tail walking left and right for a long way. Joe remembers it very clearly. The boat did a "Stanley Leavandusky" and came back down. As it started down, I got full on the throttle because Clayton Elmer had told me once that if you start to blow over, but come back down the sponsons will bounce twice then stuff.

Luckily the motor didn't foul or load up so I took off. As I got leveled off just a little way beyond the starting line, the lead boats were already going into the turn. Tim had a Smith wheel on the motor and it was really running good. I started making time through the turns and passing back markers. Beginning the second lap I was passing 8th place Bob Murphy on the outside in the first turn. I was really running hot through the turns when the outside sponson fell in a hole and dug. The boat spun directly in front of Bob and since Tim had the cockpit on the right cut so low, my hip didn't make contact and I fell out of the boat. I had a death grip on the wheel though and when I fell I landed on my back in the water, but the stretch of my right arm pulled the steering wheel back to the right and straighted the boat up and took it out of the spin. When I hit the water with my back, it popped me back up and I landed back in the cockpit. I immediately grabbed the throttle and as I got through the turn I pulled the pipes and continued the chase. It all happened so quickly no one saw it. The turn judge couldn't help but see the overlap though and at that point I was DQ'd but didn't know it yet. I flew around the course picking off boats and at the end finished 2nd overall which would have been good enough for the championship.

When I got back to the pits I told my Dad I fell out of the boat. He said "Bull#@*t.....whadda ya mean you fell out? Your'e right here aren't you?" We were pitted right across from the first turn, but when it happened they were only looking at the spray of the boats and the two roostertails. I would give anything to have a video of that. Anyway, we got the boat on the stands and I told my Dad, Jack Chance and Tim to come look. Joe might have been there as well. I put my right hand on the steering wheel of Ruthless II then laid my forearm in the 2-3 inch notch cut out of the cowling. It was a perfect fit. They knew that the notch wasn't there when I left the pits and I said "How else could I have done this except by falling out of the boat?" They were at first amazed, then they all started laughing. Boat racers on the bank though were getting out their checkbooks and giving Tim deposits for boats. He left there with enough orders to quit his job at Eaton crashing test cars and go into the boat building business.

[Tim Chance]

My best win is a toss-up either when I won "General Grant" at the last NOA North/South race ever held or my first win ever. I think it has to go to my first win ever in 1962. I had stuck my A Konig testing so I dragged an obsolete Quincy/Merc out of the trailer. A KG Series with the cast aluminum tank on top with Quincy cast in script at the back. I ran it on a little A/B Swift Hydro and got to the first turn first on a little short course and the second place Anzani/Sid Craft couldn't catch me.

My best loss was at the Nationals in Depue sometime in the late 1960's. I won my elimination heat in B Hydro by about a straightaway, but I had jumped the gun by a couple of boat lengths. When I came in with a big smile a bunch of people chewed me out for being so stupid when I had such a fast B.

Now, as Paul Harvey says, here is the rest of the story. I had just blown my B up. Bill Ela went upsidedown testing just before the races started with his A Runabout. Bill asked me if I was still registered for B Hydro. I said yes but I couldn't run. So, he asked if I would put his A looper on my Hydro and go out and see if it was ok during the 5-minute gun of my elimination heat. I said sure. On the 5 minute gun it felt real good, as good as my own B. But I knew if I raced it I would get disqualified for running a 15" motor in the B Class during inspection. But if I jumped the gun I wouldn't get inspected. Later in the day Bill won the Nationals in A Runabout with that motor. And, that is the rest of the story.

[tthibodaux]

Every race I've have ever been in was a favorite for me so I thought I'd tell about being a kid watching dad race.

Favorite loss: 1986 Chatanooga Tn. F1 race. Dad blasts off the dock with the lead at turn one and never looks back! With five or six laps to go a lapped boat spins while dad is trying to overtake it and dad has to go inside the turn pin to miss him. After the race was over dad was penalized a lap for the infraction even though it was for the safety of a fellow competitor so the win was taken away. The good news was that in 50 laps he had lapped the entire field with the exception of second place Benny Robertson who was in his sights to go a lap down at the end. The day ended with a 2nd place finish in what turned out to be a dream season.

Favorite win: 1986 F1 race Beaumont Tx. With one race left in the 86 season all dad had to do was win the race to lock up the World Championship for the 86 season. Thibodaux's lined the shore lines ready for the race that was to come!! Benny goes out and sets a closed coarse record in qualifying on Saturday and dad was second on the dock for Sunday. I remember praying with mom and dad that morning for the Lord to just give dad the patience to just hang in best he could that day with Benny and wait until the motor went south because dad had said that with the rpm it was turning NO WAY was it going to make 50 laps. Anyway, with just about the entire Thibodaux family holding their breath the boats blasted off the dock and Benny was GONE! Just a few laps in the motor went away and dad was right there to assume the lad of the race and eventually his first F1 World title. My dad was and still is my hero, but that day I've have never seen him more happy. Next and final race of the season the sponson peeled of the boat testing Saturday morning and dad sat and watch the race as 1986 World Champion!!

Now, someone try and tell me that God is not good to those who believe!