"Racing with Kansas City Speedboat & St.Louis ODA, 1969 - 1977"----Part 1

[wboxell]

You know about sea stories? They always start with "this ain't no sh**".

Tom

isn't that how a lot of racing stories start also !!!

bill

[tomberry]

This is the text of an e mail I received from Tim Chance. Perhaps there will be others who would also contribute information like this.

Tom - I just reviewed what you wanted and looked at your posts on BRF and see that you need stuff on ODA. And I know almost nothing about the Mod drivers of ODA.

When I moved to Saint Louis in 1971, ODA had just voted the alky classes out. On December 7, 1972 a bunch of us met in Columbia and formed Outboard/Central, an all alky club. Outboard/Central lasted ten years and then morphed into the U.S. Title Series in 1983.

Prominent in Outboard/Central were:
Tim Chance, Saint Louis, Y-200 A - F runabout and hydro
Stan Leavendusky, Jr, Kansas City, Y-2 C & D runabout
John Dortch, Sr, Saint Louis, Y-99 A & B Hydro and Runabout
John Dortch, II, Saint Louis, Y-9 C Hydro and Runabout
Barry Wilson, Cedar Rapids, 300, C Hydro
Rich Krier, Indianols, IA, X-51 B & C Runabout
Mike Krier, Ollie, IA, X-50 A & B Runabout
Jim Krier, Ollie, IA X-50 A & B Hydro
Todd Brinkman, Springfield, IL, V-88 A - F Runabout
Jack Kugler, Hamilton, IL, V-100 A &B Runabout and Hydro
Jim Schoch, Quincy, IL V-5 A-F Runabout and Hydro
Tom Berry, Kansas City, Y32
Bill Van, Barnhardt, MO Y-888 C Hyro
Phil Howard, Jacksonvile, IL V-123 B Hydro
Paul Bogosian Granite City, IL V-23 C and D Runabout

Others that I can't remember boat numbers:
Kerry Dupre, Saint Louis
Gary Silver, Iowa
Nick Buehl, St. Joe
Tim Seebold ran some C-Service

As I think of more, I'll add them to the list. - Later, Tim


I might also add from Kansas City:
Terry Lewellen
Don Kelly
Jim Baggett
Jimmie Nichols (Decased)
Don Dando
Tom Roberts

From St Joseph:
Steve Shomberg and his dad Cliff

Tom

[tomberry]

Here is the text of another E Mail. This one from from Dennis Crews.

Tom,

I realized that my email from the BRF forum gave you no way to contact me. My email address is dcrace29@yahoo.com. I am having trouble getting my password to let me post on BRF but I am still working on that. And again thanks for all your work in putting that all together. I have looked at this several more times and see our crew in even more of the pictures.


Tom,

I dont know if you remember but you sold my dad, Lynn Crews, a runabout that would spin in a bathtub. Dad says you said one time that if you burned the boat and threw the ashes on the water that they would spin too. I just viewed your first slide show on BRF and I have to tell you it literally brought tears to my eyes. My mom, Diane Crews (Lowrey) is the daugher of Andy Lowrey. To see you with my Grandpa in that picture stopped me dead in my tracks. Then to see the pictures of uncle Bob and Dave, our big black trailer with my grangpa's 69 ford truck, I am flooded with great memories. Thank you for the work you put into this. I just registered for BRF but have not received my email info to post there yet so I had to email you. I just could not wait to contact you.

I have a 21 year old son who is a gear-head deluxe. I have tried and tried to explain to him the sound of 12 D-hydros coming down the chute, but how do you do that justice? I have tried for a couple of years to find a rice near Ft worth, Tx ( where we live ) to tak e him to, but have been unseccessful. Do you know of any videos availabe with 4 cylinder pro-stockers running? Even recent ones would help me to share that sound with my son.

Once again, thanks for all your work. I have to get back to the forum now and see what other nuggets I can find.

Dennis Crews
Ft worth, Tx

I am attaching the pictures that Dennis writes about in his e mail.

Tom

[Mark75H]

I think I know what Dennis' problem is ... I'll email him and get it straightened out

[Master Oil Racing Team]

A big time racer that quit shortly after we started was Ed Holstein from Kansas City, Kansas I believe. I forget who was driving for Ed when we first met him, but Freddy Goehl drove his stuff around 1968-69, then Ozzie Robinison drove the following year.

[tomberry]

Holstein rings a bell, but I can't place him. I don't think I knew the others. Another was Bob Hursman. After he was killed in a truck accident in Joplin MO Stan Leavendusky bought his equipment including a DeSliva runabout that Butch ran. I think the number on it was Y-211. I believe it is in some of the pictures.

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Tom, here is one of you and Butch in the beautiful pits of Winona rigging up in 1974. It was the Pro Eastern Divisionals. If you remember, I think it was a Thursday or Friday night that the northern lights started swirling around above Sugarloaf. Chuck and Jane Hall, myself and maybe Bill and Eileen Van Steewyk watched them until about midnight.

[tomberry]

I have this picture hanging on my office wall. In a phone conversation with Butch he mentioned that he had the same one up at his house. I will be seeing him soon (Friday 07/18/08) and will have copies of both disks. One of the guys has a lap top so I am hoping to be able to go over them with him.

[Y-62/Crews/ Lowrey]

I know Tom posted the email where I thanked him for the work done on the video but let me also thank those who helped him with this. Mom and Dad have no computer right now so they have not seen this yet. They will stop by sometime this weekend to see it. I can't wait to relive the memories with them. I will get some of my pictures posted soon

[Master Oil Racing Team]

Dennis...We are looking forward to your pictures. And hope you will add some stories. It's great that you will get you Mom and Dad to view all that's here. Hey Tom...thanks for getting some more people on board. This is some more history that would have been lost without past racers getting involved.