Thing Come and Things Go!
[QUOTE=Smokin' Joe;127296]The tow from Houston to Havasu, a seedy motel in Ozona, the mountains around Tucson, and Saguaro
cacti along I-10. Then a better motel in Havasu City. Race prep, jacking around with the competitors,
eating at some Havasu restaurant or diner. The good ol' days. Nothing like 4 hrs. of driving in a race.
My brother and I always joked that we've driven a hundred thousand miles with wet "Crouches". Timmy Seebold asked me once, "So, you were like my dad and Grandpa dring all night to sleep in the car to race the next day?" I said, "YES." Jimbo, Ernie Dawe, Ted May and me went to Vallejo, California once to race, when we left home we had no idea where "Valley Joe" was. We drove all night and most of the day Saturday to get there. I don't think we took a short cut becasue I know we went through San Jose on the was from SoCal....We raced for trophies....Goddam Submaine" came up in the middle of the course, we thought the Russians were attacking, we dove home by driving all night listening to Wolfman Jack.....We didn't race for money. We didn't race to be famous. We just "RACED". It was fun, we bowled Saturday night, there was only one day of racing, we knew about points but THOSE GUYS BACK EAST always won anyway.
In came the FACTORY WARS and the losers in this war was boat racing.
I wrote the MOD VP Rules, and nothing agains the Texas Group, I had never seen a VP boat when I wrote the Parker Rules......I has seen a Southwind, Sleek Craft with, as is known today, "MOD VP" bottoms. I wanted more boats racing the Parker 9 Hour than just Four Mercury Factory Boats and 1 or 2 Evinrude Factory Boats. I called MOD VP the OUTBOARD "DOOR SLAMMER" Class. As NASCAR, in those days, was called "THE DOOR SLAMMERS" as real race cars didn't have doors or starters.
Where MOD VP went WRONG in when Mercury made the BRIDGE PORT motor that was not for sale and OMC had some cools tuff of a "FEW". NASCAR ahs tried to keep speed in a safe range. NASCAR is in the business to make money. Mercury and OMC ENJOYED saying who would win with their product. When the final curtail call came, boith Merc and OMC wanted out before Yamaha KILLED them.
APBA is not about promoting boat racing, APBA is a sanction body......you are to promote boat racing if you want boat racing promoted. APBA has been the long arm of OUTBOARD MARINE and MERCURY for many, many years.
Anyway, my point, if you want to race boats today, you need to plan to pay to get to race. Spectators aren't paying enough to make boat racing profitable. It is your sport, you are going to have to pay for it.
My thinking is this, I don't mind paying, but I also want a say it what is happening! MOD VP was the best OUTBOARD CLASS ever, everyone I've ever talked to about boats know the term "MOD VP"