Stock Chairman's Long Term Plan

[14-H]

D Parity

Well, I guess you'll have to wait and see what comes from the annual meeting. There have been proposals made regarding the D class and the parity committee will consider them at the annual meeting. That is where these decisions are supposed to be made.

My proposal regarding getting rid of DSH and placing the engines in other classes is a part of an overall reorganization plan that I'm quite sure will never take place. I would hope after reading everything I have said about my philosophy regarding new engines that you would appreciate that I have a commitment to make sure the Tohatsu, along with any other new and available engine, has a secure home in SO. Ed.

[mercguy]

Ok..........

Well, I guess you'll have to wait and see what comes from the annual meeting. There have been proposals made regarding the D class and the parity committee will consider them at the annual meeting. That is where these decisions are supposed to be made.

My proposal regarding getting rid of DSH and placing the engines in other classes is a part of an overall reorganization plan that I'm quite sure will never take place. I would hope after reading everything I have said about my philosophy regarding new engines that you would appreciate that I have a commitment to make sure the Tohatsu, along with any other new and available engine, has a secure home in SO. Ed.

as long as I (and all the rest of the Tohatsu owners) feel like we are not getting screwed over by the SO "leaders", which by all your previous statements, led some of us (well, maybe just me?)to believe YOU did not want to support the Bass Machines DSH effort and put it in Mod. I felt you are/were more "supportive" of the Sidewinder project and not concerned about a NEW engine that is already OUT THERE and racing.

[MGallagher]

I felt you are/were more "supportive" of the Sidewinder project and not concerned about a NEW engine that is already OUT THERE and racing.

I believe the future of Stock Outboard lies with the sidewinder project and its possible ability to be the lone producer of A,B,and C motors in the future. If we do not give the sidewinder project its place, by making room in stock outboard, we will be left with the Tahatsu "D" and that god awful 402 that I saw pictures of a couple of years ago, THAT'S IT!

I believe in the Bass Machine as the future D, however it is for a class that has a tough time representing at the nationals. As for the Sidewinder project, we have to get behind it in order for this sport to survive.

Matt Gallagher
58J

[mercguy]

I believe the future of Stock Outboard lies with the sidewinder project and its possible ability to be the lone producer of A,B,and C motors in the future. If we do not give the sidewinder project its place, by making room in stock outboard, we will be left with the Tahatsu "D" and that god awful 402 that I saw pictures of a couple of years ago.

Matt Gallagher
58J

Matt, I agree, BUT the Tohatsu is available right now! I have known Ron Selewach for longer than most people here (almost 10yrs it seems), so have all good things to say about him and his efforts. BUT, until these motors are on the market, we MUST support the engines that are available NOW, not keep trying to handicap them. DO NOT base the sole survival of SO racing with the Sidewinder project, there are other possibilities and options, if so needed.

[MGallagher]

I agree with the notion of dealing with motors that are available now 100%, however, these motors(Sidewinders) could be available a lot sooner if the SORC would give them there spot in Stock and the racers that could see themselves racing in these A/B classes in the next 5 years make some sort of commitment to buy one of these motors.

there are other possibilities and options, if so needed.<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

Once I here those possabilities and options I might think differently. Until then I will have no problem with an SOC commiting his energies more towards a motor(s) that will replace 3 major classes than 1 motor that will help the growth of a class that has no runabouts. In conclusio, If Ed wants to concentrate more on a motor that is good for the future of our sport than a motor that is good for a class, I have no problem with it.

Matt Gallagher
58J

P.S. It sounds like I am fighting Eds battles for him but all that I am addressing is the statement you made about him being more concerned about the Sidewinder than the Tahatsu.

[Cameraboy]

Mike, The plan will be developed by the newly created Stock Outboard Steering Committee of which I am chairman. Once the committee is formed, we expect to make some proposals for the L.A. meeting, not many. As time goes on the committee members will be communicating with all the membership to gather ideas & support for a final draft. This is going to take some time so be patient. I expect that by the Nationals 2007 we will have a pretty good outline of our direction. I think this is the best way to go because if I were to propose MY plan it would get shot down by the commission because, in my experience, the SORC is afraid to take any bold steps that might offend anyone, it doesn't seem to matter who is on it. John Runne 2-Z
P.S. I hope I didn't offend anyone!

Thanks, John.

[mercguy]

I agree with the notion of dealing with motors that are available now 100%, however, these motors(Sidewinders) could be available a lot sooner if the SORC would give them there spot in Stock and the racers that could see themselves racing in these A/B classes in the next 5 years make some sort of commitment to buy one of these motors.


Once I here those possabilities and options I might think differently. Until then I will have no problem with an SOC commiting his energies more towards a motor(s) that will replace 3 major classes than 1 motor that will help the growth of a class that has no runabouts. In conclusio, If Ed wants to concentrate more on a motor that is good for the future of our sport than a motor that is good for a class, I have no problem with it.

Matt Gallagher
58J

P.S. It sounds like I am fighting Eds battles for him but all that I am addressing is the statement you made about him being more concerned about the Sidewinder than the Tahatsu.

first off, this is contradictory, as to what Ed has stated. He is pushing to have the Yamato 302 the dominant motor for CSH, of which there are enough motors out there and ready to buy to last the next 10yrs, so no need for a replacement in the C class whatsoever. Second, as I have read and heard the SORC is going to bend over backwards and apparently is doing so for the Sidewinder motors and such and never heard of anything holding them back. Well, that is until they provide the dyno figures, then what are they going to do. I bet the motors will not have to go through that process though. As I see it, the only way the Sidewinder will work in each class, is if all the other motors are obsoleted in the SO ranks as soon as the new motors are introduced. Then, you have to have people step up and buy the new motors, which obviously have a way better chance of selling, since they are being catered too. Am I one sided towards the Bass Tohatsu, HELL YES, I am, because as I stated before they are not being given a fair chance at the present time, due to the parity situation and the vast protest against the motor. I sure as hell do not hear or read any protests against the new Sidewinders, why is that??? But, if the appropriate changes are made, then the DSH class (and eventually the DSR class) will grow in numbers. If not, well then the MOD classes will grow, along with the AOF and NBRA which welcome the new motor. As to numbers and such, the smaller classes like A/C etc will always have bigger numbers and racers, since they are more affordable, etc. But, not everyone is happy racing in those classes or even CAN'T due to their size.

[MGallagher]

Darren,
I am not bringing any other forum topics into this conversation. Yamato motors are limited regardless of the numbers that you have heard(They are not being manufactured anymore). According to my sources on the Sidewinder they are getting well deserved attention. My point is, as stated previously, is that if the SOC wants to aim his energies towards the Sidewinder more than the "D" Parity issue I have no problem with that.
I will run Yamatos until they are no longer allowed to run in Stock and I will gladdly hang it on the wall for the Sidewinder. Oh yea, I have seen LARGE guys run A/B and have fun and do well in the class.

Good Luck with your Tahatsu issues! I'm sure everything will get resolved, hell it has to.
Matt Gallagher
58J

[mike ross]

You guys out west who have been running the Tahatsu please bring all the data you have collected so far to LA. We know from all the posts that you would like the height raised for better handling. One of the big issues I see is the east coast has yet to see a motor on a boat being raced. The majority of the DSH and DSR are in the East. Ed stepped up 2 yrs ago and got the Tahatsu approved for you guys. Believe me Ed has taken the heat for 2 yrs now for doing that. We owe all the D class members this info. If I was on the pairity commitee I would have every stock outboard apba member recieve this testing info so they all could see it. It would also be nice if the Bass factory could provide a engine to be tested by someone in the East. The Sidewinder has been at several races so far, Been at the national meeting for all to see, Has been tested by a few at races for all to see. And has been raced competitivly against the current B class racers. All this and it isn't even apprved to race yet. This is what the D claas memebers thought should have been done before we approved it. This new D needs to be compared together with a Mercury in front of someone in the parity commitee so we can make sure it fits the bill. Mark Wheeler is a great wealth of knowledge when it comes to things like this. I am sure he would be more than willing, He did give his Merc 44xs to Mike W, when we finally got a Tahatsu to dyno for comparision. And that motor getting to Mike W was part of the approval process Ed got done and then that end of the deal went a little astray( Motor not sent to Mike in time frame promised) causing us to have to extend a deadline to the last minute and when we finnally approved it the membership looked at it like we jammed it thru. Please have all the info you have together so all SORC members can review it, It might be good to get it to them prior to the LA meeting. Not all SORC commisioners will be in attendance. I am with you we need to support new motors but the process we went through with the Tahatsu was not the way it will be done in the future. Having voting done with not all commisioners being present could end up with different results. Have a meeting with the pairity commitee prior to LA. Can't wait to see some data. Mike

[csh2z]

Daren, You are right, the Tohatsu project has been mishandled from the beginning. That being said, it is here now and should be supported by the SORC. The parity issues can only be corrected if the committee has facts about the performance of that motor against the 44XS. Last year the only facts we had were the results of the Dyno report. By the way, the reason we had to run it on a dyno was because many very well respected motorheads said that, based on their interpretation of the specs, that powerhead would produce much more horsepower than the Merc and may not be compatible. Based on the Dyno report, the power curve is signicantly different than the 44XS. Armed with that information, the decision was made to enforce these few restrictions UNTIL there was sufficient evidence a change was needed. In short, we need test data. Do we have sufficient testing data to make the needed changes? I'm confident the parity committee will do everything it can to make these motors as compatible as possible. John Runne 2-Z

[14-H]

Couple of things

First, the SORC has indicated on several occasions that it supports the efforts of the Hot Rod factory. I hope the history of the last 10 years in handling the introduction of new engines into the Stock Category will not discourage the new owners of this engine to continue to believe that the engine will have a home in SO.

Second, I have never heard of any proposal for a Hot Rod C engine. If one exists, I am not privy to it.

Third, I do not believe that the Tohatsu engine has been mishandled. Some may believe that there are too many restrictions on the engine at this time. I tend to agree. Others believe that the overly cautious approach was warranted due to the dyno information received by the SORC. I tend to agree with that too. I will say this, however, about the D Stock classes: we now have two sources for engines in this class and the numbers seem to indicate a small rebound from the class losses over the past few years. We have new equipment in these classes and we have put protections in place to make sure that our current members' equipment has not been obsoleted.

To me, that is a success. Some of the people who own either the older or new equipment may not like some of the decisions that have been made. Overall, however, I think the objective of putting new equipment into SO while also protecting current members has been met. That is not to say that more work is not need. It is. Ed.

[14-H]

***. DO NOT base the sole survival of SO racing with the Sidewinder project, there are other possibilities and options, if so needed.

I agree with this 100%. Also, do not put all of your investments in technology stocks. Just ask those who did in the 1990's what can happen.

[csh12M]

I agree with this 100%. Also, do not put all of your investments in technology stocks. Just ask those who did in the 1990's what can happen.

They got rich and bought the Dallas Maveriks!

[14-H]

They got rich and bought the Dallas Maveriks!

From Wilkpedia.com: By 1999, Broadcast.com had grown to 330 employees and annual revenues close to $100 million.[17] With the stock market in the midst of the Dot-com boom, Broadcast.com was acquired by Yahoo!, and Cuban received about $5.04 billion in Yahoo! stock.[18] After the sale, Cuban diversified his wealth to avoid exposure to a market crash.[19] The strategy proved successful when the dot-com bubble ended, with stock prices rapidly falling, Cuban retained much more wealth than fellow dot-com entreprenuers.

Once again, Eddie is correct and the challenger simply misinformed.

Sorry, Dean!

[mercguy]

You guys out west who have been running the Tahatsu please bring all the data you have collected so far to LA. We know from all the posts that you would like the height raised for better handling. One of the big issues I see is the east coast has yet to see a motor on a boat being raced. The majority of the DSH and DSR are in the East. Ed stepped up 2 yrs ago and got the Tahatsu approved for you guys. Believe me Ed has taken the heat for 2 yrs now for doing that. We owe all the D class members this info. If I was on the pairity commitee I would have every stock outboard apba member recieve this testing info so they all could see it. It would also be nice if the Bass factory could provide a engine to be tested by someone in the East. The Sidewinder has been at several races so far, Been at the national meeting for all to see, Has been tested by a few at races for all to see. And has been raced competitivly against the current B class racers. All this and it isn't even apprved to race yet. This is what the D claas memebers thought should have been done before we approved it. This new D needs to be compared together with a Mercury in front of someone in the parity commitee so we can make sure it fits the bill. Mark Wheeler is a great wealth of knowledge when it comes to things like this. I am sure he would be more than willing, He did give his Merc 44xs to Mike W, when we finally got a Tahatsu to dyno for comparision. And that motor getting to Mike W was part of the approval process Ed got done and then that end of the deal went a little astray( Motor not sent to Mike in time frame promised) causing us to have to extend a deadline to the last minute and when we finnally approved it the membership looked at it like we jammed it thru. Please have all the info you have together so all SORC members can review it, It might be good to get it to them prior to the LA meeting. Not all SORC commisioners will be in attendance. I am with you we need to support new motors but the process we went through with the Tahatsu was not the way it will be done in the future. Having voting done with not all commisioners being present could end up with different results. Have a meeting with the pairity commitee prior to LA. Can't wait to see some data. Mike

Mike, all the data will be presented at the National Meeting. As to testing the motor, it has been ran all last season out here on the West Coast. I imagine if the SORC would pay for a new Tohatsu, then Bass Machines would send one out to the East Coast for testing. Why would they send out an $5000+ motor to be thrashed on by others. I also have a question on Wheeler's motor being used to dyno comparison figures........was that his decent, good or best motor?? Anyway, that is off the subject, but the info you have asked for will be provided....