Congrats Matt

[ryan_4z]

I'd like to congratulate Matt D'agostino on his victory last week in ASH. He drove an incredible race and his championship is much deserved.

[mike ross]

They tried to work his nerves after the race was done but he pulled thru. Great Job Matt!!!!

[rball82]

Congrats Matt

[roperz111]

Way to go Matt!

Chris

[D_Allen_III]

Congrats Matt. Was 1989 the last one? Pretty cool taking 20+ years in between nationals.

[Matt Dagostino]

Hum..........

Congrats Matt. Was 1989 the last one? Pretty cool taking 20+ years in between nationals.

Does driving for Wes Jones in 1999 at Depue count???...........i won C Service Hydro. I still have the Caster Oil embeded in my life-jacket!!

It's been a while........now that the kids are grown maybe it's time for me to get busy again!

Nice seeing you and the family. You scored a 10 on the backflip at the pool friday night!! Always remember, if you are going to borrow equipment, borrow WELL!!

Matt

[Val16E]

Way to go Dad! I was cheering for ya! Glad I could finally see you win a Nationals it means a lot, sorry I couldn't be there.

And we can call that news paper reporter back up and say you are still somewhat in your prime =)


Great job to everyone else who ran out there I was cheering all week long!

-Go Fast, Turn Left

Val

[Racerkyle20]

They tried to work his nerves after the race was done but he pulled thru. Great Job Matt!!!!

If the boat was legal they wouldn't have had a problem. Congrats Matt that Stillwell sidewinder is fast.

[Val16E]

If the boat was legal they wouldn't have had a problem. Congrats Matt that Stillwell sidewinder is fast.

If the safety inspection had caught it as well there wouldnt have been any problems =)

anyways the race was fun to watch and everyone did a great job! Wish I was there but I lived through Livestream and my work found out what it is we do exactly!

Thanks again!

[STEVE FRENCH]

If the safety inspection had caught it as well there wouldnt have been any problems =)

anyways the race was fun to watch and everyone did a great job! Wish I was there but I lived through Livestream and my work found out what it is we do exactly!

Thanks again!

Just keep in mind folks the inspectors are obligated to enforce the rule book.........The appeal process is for you to see your ref (immediately) and to review the rules and bend to the spirit/intent of the rules..........next National meet'n is to adjust/make the rules werk!.........study,learn,attend,........... the process.

Congrats Matt, George, Ron/Sidewinder!!!!!

[RuthieRae]

[QUOTE=Val16E;206454]If the safety inspection had caught it as well there wouldnt have been any problems =)

Not really, there could have been major problems had there been a worse accident than what did happen. Thank goodness that did not happen.

Really the race committee/commission should rule on the side of safety.....did they wheel boats in the water to check kill switches......Nope....but that rule is in there. There are a lot of rules that could have been cited.

"The driver shall be responsible for the condition of the motor and hull as raced. Errors on the part of the manufacturer, boat builder, mechanic, or previous owner shall not excuse non-compliance with the rules."

"Failure of the Race Committee, Judges, or any other official directly or indirectly connected with the handling of a race or any other details, to carry out any provisions of the rules or regulations, shall have no bearing whatsoever on the right of any contestant or upon a contestant’s duty to obey all rules."

All in all, what ever happens happens. We can all learn a thing or two from this because the heart of this rule was for safety, and the overruling of it due to "non speed advantage" direction taken completely took the meaning away from the goal that this rule was intended for.

Congrats to all our National Champions, see ya' all next year...........................

[bill boyes]

What was the issue with Matts boat?

[MGallagher]

@bill, the issue with the boat was the sponson tip radius did not meet the safety measurement put forth a couple years go. They were too pointed. However, the call was made to reinstate Matt and his boat given that it was a non speed advantage and he had already been given a safety inspection sticker.
To me, those rules are made NOT to disqualify, but to warn the racer and get the issue fixed BEFORE the racer hits the water. With a technicality like this, a drivers championship can be stripped away because there helmet was expired, or flak did not cover a sufficient amount of the drivers tourso, or they did not secure there steering cable clips, etc...A non speed advantage disqualification AFTER a race, I feel, is not right. However, there should be a series of steps taken when a safety rule is not met, before the driver and/or boat gets on the water again.