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In the summer of 1973 the Stockers headed their wagons to Region 18, Utah- the home of Dick Bradford, Bryan McDougall and , of course Reed Riddle. The trek, from every direction, involved mountain crossings of a sort that tested the transmissions and cooling systems of vintage fleet of tow vehicles that attempted the jaunt. The last descent into northern Utah and the race site at Willard Bay involved a minimum of down. Willard Bay, both village and lake, are at 4350 feet elevation.
That's up there. Several phenomena of altitude change the parameters of Stock Outboard racing. The air is less dense; the boats get less lift. The air is less dense; the engines produce less horsepower. The air is less dense; it is difficult if not impossible to make beer. At least, that was the communal assumption. It didn't seem possible that Utah was dry.
Boat racers compensate. High altitude - retard your timing, run smaller props and dismiss your speedometer as being travel weary. The east coasters compensated by sending Tom Barrett east to Wyoming for beer. A truckers' strike had led to a shortage and no place in Wyoming would sell more than one case of beer to a customer. Western Wyoming, Rock Springs to Rawlins is sparsely populated. In the future we sent Barrett to Idaho.
Willard Bay was once a part of the Great Salt Lake. A rock jetty was constructed to segregate Willard Bay and the Salt Lake. Willard Bay, fed by mountain streams is no longer salty. The jetty contains the huge algae blooms that could have turned the Great Salt Lake green but allows the refreshing breezes (up to 100 mph) to return to Willard.
The result was a lumpy race course, green rooster tails and some very competitive racing. Somehow, the guys on top of their game prevailed.
Gerry Gravesen, Flossmoor, Il piloted his A runabout passed the competition and a hostile inspection to claim his first title in a record five months and twenty days.
Flint,MI's Dick Goodyear won the CSR title. Detroit's Wayne Parrott added to the Michigan haul in 36 Run. The BSR final was lumpy and Trenton, MI 's Fred Miller scored his first title.
Dick Odell, San Jacinto , CA stole the CSH race with a gutsy drive. Fellow Region 12 hard charger Jimmy Dawe of Needles, CA wasn't fazed by the bumps.
The DSR's of 1973 were made for such conditions, at least if the drivers were up to the challenge. For Hammerin' Hank Menzies it was no problem. The 25's were a little tougher. In their first nationals, Wisconsin ace, Charles Erdman took the 25SSH title. The 25SSR's hit the water with a who's who of runabout attitude; Nuccio, Miller, Menzies, Simmons. Lake Mohawk, NJ's, Billy Simmons was the victor.
Lake Hopatcong, NJ's Steve Defeo scored an ASH win that he backed up the following year.
Miami's Bill Hutchins cruised to his third BSH win in a row.
The big story of the nationals other than the 100 mph winds that came through the pits one night and ,of course the lack of beer, was the onslaught of the Shuman crew of Edmunds, WA. They arrived with a plan to dominate the JSR and JSH race. They had multiple rigs on their walnut trailer, prop guru Joe Price under contract, boat builder Craig Selvidge on retainer; a television crew to video the test sessions.
At the other end of the pits, the Nelson and Marcell teams, from New York camped under the stars, shared beans and dogs and combined rigs. Tom Marcell won JSH. Wyatt Nelson won JSR. And each survived a challenge for having a "non-factory" lucky feather stuck in the rewind.
.
That's up there. Several phenomena of altitude change the parameters of Stock Outboard racing. The air is less dense; the boats get less lift. The air is less dense; the engines produce less horsepower. The air is less dense; it is difficult if not impossible to make beer. At least, that was the communal assumption. It didn't seem possible that Utah was dry.
Boat racers compensate. High altitude - retard your timing, run smaller props and dismiss your speedometer as being travel weary. The east coasters compensated by sending Tom Barrett east to Wyoming for beer. A truckers' strike had led to a shortage and no place in Wyoming would sell more than one case of beer to a customer. Western Wyoming, Rock Springs to Rawlins is sparsely populated. In the future we sent Barrett to Idaho.
Willard Bay was once a part of the Great Salt Lake. A rock jetty was constructed to segregate Willard Bay and the Salt Lake. Willard Bay, fed by mountain streams is no longer salty. The jetty contains the huge algae blooms that could have turned the Great Salt Lake green but allows the refreshing breezes (up to 100 mph) to return to Willard.
The result was a lumpy race course, green rooster tails and some very competitive racing. Somehow, the guys on top of their game prevailed.
Gerry Gravesen, Flossmoor, Il piloted his A runabout passed the competition and a hostile inspection to claim his first title in a record five months and twenty days.
Flint,MI's Dick Goodyear won the CSR title. Detroit's Wayne Parrott added to the Michigan haul in 36 Run. The BSR final was lumpy and Trenton, MI 's Fred Miller scored his first title.
Dick Odell, San Jacinto , CA stole the CSH race with a gutsy drive. Fellow Region 12 hard charger Jimmy Dawe of Needles, CA wasn't fazed by the bumps.
The DSR's of 1973 were made for such conditions, at least if the drivers were up to the challenge. For Hammerin' Hank Menzies it was no problem. The 25's were a little tougher. In their first nationals, Wisconsin ace, Charles Erdman took the 25SSH title. The 25SSR's hit the water with a who's who of runabout attitude; Nuccio, Miller, Menzies, Simmons. Lake Mohawk, NJ's, Billy Simmons was the victor.
Lake Hopatcong, NJ's Steve Defeo scored an ASH win that he backed up the following year.
Miami's Bill Hutchins cruised to his third BSH win in a row.
The big story of the nationals other than the 100 mph winds that came through the pits one night and ,of course the lack of beer, was the onslaught of the Shuman crew of Edmunds, WA. They arrived with a plan to dominate the JSR and JSH race. They had multiple rigs on their walnut trailer, prop guru Joe Price under contract, boat builder Craig Selvidge on retainer; a television crew to video the test sessions.
At the other end of the pits, the Nelson and Marcell teams, from New York camped under the stars, shared beans and dogs and combined rigs. Tom Marcell won JSH. Wyatt Nelson won JSR. And each survived a challenge for having a "non-factory" lucky feather stuck in the rewind.
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