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Why isn't there a class?
I thought APBA shot themselves in the foot when they did away with the 48 C.I. class inboard hydro. This was a good breeding ground for beginners and in a price range that was affordable.
I have been out of it from back in 57-58 when I ran ""A" hydro in NOA on a meager budget. When I was 15 in 1951 I assisted Byron (Smoky) Berthalot in building a Crosley powered Champion 3-pointer 12 X 6 ft. With luck and skill one could coax about 60 HP and 10,000 RPM from one. I still have plans for it but at 78 I am afraid my racing days are over. I am still a fan and can't understand why they aren't running that class with 850CC crotchrocket engines. They are about 150 HP and turn around 14-16,000 RPM stock. I have a video of a guy with a double blower 1000 CC Hayabusa bike developing 499 HP. doing wheelies at 200 mph. It seems like a natural for boating. I imagine a crackerbox would be almost impossible to handle with that kind of power and light weight. Maybe a picklefork 48 class hydro would be OK with spoilers run by gyros and servo motors to prevent blowovers. It would still be in the money realm of the common man. Maybe the common man isn't welcome in the elite racing circles anyway?
I have been out of it from back in 57-58 when I ran ""A" hydro in NOA on a meager budget. When I was 15 in 1951 I assisted Byron (Smoky) Berthalot in building a Crosley powered Champion 3-pointer 12 X 6 ft. With luck and skill one could coax about 60 HP and 10,000 RPM from one. I still have plans for it but at 78 I am afraid my racing days are over. I am still a fan and can't understand why they aren't running that class with 850CC crotchrocket engines. They are about 150 HP and turn around 14-16,000 RPM stock. I have a video of a guy with a double blower 1000 CC Hayabusa bike developing 499 HP. doing wheelies at 200 mph. It seems like a natural for boating. I imagine a crackerbox would be almost impossible to handle with that kind of power and light weight. Maybe a picklefork 48 class hydro would be OK with spoilers run by gyros and servo motors to prevent blowovers. It would still be in the money realm of the common man. Maybe the common man isn't welcome in the elite racing circles anyway?
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