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We had a good first event for the USTS at Inverness, FL. What a great city that just loves racing. Estimated crowds were in the range of 3,000 - 4,000 each day and that does not inlcude the large flotilla of boats off of the first turn. There were certainly some rough edges for the race committee to work thru for future races, but in my opinion this was a very successful event.
A big thank you to Butch Kiddy and Robbie Galletta for all their tireless effort and generosity. Also, our crew of scorers, recue drivers and countless volunteers deserve a great deal of gratitude from a large turnout of boats.
Mother nature kept us on our toes all weekend with shifting winds and a few gusts. But we got all the heats of racing completed. Friday's testing and Saturday's racing only had one accident with no injuries. Sunday, things got a little tougher with several K PRO's rolling over in the first turn. BJ Tetro blew over his brand new 125 runabout, but fortunately was not hurt in the incident. There were a few exchanges of paint and wood in the bouncy turns.
I do not have the race results. But we can congratulate the capsule boat crowd for showing up with an impressive 11 1100cc Hydro's!! And did they ever put on a show!! It was good to see so many of the big boats at race other than the nationals. Let's hope that they can keep this partipcation going for the rest of the year.
Class by Class recollections:
K PRO - 10 boats, no idea who won due to multiple heat winners and the aforementioned accidents. These kids really do a good job on the water.
125 hydro - I believe that there were 11 boats on the water. David Jones took a swim in the first heat, but was able to race in heats 2 and 3. This remains a very competitive class with Rossi's and VRP's battling on level ground. A couple of new particpants from the Northeast show that this class continues to grow around the country.
250 runabout - I am not sure who won and I believe that there were multiple heat winners. Rich Krier, Chirs H. and Brandon Thirlby all ran at the front. Jason Sailer's new 250 R by Jerry Davids is a pretty boat. Tim Small took delivery of a new Krier 250 and Brian Payne will soon begin campaigning a new VRP 250.
500 Hydro - 7 boats I believe. Brandon Thirlby looked good in his new Pugh. Mark Gryz. looked good in his older Pugh. Sean McKean struggled a little in his first race of the season, but got the boat dialed-in heat by heat.
500 Runabout - Was that R.C. Hawie back in a 500 runabout?? Yes it was and he still knows how to get around the race course, but Mike Thrilby took the win. I believe that we had 7 500R's.
350 Hydro -8 entries. David Mitchell's carb problems in the first two heas gave everyone else a chance !! The podium finishers were Stahl, Hellsten and Schmidt. Great to have Tommy Adtkins racing with us again. Stahl's new MJR hydro is a real beauty. Gary Bursik's new Schumacher is also a real pretty boat powered by a new VRP 350.
125 Runabout - 7 boats entered with Brian Payne had a dominating performance class. BJ Tetro's accident was impressive and the 125 R's are clearly able to go over 49mph!!
350 Runabout - 6 entries in this normally large class. Rich Krier was the class of the field until he broke in the final heat with a lap to go. Mike Thirlby benefitted from Rich's misfortune.
250 hydro - 14 250's attended the race with 2 scratches bringing the field down to 12. Run'm was the call. Man was it crazy out there!! But everyone got around the course and made it back in one-piece more or less. I think Chris Hellsten beat Mike Schmidt on points. Chris' new Tec Craft is another real eye pleaser.
1100 hydro's - No real way to describe this other than you should have been there!! I believe that Sean McKean won the day, but I am not sure. So many of these boats looked super fast, but it was very hard to work thru the field. Nic Davis' new Konny ran well right out of the box. If this kind of attnedance keeps up, look for a huge shoot-out in DePue!!
I am sure that the results will be posted in a couple of days when Shirley gets home.
A big thank you to Butch Kiddy and Robbie Galletta for all their tireless effort and generosity. Also, our crew of scorers, recue drivers and countless volunteers deserve a great deal of gratitude from a large turnout of boats.
Mother nature kept us on our toes all weekend with shifting winds and a few gusts. But we got all the heats of racing completed. Friday's testing and Saturday's racing only had one accident with no injuries. Sunday, things got a little tougher with several K PRO's rolling over in the first turn. BJ Tetro blew over his brand new 125 runabout, but fortunately was not hurt in the incident. There were a few exchanges of paint and wood in the bouncy turns.
I do not have the race results. But we can congratulate the capsule boat crowd for showing up with an impressive 11 1100cc Hydro's!! And did they ever put on a show!! It was good to see so many of the big boats at race other than the nationals. Let's hope that they can keep this partipcation going for the rest of the year.
Class by Class recollections:
K PRO - 10 boats, no idea who won due to multiple heat winners and the aforementioned accidents. These kids really do a good job on the water.
125 hydro - I believe that there were 11 boats on the water. David Jones took a swim in the first heat, but was able to race in heats 2 and 3. This remains a very competitive class with Rossi's and VRP's battling on level ground. A couple of new particpants from the Northeast show that this class continues to grow around the country.
250 runabout - I am not sure who won and I believe that there were multiple heat winners. Rich Krier, Chirs H. and Brandon Thirlby all ran at the front. Jason Sailer's new 250 R by Jerry Davids is a pretty boat. Tim Small took delivery of a new Krier 250 and Brian Payne will soon begin campaigning a new VRP 250.
500 Hydro - 7 boats I believe. Brandon Thirlby looked good in his new Pugh. Mark Gryz. looked good in his older Pugh. Sean McKean struggled a little in his first race of the season, but got the boat dialed-in heat by heat.
500 Runabout - Was that R.C. Hawie back in a 500 runabout?? Yes it was and he still knows how to get around the race course, but Mike Thrilby took the win. I believe that we had 7 500R's.
350 Hydro -8 entries. David Mitchell's carb problems in the first two heas gave everyone else a chance !! The podium finishers were Stahl, Hellsten and Schmidt. Great to have Tommy Adtkins racing with us again. Stahl's new MJR hydro is a real beauty. Gary Bursik's new Schumacher is also a real pretty boat powered by a new VRP 350.
125 Runabout - 7 boats entered with Brian Payne had a dominating performance class. BJ Tetro's accident was impressive and the 125 R's are clearly able to go over 49mph!!
350 Runabout - 6 entries in this normally large class. Rich Krier was the class of the field until he broke in the final heat with a lap to go. Mike Thirlby benefitted from Rich's misfortune.
250 hydro - 14 250's attended the race with 2 scratches bringing the field down to 12. Run'm was the call. Man was it crazy out there!! But everyone got around the course and made it back in one-piece more or less. I think Chris Hellsten beat Mike Schmidt on points. Chris' new Tec Craft is another real eye pleaser.
1100 hydro's - No real way to describe this other than you should have been there!! I believe that Sean McKean won the day, but I am not sure. So many of these boats looked super fast, but it was very hard to work thru the field. Nic Davis' new Konny ran well right out of the box. If this kind of attnedance keeps up, look for a huge shoot-out in DePue!!
I am sure that the results will be posted in a couple of days when Shirley gets home.
) was kidnapped and held hostage at the judgastand and forced to work, so we didn't get any pictures taken. 
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