60's Drag race pics

[Mark75H]

Corvair

[Mark75H]

Skip Talbot Westbrook

[Mark75H]

Another Westbrook

[Mark75H]

I thought this a Westbrook as well, but another caption says it is a DeSilva. The man is Bob Kies, chief of McCulloch racing development.

[Mark75H]

Back of the same boat. Locked motors, inboard type rudder steering

[Mark75H]

Gary Ferguson's earlier drag race boat. Pics from World of Boatracing Magazine.

[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

more body english

[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

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[Mark75H]

Look, Mom! I beat an inboard!

[Mark75H]

Don't ask, I haven't a clue .... :)

[Mark75H]

Why Skip Talbot bought a Jones ....

[David_L6]

Originally posted by Mark75H
Don't ask, I haven't a clue .... :)


Looks like a set of Quincy stacks on a Mark 55 or 58 on D tower.... Strange looking boat. Are you sure that's a drag boat and not an 1100cc runabout (step up)?

Maybe that's where 2 man mod runabout got it's start?


Great pictures you're posting! :cool:

[lilabner]

1967

[lilabner]

Natl. drags 1967 Perris

[lilabner]

I don't understand these records..Skip set these in June and September 1966..how can someone else have the records at a slower speed later...must be the magic trophy for every boat deal..He set one at 118.80 a couple months later..his "fuel" records were set with gas and an additive...

[lilabner]

John Embry drove this one..Skip had a broken leg, that finished his boat racing...He now builds .50 cal match rifles and holds numerous records..still has that spirit..

[dale robertson]

Thanks for the engine pics of the twister 2. Man those guy's were ahead of there time. I didn't realize anybody was fuel injecting outboards back then.

[mk30h]

What was the Corvair Drag motor?
Looks like a merc from Midsection down , six pipes- but the rest don't have a clue.

[Powercat]

Butch:
In the early years, outboards in drag racing were pretty rare,
and they either ran in a mph class or Top Outboard. In latter
years they had single engine, twin engine, and then broke that
up to add gas or fuel. Also what made the "World Record" stuff
confusing was almost every year a new association was formed
to conduct the races, and they all claimed their own as "World Records".
The other thing was the timing equipment back then
was not what we have available now. Some were real good, others were not.
ET's were not even measured or recorded in
those years as all they worried about was who crossed the finish line first and top end speed. The starts were all "rolling" starts with the only rule being that both racers had to be even before the starter would flag them off. Which meant that some "drag races" were started with both boats on plane at 60 mph for the start... didn't matter as long as they were nose to nose when they got to the starter. When they had a boat running a single pass like to back up a record or some such, they often would be
allready flying when they got to the starter buoy. Made for some fantastic numbers but pretty hard to compare to a true "drag race".
Danny Leger

Originally posted by lilabner
I don't understand these records..Skip set these in June and September 1966..how can someone else have the records at a slower speed later...must be the magic trophy for every boat deal..He set one at 118.80 a couple months later..his "fuel" records were set with gas and an additive...

[lilabner]

It did have a 75H lower unit as I remember..also had motorcycle type carbs...really looked weird at the time and there were so many cool looking boats I didn't spend much time looking at it...amazing how weird turns to cool with the passage of time...

Butch

[lilabner]

I know what you mean about the starts and classes...but this was NDBA and there were 8 outboard classes of which Skip had the record in 4 of them...there were Hydro and Flatbottom gas and fuel, single and twin..he also had a Merc 650 with expansion chambers he held a record with but I can't remember what type of hull...certainly not as cool as VALKYRIE was..I really enjoyed the Nationals in 67 at Perris..Saturday was under 100 mph and Sunday was over..Sunday had over 100 boats...and we got to see Conquest set a record at 181..also being with Ted Jones was quite an honor..

Butch

[CALVIN]

Nice pics on the early drag outdoards! What is the belt driving on the top of the twister boat motor? Supercharger?

[dale robertson]

What is the belt driving on the top of the twister boat motor?
The injector pump for the constant flow injection system.

[Mark75H]

More of the same boats from a different magazine

[Dave S]

I am surprized that Sam didn't point out that the lower unit on th corvair motor is not a MK75H. Looks like a Parker/ speedmaster combo.;) And the pix of it running it sure looks BIG.:eek: I like the look of Skip T. twinn powered hydro........:cool:

[Powercat]

Sam:
Ok, I can trace the outboard drag racing speed progression
pretty well from the beginings in the late 1950's with speeds in the mid 60's up thru the early 1970's with the twin Chrysler Dragonfly at 127mph... Most all of this was west coast racing... What happened after that? I don't think I have ever seen anything on outboard drag racing of the later years, until the current stuff of course.. This is kind of a gap in my information
about this aspect of racing.
Thanks
Danny Leger

[lilabner]

I guess that says a lot about the old guys..the youngsters are only going 15-20 mph faster 30 years later...

now here comes the twin vs single debate..all I can say to that is more drag with twins...

Butch

[Dave S]

Hi Butch, I don't know about drag but I just like the look of 2 Merc 1000s on that hydro.:eek: I find it hard to think that some of those old boat setups kept the stock exhaust housing and covers on a small boat. I would think they would buy the parker to lower the C/G and weight. Unless the rules didn't allow it.??? Hey Danny, Sam had posted some other pixs that looked like newer stuff, around the 19760 era. Maybe after that the gas shortages put a whami on the small boats???

[lilabner]

I fully agree..there was nothing neater than a pair of inlines with 12 megaphones..no better sound either..Most of us on the east coast never even saw a Parker..I don't think they were even available in the early 60's..(60-63)..75H stuff seemed to be easy to get though..as were stacks..I still love the inline six...

[Powercat]

Butch:
On the subject of Parker towers.. I know that they were out
in 62 as Chuck had them on his first boat under the 1000's but
I had always thought that my Dad had them on his 850's that
he ran on his drag cat in 1960-61... The photo below is the
only one that shows the units and towers and its not very
clear... Maybe someone with a better eye can say for sure
if they are Parkers or 75H towers...
Danny Leger


Originally posted by lilabner
I fully agree..there was nothing neater than a pair of inlines with 12 megaphones..no better sound either..Most of us on the east coast never even saw a Parker..I don't think they were even available in the early 60's..(60-63)..75H stuff seemed to be easy to get though..as were stacks..I still love the inline six...

[mk30h]

So what was the Corvair engine? I'm embarassed to say that the only Covair I knew was the GM model of the early sixties. Is it the same beast, which would of course mean it was a 4-stroke that was competitive in drag racing in the 60's. Say it ain't so.

[lilabner]

That's what it was..they had 145 ci till 64 when they went to 164 ci..the manifolds lent themselves to be modified easily..ie Webers in a car..in the movie Thomas Crown Affair with my hero Steve McQueen, he had a Manx modified with a big incher with Webers..I think it was the only American production engine to turn counter clockwise..Bobby Allison used to work on them in Miami at a Chevy dealer in his younger days..a quick tuneup on them consisted of water in the intake at a fast idle to knock off carbon..(how did I remember all that?)

Butch

[lilabner]

I think the hydro Chuck brought to Fla had production short shafts on it..

Butch

[Powercat]

Butch:
Here is a picture of the motors on Chuck's very first
Power Cat hydro as it was rigged to run in early 62
in Calif. Parker housings and Counter rotating speedmasters
Danny

Originally posted by lilabner
I think the hydro Chuck brought to Fla had production short shafts on it..

Butch

[lilabner]

The one he had here was orange..don't know if it was the same one..I even drove it and can't remember..just remember it was fast and didn't feel as good as the cat..not as smooth, and it gave me the feeling it was going to clip the top of the next wave..it felt like a Jones cabover 225 hydro I once drove..

Butch

[Powercat]

The very first one above had the original "race" deck that had
the higher dash and no water well. He later raced one
with the full sport deck that was faster than the race deck. My
Dad had designed a little too much down force in the original
deck as he was still "influenced" by his blow over in the cat. Both of the boats that Chuck raced out west in drag racing were yellow in color. I bet the orange one was a third boat that Chuck probably raced in course races and the stock lower units
would make more sense for that.
I know what you mean about the difference in the feel, the hydro is "on the water" and the cat is above the water. I hope to have the video on the web soon of Ed Smith's hydro running
in Chicago and at Clayton, Ny. Some of the video was shot
from inside the cockpit and you can sense the same thing you are talking about that you are looking down the nose at the water coming at you. I remember that same sensation in the big 20ft 4pt
hydro with the twin Chevy motors that my dad built for the Salton Sea 500, when I got to drive it.
Danny Leger

Originally posted by lilabner
The one he had here was orange..don't know if it was the same one..I even drove it and can't remember..just remember it was fast and didn't feel as good as the cat..not as smooth, and it gave me the feeling it was going to clip the top of the next wave..it felt like a Jones cabover 225 hydro I once drove..

Butch :D

[lilabner]

When I said production I forgot to say with speedmasters..
He sold it to Red Wahl who later put Scott race motors on it..
Then George Griley ran it for awhile with Mercs again. After that Richie Baiz and Charlie Wolff ran it..

Butch

[Raceman]

Danny, the picture may be foolin' me, but looks like the housings on the white motors are different from those with the black cowls. Look at the height difference above the dividing line where the gearcase meets on the white ones, and how much higher the ones on the black motors look. The Parker housing I have looks just like the one under the black motors. There was another housing called a Dayton or a Daytona. Reckon the first ones could be those?????

[Mark75H]

Yes, there were Parkers, Daytonas and Quincys

I thought all these have been Parkers. The "split" on a 75H doesn't have a cav plate and is pretty hard to see in a picture. Daytonas look a lot like factory mids .... more square, less round

I went back and looked .... the profile view of the Powercat is too fuzzy to tell. The top of the Corvair's tower doesn't have the step that Parkers have ... must be a Daytona.

[Powercat]

Butch:
This must be the boat you mean in these photos.. I think several
of these pictures were some you sent me actually or maybe they
came from Charlie Wolf... This is the first generation deck just like
Chuck's first drag boat....
Danny Leger

Originally posted by lilabner
When I said production I forgot to say with speedmasters..
He sold it to Red Wahl who later put Scott race motors on it..
Then George Griley ran it for awhile with Mercs again. After that Richie Baiz and Charlie Wolff ran it..

Butch

[lilabner]

That's the one...
Charlie took over Dade Marine when I left for Parris Island..the three of us were pretty close friends..Richie was building and repairing boats..I was the motor and rigging man..

Butch

[Mark75H]

Danny, what can you tell us about this one?

[Powercat]

Page about Power Cat 4pt Hydro (http://www.powercatboat.com/81.html)
.....
.....
Sam: Well for one thing you just made my day !!! I can count
the photos of the Power Cat 4pt hydro that I have on one hand
and you just found another one.. This one appears to have been
modified in the rear deck area somewhat. Is this photo from maybe
Salton Sea 500?
Thanks,
Danny Leger

Originally posted by Mark75H
Danny, what can you tell us about this one?

[Mark75H]

Regatta of Champions, 1963 I think