IOGP Racing circuit and Mod VP...........

[JWTjr.]

The YT hull (Viking, Valero) was raced by a few "independents" (read: those with no hope of "special" off-truck powerheads or other help from Mercury) from 1985 to 1987. Roger Meekins on the East Coast was one, there were others whos' names escape me at the moment. None ever did well. It's predecessor (other than the Summerford Laser LTV bottom) was the Venom, a design that made it to one Kankakee Nationals (1985) and was dropped soon afterwards. The boat was too short and handled rough water poorly compared to Stoker's SST and Summerford's STV. That's why the HST was "developed" in winter 1986-87, and debuted in it's first IOGP race in June 1987 (two entries, Roger Meekins and Tabb Bridges). It had a few brief glory moments, but by then the first Mirage was out, the Stokers continued to dominate, and Roark kept perfecting the STV bottom. The HST quickly fell behind not long after it was introduced. THe only driver to do well with a HST was Ronnie Myers, a very strong-willed and hard-charging guy from Steeleton, PA who really ended up doing pretty well in a beat-up HST by the time Mod-VP was in it's last days.
What a great class, sure do miss it. THe last bastion of the factory outboard wars.

JWTjr.

[Laker]

Originally posted by Mike Muldrow
SS is just like mod-vp when it started with carb 200's. He actually thinks the SS boats are quicker then the 200's were.


Most of the guys that race SS would love at the very least less weight and open exhaust. As participation grows hopefully it will graduate to a second class with bigger motors. Green motors are here to stay and some people in power need to start promoting racing them and stop having personal agendas in their decision making, for the good of the sport.

Im sure thats the case as todays 150s produce plenty of torque and are same if not bigger displacement than old 200s.
Amen to the last part!!
If 225s were used with cones and open exhaust it would be Mod VP all over again!

[spn#43]

I agree, Supersports would be cool with 225’s
PS: Why there was no SS at Lakeland?

[us1ss]

SPN, officially there was not enough room for us in the pits so we were not invited. We have such a good turn out in Region 5 that they didn't have the time or space for our class.

Sounds logical to me: The largest average boat count of any class over the past 2 seasons in region 5 and we don't want them. Sounds like they got it figured out, but then these same people wonder why the participation in region 5 is dwindling?

I don't get it!

[spn#43]

I’m sorry to hear that ... , it really sucks but I think that it would really help if you guy’s switch to 225’s...or join #1 class in region 5, Mod-U ... lol...lol...(just kidding)
Hope to see ya'll in Marathon

[Tom Foley]

Wow , Great stuff, Where can I get a copy of the mod vp tape you speak of ? Thanks , Tom .

[runwhatchabrung]

Mod-vp was the Nascar of boat racing, totally awesome. Anyone remember Chris Bush running the red Hydrostream v-bottom and it stayed in the air more than in the water at St.Louis, forgot the year, but kept the announcer and crowd on their feet. He later drove for Roark in the Stv.

[11badknot]

I can remember when Chris was in a STV in Augusta for the first race held here in a carbon fiber boat Roark built for him to race, lapped up to second place with Rusty Campbell finishing 2nd after that Chris went to F1 with Chatfield who I believe now drives the Mercury truck to the races with his wife Kathy and Rusty took over the MVP chores and went to 5 or 6 Nat. Titles then moved up to F1 also. Oh yea Roark went to jail for not having his pit credentials in the pits by a gun ho policeman the mayor had to get him released what a hoot, you should have seen them getting all the props and things out of the truck when they hauled Roark away. In thinking back those were the good old days of some damn good racing when it was too ruff for the F1 boats they would say MVP's to the crane then they would bounce around and stuff a few then call them back in. MVP's, SST120's and F1's now that was racing!

[LakeRacer99]

Just a crazy thought, but how do we get Roak on here as a member? What about Earl Bentz, Billy Seebold, Rusty Campbell, Chris Busch? These guys should get on here and tell us some stories...
We are very fortunate to have some great builders and racers here as members, they are legends.

[11badknot]

Earl is probably too busy making money, Mr. Bill to busy in his retirement (keeping up with Michael and Timmy), Rusty does nothing with boating anymore but go to the coast fishing, and Chris is just too crazy to get on a puter. I think I have got Rusty talked into going to the next Rumble or to another race where Dixon and Kendrick would be racing, but who knows life is full of dissapointments, damn you sure got to get tuff to get older and watch all of the younger crowd have all the fun Ken

[11badknot]

Oh yea I had left Roark off, last I heard he was doing was trying to finish a Cobra he was building for himself and started a project for his son Robert on a Porsch of some kind maybe a 914 but who knows with Roark, he spends alot of time with his son. Ken

[Balzy]

I talked to the guys from TCPBA at the Crosby race and mentioned that we have enough Mod VP boats (HST's, Procomps, River Rockets, Euros) sitting in the pits right now to make an old style Mod VP race. (We were all there in the drags, where the hell were you?) They told me if we wanted to make a race some day we could. They would run it as a club race, not APBA. If we just followed the old rules for holding your line in the turns like they used to we shouldn't have any bumper boat action. I think we have enough boats right here in the miswest to pull it off. Who else is interested?

[spn#43]

That would be cool.

[us1ss]

Participation is the problem, if you have the boats you can have the class even in APBA.

For 5 years I've been hearing all the talk of bigger motors on the Supersport boats then people would participate is BS. It's all talk! If you want to race boats you do! I would put a 225 or even a S3000 on my SS this week if I thought there would be anymore racers than the 4 guys dedicated to racing mod-vp style boats now. Everybody else is just running their mouth!


To all the internet racers: Get off the computer and race!

[tabararacing]

Some of those guys mentioned read this bored from time to time... All it takes is one post, and they would be bombarded with questions. I do miss watching the Mod Vps that were at the Aquatennial and watching the 2.0L Champ boats on those LONG courses!
I have yet to see a better driver than Chris Bush though, nobody could drive a Tunnel like him. For those of you that seen what he was capable of know what I'm talking about, for those that missed it, better find an old tape. lol.
Brian