Hot Singles ! - Pictures

[willabee]

...... Now we just have to wait on Butler's return. ......

Waiting on Butler reminds me of a little Kingston Trio number ..... all together now .....

Well did he ever return,
No he never returned and his fate is still unlearned (what a pity)
He may ride forever 'neath the streets of Boston
He's the man that never returned .....

Sorry folks, just couldn't resist .....

[willabee]

..... Back to #998 - sure looks like Cees Van Der Velden's name on the rear cowling. Thinking out loud maybe Merc put the number on for practice sessions and just to create a BUZZ. Garbrecht was still race manager then - is that something he would have done ???

You may recall that about a month ago I called my ol' buddy Boob Hetzel about this picture. He said Mike Butler had given him the answer as to why the boat carries the #998, but he had forgotten what Mike said! I asked Boob to call me with the info when Mike got back from vacation or to ask Mike to post the answer ..... nothing happened.

I called again today and found out Mike has been back for a couple of weeks and Boob has the answer. I asked why he didn't call and he said it was due to the new phone system that his beautiful wife Ida had installed recently. Apparently they can receive calls but can't make any. I guess there is about a 50% savings using this system as compared to a normal call and/or receive system. Hell, his phone has always worked like that, might as well enjoy the savings.

Butler said that Garbrecht had a bunch of numbers that he saved for Mercury and simply decided to use the 998 at this race ..... very anti-climatic response after all this speculation. Soooo, it's 1978, St. Louis, a Seebold being driven by Cees van der Velden using Bill Sirois' #998 for no particular reason ..... bummer!

[T2x]

You may recall that about a month ago I called my ol' buddy Boob Hetzel about this picture. He said Mike Butler had given him the answer as to why the boat carries the #998, but he had forgotten what Mike said! I asked Boob to call me with the info when Mike got back from vacation or to ask Mike to post the answer ..... nothing happened.

I called again today and found out Mike has been back for a couple of weeks and Boob has the answer. I asked why he didn't call and he said it was due to the new phone system that his beautiful wife Ida had installed recently. Apparently they can receive calls but can't make any. I guess there is about a 50% savings using this system as compared to a normal call and/or receive system. Hell, his phone has always worked like that, might as well enjoy the savings.

Butler said that Garbrecht had a bunch of numbers that he saved for Mercury and simply decided to use the 998 at this race ..... very anti-climatic response after all this speculation. Soooo, it's 1978, St. Louis, a Seebold being driven by Cees van der Velden using Bill Sirois' #998 for no particular reason ..... bummer!

Let's make stuff up then..... Bill Sirois considered coming out of retirement for that race as he wanted to remind everybody who he was... but Al Copeland gave him a Lamborghini in exchange for a promise not to do it. Cees was then given the keys to a rental Taurus to take Sirois' place. Actually Bert Serra was the first choice but he couldn't see over the dashboard in the Taurus and had to bow out. Garbrecht also asked Gene Lanham to cut Redbird in half and run it with a Nitrous/Methanol injected T3, but the boat was only able to make right hand turns in testing.... The team quickly switched to the other half of the hull and it wound up on the Island in the middle of the Saint Louis course...

[jackiewilson]

You may recall that about a month ago I called my ol' buddy Boob Hetzel about this picture. He said Mike Butler had given him the answer as to why the boat carries the #998, but he had forgotten what Mike said! I asked Boob to call me with the info when Mike got back from vacation or to ask Mike to post the answer ..... nothing happened.

I called again today and found out Mike has been back for a couple of weeks and Boob has the answer. I asked why he didn't call and he said it was due to the new phone system that his beautiful wife Ida had installed recently. Apparently they can receive calls but can't make any. I guess there is about a 50% savings using this system as compared to a normal call and/or receive system. Hell, his phone has always worked like that, might as well enjoy the savings.

Butler said that Garbrecht had a bunch of numbers that he saved for Mercury and simply decided to use the 998 at this race ..... very anti-climatic response after all this speculation. Soooo, it's 1978, St. Louis, a Seebold being driven by Cees van der Velden using Bill Sirois' #998 for no particular reason ..... bummer!

Yeah, well Willa——- Some days you eat Bear ! Live with it.

[mbd29]

I didn't know that Harold ran a single. Looks like a boat Hering may have run. Maybe Willabee can enlighten us.

[John Schubert]

I didn't know that Harold ran a single. Looks like a boat Hering may have run. Maybe Willabee can enlighten us.

Although I’m not sure of the year but I believe it was the year Muncey co-drove with me & we finished 3rd when they put Harold in a Moli single. My recollection is that he “blew it over”.

[willabee]

Although I’m not sure of the year but I believe it was the year Muncey co-drove with me & we finished 3rd when they put Harold in a Moli single. My recollection is that he “blew it over”.

Harold Eis ran a single for Merc Racing just once. I know it was Parker, I think it was 1973. It was a Jim Merten idea to take him out of his comfort zone (his Stylecraft) and have him join the single engine brigade. As I recall, the experiment lasted about twenty minutes before he did, in fact, blow the Molinari over.

After Eis got checked out by the medical folks and got himself into a dry set of clothes, he returned to the Merc pit area as we were still testing other boats. He wasn't very happy and made it clear to all he didn't think much of those Molinari's. He was taking his unhappiness out on Merten and, for a moment or two, it looked like it was about to get pretty ugly. I could tell Mert had listened to about as much complaining as he could tolerate for one day!

I think it was 73 because Mert was the Race Team Manager when this took place. In 1970, Mert was a driver at Parker. In 1971, he arranged for a new pair of 1350 stackers for Eis' Stylecraft and Eis finisned 4th overall. I didn't attend Parker in 1972 and I was there for this blowover which is why I believe it happened in 1973. I don't recall for sure who ran that particular Molinari before Eis, but my guess is Hering in Europe, then Petty for a couple of US races. After the blowover it may have gone to Chick Gagen. It was a very good boat with the right driver ..... fast, turned great and got over nasty water.

[C.G. 125]

I did have a boat like that one but not that one. You sent one of Berghauer's old boat. Your right Willy, it was fast and turned well. It placed second one year at ST. Louis. Second due to trim failure at the end.

[mbd29]

I knew you would have the answer.

[FUJIMO]

[Bob V]

[2us70]

I just loved those Molinaris. They always seemed to be so steady. I would have loved to have gotten the chance to drive one even just once.

[willabee]

Although I’m not sure of the year but I believe it was the year Muncey co-drove with me & we finished 3rd when they put Harold in a Moli single. My recollection is that he “blew it over”.

I just checked Powerboat's article about the 1973 Parker 9 Hour and, although they do not mention Eis, they did report that a Scotti/Evinrude driven by a couple of dudes named Schubert & Muncey did finish 3rd! It said they completed 60 laps as compared to the 62 completed by the winning Molianari aimed by the Berghauer brothers and 62 for the 2nd place Cougar driven by Sanders & Posey. It went on to say that their boat suffered a steering failure in the last hour of the event.

Berghauer ....

Berghauer pit stop - did not shut off motor .....

[John Schubert]

[QUOTE=willabee;3006049]I just checked Powerboat's article about the 1973 Parker 9 Hour and, although they do not mention Eis, they did report that a Scotti/Evinrude driven by a couple of dudes named Schubert & Muncey did finish 3rd! It said they completed 60 laps as compared to the 62 completed by the winning Molianari aimed by the Berghauer brothers and 62 for the 2nd place Cougar driven by Sanders & Posey. It went on to say that their boat suffered a steering failure in the last hour of the event.

Berghauer ....

Berghauer pit stop - did not shut off motor .....

[/QUOTE
a
Actually

[C.G. 125]

He couldn't shut off the motor. Like the rest of the Mercury team, he lost his flywheel somewhere in the river. Those guys just lifted the boats by hand.