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Eagle One
10-21-2002, 11:36 AM
Did I say Old??? These photos are from the Mod-U class at the 1981 World Championships in Eufaula Ala.They ran 2 or 3 classes. I believe they were Mod-U, SJ, and Mod-50. This is a shot of the Lemans start of one of the heats in Mod-U. The format was the best 3 out of 4 15 minute heats. I finished 3rd overall Jimbo McConnell was 1st and Gene Thibideaux was 2nd. I drove the Lee Craft #81.
Eagle One

Eagle One
10-21-2002, 11:38 AM
The start!!!

Eagle One
10-21-2002, 11:43 AM
My boat ran well and came of the beach really quick and I was able to lead the first lap of every heat but 1. Here's a shot of my boat out in front down the back strait. I KNOW THEY'RE COMING!!!!!!

Eagle One
10-21-2002, 11:53 AM
Here's why you worry when your out in front: JIMBO McCONNELL, driving the OMC factory entry. A VanderVelden tunnel from Boxtal Holland with a hand built factory OMC CCC. Yeah he caught me on the second lap, but it took Gene nearly the entire heat.

Eagle One
10-21-2002, 11:57 AM
Earl Bentz won The National SST-120 title with this boat owned by Wil PerGande.Earl couldn't make this race so Lee Sutter drove the boat with a Mod-U engine. Loose as a goose!!!!

Eagle One
10-21-2002, 12:02 PM
I believe Doug Pearl won the World Championship in 1981. Here's his winning driving style. Nearly no boat on the water and he could drive like this all day. Soory some of the photo's are bluured but they were in a fire in 1998. Hope you like the trivia.
Eagle One

brianT2
10-21-2002, 03:25 PM
is that doug pearl in the 204 or homer greene? i thought doug always ran 173.

brianT2
10-21-2002, 03:36 PM
heres a picture after that race of my dad, jimbo, my sister, and myself.

brianT2
10-21-2002, 03:52 PM
i think this was at lakeland. real good running boat, noah.

C-C
10-21-2002, 05:45 PM
in the sport j i think the top 2 guys were disqualified and old dad took the win,, it was one of the races in 79-80- or 81 that that happened in,,i was there but that was a long time ago and my memory is gone now,, besides i was only about 10 years old at the time. thanks for the pics noah,,its good to see the older race pics,, i have about 10 boxes of those old races im going to scan some pics one day when i have time...

brianT2
10-22-2002, 12:56 AM
mike gardner-322-molinari/evinrude left of noah's boat.
steve ??-655-johnson on noah's right.
buck thornton-295-leecraft/mercury.
dad ran that race but i don't know were he finished?

Eagle One
10-22-2002, 12:50 PM
The Photo of #120 is Jim Hunt. He now lives about 45 miles from me and we see each other about once or twice a month. The photo of my boat was taken at Lake Hollingsworth in Lakeland I'm pretty sure and about my 4th race with that particular boat. I looked closely at the 204 boat and it's got to be Pearl as he has a pony tail!!!!!! Why he had 204 on the old Scorpion boat I don't know but Homer had a Hubercotti that Tom Huber built at the time. Homer and Doug were pretty tight so Homer may have run the boat at another race, who knows I'm getting older and my memory's not as good as it use to be. I'd really Like a copy of the photo of my boat if possible I'd forgotten how good it looked!!!! Jim Hunt and Mike were side by side on the last lap of the last heat and I lapped them both for the second time in that heat. Just had to pay Jim back for all the times I had to follow him!!!!! He and I are still close friends and one of the highjest compliments I recall ever getting was in St. Pete when he told me I drove well at Lake Magorie after I won the race. He and I are talking about a SENIOR racing team. He just bought a hydro and a Mark 55 to race in some vintage races. I hope the coming year allows me to get back into more racing. This year I only made 3 or 4 races and the rust on my driving really shows!!!.The attached photo is of me in a Broughton boat just like Jim's. If you look close you'll notice there's actually 2 boats in the picture. Mines Black with a Merc, Jim's on the other side in the whie #120. Yeah we are close!!!!!!
Thanks fo

H2Onut
10-22-2002, 01:33 PM
WOW TOO FREAKIN COOL !!!!!!!!!!

gemini
10-22-2002, 10:58 PM
I remember running this class as a step-up one year in a heavy rain storm.At the start of one heat you couldn't even see the start clock from the milling area. This was the last race of the weekend and they wanted to get it over. I hit the clock first and went into the fog and rain toward the first turn knowing all the V-8's were behind me. About a lap later they started coming by( probably had 15mph on my Merc/Seebold) I thought someone might get rear ended since you never could see the whole course. I think thats the last time I ran Mod-U for any reason.

brianT2
10-23-2002, 11:54 PM
i am in the search mode for a new printer and will copy and send that picture i have as soon as i get it. send to business address ok? i also remember homer having a black SJ, must be that hubercotti, also had a MOD 50 that was silver. i think that was a smaller hubercotti, looked very similar? i racked my brain trying to remember the boat you had before the leecraft. those broughton boats did run good!

Kathleen Michelle
10-24-2002, 10:28 AM
Thanks for sharing those.

Fish
10-27-2005, 07:53 AM
The Photo of #120 is Jim Hunt. He now lives about 45 miles from me and we see each other about once or twice a month. The photo of my boat was taken at Lake Hollingsworth in Lakeland I'm pretty sure and about my 4th race with that particular boat. I looked closely at the 204 boat and it's got to be Pearl as he has a pony tail!!!!!! Why he had 204 on the old Scorpion boat I don't know but Homer had a Hubercotti that Tom Huber built at the time. Homer and Doug were pretty tight so Homer may have run the boat at another race, who knows I'm getting older and my memory's not as good as it use to be. I'd really Like a copy of the photo of my boat if possible I'd forgotten how good it looked!!!! Jim Hunt and Mike were side by side on the last lap of the last heat and I lapped them both for the second time in that heat. Just had to pay Jim back for all the times I had to follow him!!!!! He and I are still close friends and one of the highjest compliments I recall ever getting was in St. Pete when he told me I drove well at Lake Magorie after I won the race. He and I are talking about a SENIOR racing team. He just bought a hydro and a Mark 55 to race in some vintage races. I hope the coming year allows me to get back into more racing. This year I only made 3 or 4 races and the rust on my driving really shows!!!.The attached photo is of me in a Broughton boat just like Jim's. If you look close you'll notice there's actually 2 boats in the picture. Mines Black with a Merc, Jim's on the other side in the whie #120. Yeah we are close!!!!!!
Thanks fo

Just stumbled across this thread, I love this stuff! I am 99% positive 204 was homer, one of the few numbers I remember from back then.

BTW, I spoke with Tom Huber a couple of months ago. He is in still in florida and had lots of stories about the old days. He told me to bring my stv up and he would make sure i got the set up right. Unfortunately, his health is not the best right now. If anyone wants to reach him, pm me and I will give you his contact info.

Noah, Jim, if you guy do start the senior race team, le tme know, my dad got in my stv a couple months ago after over 30 years out of a tunnel, and was like a little kid looking for people on the water to race. I am sure he would like to do it too.