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Rained some this morning up here at my house. Radar looks good down there now. If the critters cooperate maybe they can get in some racing.
That picture of the Mercury Team all lined up on the beach in the Stadium pit could not be taken today. 3or4 at the most is all that will fit on the present ramp.
I think that they should change the name to Miami Marina Stadium. I wonder if these power boats have to shut down if there is a dolphin or manatee in the area....I think we all know the answer to that.....
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Well Bob——— it’s ten o’clock at night and my bed time———— five o’clock in Miami and I still heard nothing!
Im Taking it there was no racing again at the Stadium. It does not bode well for future events that require propulsion of more than five miles a fortnight.
Somebody lost a shed load of money this weekend———- what do you say to a paying spectator? Sorry ‘bout that, but the dolphins came out to play, you can’t have boats and dolphins out together !
Don't suppose there’s any refunds for a no show !
Guess all my family turned off their phones for the weekend——- either that, or their spitting feathers and won’t talk. Best if I let sleeping dogs lie and let them call me.
Would appear the P1/s did get a race in after all————- well jolly hockey sticks——— Jesus wept, you have to be some sort of crazy enthusiast to think it was an ok weekend for boat racers.
See that there were two fatalities and a critical out on lake Havasu——— Tunnel boat got into trouble, don’t know the details, just the result.
Indy seems to be settling in ok——- no problems to date except Murphy is not best pleased with having an intruder around——— she takes off at first light and only comes back as the lights fading!
Got stuck into the belt sander———- didn’t have the correct size bearing, only a larger diameter one, so I’ve machined up a new end plate ———- should get it back into service later in the day.
Shorts or strides ? Weather set to be “fair” —— some sun, some wind, sixty five———- damn weather don’t know whether it wants a crap or a haircut.
Who'd a ever thought modern pleasure boats would be consitantly killing more people than modern race boats?
people think pit bulls are dangerous and its actually cats
(was that bad taste?)
If you have the odd million dollars or three Pilgrim, ————-you can toddle off down to your local marine dealer and walk out with a 2.000 hp engined fifty footer, give it to your 10 year kid and send him out on the water——— same thing here in England.
Another of those instances where “COMMON SENSE” no longer comes into the equation.
Yes!!! ——— exceedingly bad taste Pilgrim——— factful———- But bad taste!
My impressions of the Marine Stadium were as follows. 1 The grandstand requires a lot of work. The graffiti might be art to some but to me it looks like gangland. 2 Structurally some repairs are probably needed. 3 when all is said and done you wind up with a concert venue next door to a dry storage marina.
I put my name on the petition to restore the facility but it is futile. South Florida has plenty of good places for concerts and such events that are much more accessible than the Stadium.
Wonder what the consensus of opinion will turn out to be————-most folk seemed to think that bringing some life back to the derelict stadium was a good idea.
Apparently it’s not what was envisaged———- end result will never be what the old stadium was!
Anybody out there got a positive maybe view ?
Sadly, it will never be what it once was. When it was opened in 1963, it was an architectural masterpiece. There was plenty of parking with sheltered stadium seating. As the years rolled by, the City of Miami considered it a money pit so they stopped funding it and abandoned it. Now, like the boat racing that we all grew up with and loved, it is fading into the sunset. The stadium sits on a prime piece of real estate. I think that the City will say that the stadium has deteriorated and is no longer safe. That will open the door for them to sell the property to a developer who will build condos.
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That is the best picture of the Stadium I have ever seen.
Bob, what a wonderful picture of the Stadium——- American salesmanship at its best———- if the Arabs or Chinks had that picture presented to them today———— there would be new stadiums in Dubai and Shanghai .
There has been a steady decline over the years in all forms of powerboating, WHY ? I don’t know !
At one time it looked like it was going to rival cars in popularity——— just what were the mitigating circumstances that caused its decline ?
Most of the marathon races in Europe are no longer——:ie Paris——- Amsterdam——- Milan——- Stockholm.
Theres Only Rouen that holds a 24 hr race——— Annency and Chasewater are long gone!
I don’t remember there being an “Elsinore 500” for some time !
Since Pontius was a Pilate when man made an engine, then it would be raced. Cars—— boats——outboards——-inboards——- squirts—— planes——-bikes——- snowmobiles——— if it had an engine, then it was raced.
Its not the shortage of cash in boating————- any one of the “poker run” boats would fund an F1 series for a season !
So just what is it that’s tolling the bell for powerboating?
Theres no doubt about it————- powerboating is sick as a parrot at the moment !
From a world class race venue to a marina in fifty years——— how the hell can that happen?Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob V
Remember when SK boats were the top of the pile————- everything that a raceboat should be.
Fast——-loud——- great looking, and when you had a bunch of them running together, that was A RACE.
I used to get a monthly publication sent from the USA ———- it was called, Speed ‘n Spray. Sadly, I don’t have a single copy left.
Some of the words I learned from that little mag were. ELSINORE, HALLET, RAYSON CRAFT, SCHIADA, LOU BRUMMET, RUDY RAMOS. I always had a dream I would race a boat in the USA.
Well , I did———— so did my son——— then my grandson——- maybe my great grandson!, Speed n Spray had a lot to do with that.
Yes, SK was a great class to run. This is the Hondo hull that I ran in the mid 1980's. I could race one weekend then take it to the lake the next weekend. It was also a great boat to water ski behind. It would snap you out of the water in a blink of an eye. I later stepped up the the KRR class, but it was very hard to be competitive when there were so many high dollar teams funded with dirty money.
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I used to have a magazine from the USA too----it was called Playboy. Gladly I don't have a single copy left either..
My eyesight is poor.. Playboy had a lot to do with that.:cool:
I think the "dirty money" helped to price a lot of us out of the sport.
The thing about the dirty money was...in south florida anyways...that there was so much of it in the overall economic system here, that it raised "everyones" standard of living here. The country's economic lows of the times, were not even felt here. It was quite the sugar high while it lasted.
I was under the impression that all the dirty money went into “offshore” ——— there were some impressive big name funded teams racing in the halcyon day’s of offshore. Lots of legal backing and some great innovative teams took part as well as the much vaunted “mob monied” teams.Quote:
Originally Posted by 2us70
Had quite a few hair raising moments hanging round with Pruett, trips to the APBA meetings down In miami——- meting the Kramer’s —— Morales—— , put on lots of front as you gently soiled your pants !
Fugi, I was actually there when Pruett and Kramer got into it big time——- Kramer’s last words to Pruett were. “Don’t ever walk down 188th after dark Don” ! ——- Pruett just walked up to him , stuck his chin out and snarled——— or what ?Quote:
Originally Posted by FUJIMO
One thing about Pruett——— you could never forget him.
The Matheson Family has a lot to say about that----(Where are you, Mike?)Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob V
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Originally Posted by jackiewilson
Don was a lot more 'likable':)
http://i65.tinypic.com/9b9ldf.jpghttp://i64.tinypic.com/el6sy9.jpg
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Aw c’mon ——— your sh-ting me! ——- NOT BERT THE SQUIRT TOO!Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob V
That was the mid seventies——— line drawing was one of the two litre Cosworth BDG boats I had Hodges build ! Went to the bottom of lake Windermere.Quote:
Originally Posted by FUJIMO
Was running with Percival and Spalding in third place after two hours in Paris Six Hours——- and I had the legs to take ‘em. Came in for a prop change and the crane driver managed to put a hole in the side.
Here we are, four days into having a canine again for the first time in ten years, and we have a treasure. Damn thing just needs to be loved—— bit like me really——pat my head, give me a biscuit and I’m anybodys.
Brilliant with little Lizzie, which was of prime importance, but she’s obedient—- quiet, but Murphy and her don’t have a lot in common——- She chased the cat clear out of the grounds first time they met.
She had Murphy cornered in the front passage——- cat did a perfect h —-hissed and spat——- dog ran off into the conservatory——— classic case of “SCAREDICATITUS”.
Took the day off yesterday——- planted the bell peppers and tomatoes———- potted up the Dill, Correander, Basil, Tarragon and Lemon Grass. Will plant up the rest of the herbs if and when.
Damned belt sander packed in——spent a day bodging the thing but it’s still refusing to fire up—— trouble is, I was never into any more than “basic” electrics—— hate the bloody stuff, been bitten by it too many times in my life——— usually my own fault. So, if it’s not a fuse or a loose connection then I usually pass.
Going out to lunch today down at Havant —— it’s on the way to Portsmouth——- restaurant there goes by the name of “FAT OLIVES”——- heard a lot about it, but never found the time to investigate.
Tell you whether or not it was worth the wait.
Sounds like there is maybe a broken core in the mains lead...Cut 4 or 5 inches off the machine end re-connect.. and try, if no joy...do the same on the plug end...
By this time the lead will be too short to use the now working machine but.............
Oh and don't forget to unplug the thing before you attack it........Too cold yet to be stood round a grave this time of year..
Regardless of Phill——- I bought the bloody thing new a couple of years ago——- of course it’s only got a one year warranty.Quote:
Originally Posted by ron54
spent a day of my life trying to fix it———machine cost around Ł100- I think a day of my life is worth a bit more than that!
So, it’s bin bound——— I’m pig sick of it——— if I don’t find one at the car boot tomorrow, I’ll buy anew one again. This is the third one I’ve worn out in five tears——— shoulda gone to Harbour Freight and bought one of those chinky “Chicago” sanders with a five horsepower motor and a nine inch disc——— that bugger could never wear out.
The lunch at FAT OLIVES in EMSWORTH was excellent—— lovely people in there———- limited lunch time menu——- was a bit “bistroish” , but beautifully presented ——- maincourse would not have made a snack for a buck navvy but again it was totally edible and nicely presented. All washed down with a pint of “OLD DICK” and the pud (desert) was among the best I ever tasted anywhere
. Price was middle of the road——— not cheap——- but not outrageous———- Ł32 a head including gratuities.
Im usually dissapointed dining out at lunchtime——- very rarely do I not complain bitterly at something or another——— poor food, lousy service, expensive ———- so you got seven out of ten at FAT OLIVES, that’s the highest mark for a lunch this year!.
If were trying to keep Jackie's brain active I have found a few bits of memorabilia. Jackie you had probably forgotten about these or couldn't care less but I thought I'd pop them up
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Jackie at speed on the Kilo Windermere
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Don't knick Jackie's sponsorship money or he will catch up with you....
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Who dis ??
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Sure looks like Dave Beier - Mercury Racing Team, Oshkosh, WisconsinQuote:
Originally Posted by techteam
Mr. Purple Heart !Quote:
Originally Posted by willabee
Mr. Purple Heart !Quote:
Originally Posted by willabee
Malcolm Tyrell—— Ian (Hawkeye) HAWKINS——— Andy Chesman—— and the team from Windermere that made the whole record week happen.Quote:
Originally Posted by techteam
That was the last afternoon of the week——- Alfie Bullen had just taken the OZ record and gone home. I had one chance at it, topped out at 123:? Mph average there and back.
Last run the boat ever did in England!