I sent you a pm.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lake X Kid
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I sent you a pm.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lake X Kid
I am going to continue with my 1984 Stockholm GP sponsor story but first I like to make a few things extremely clear..
Yes..I started to sell new Evinrude outboards from my Stockholm dealership to a person I know who exported them to the USA. The first sale was around November/December 1983. I wrote about this in post #8561
I also wrote in post #8564 OMC Belgium came to the Stockholm Boat Show in March of 1984 to talk to me about the Evinrude export.
My export was going on from late 1983 to the end of 1986.
OMC was fully aware of my export..Other OMC dealers in UK, France and Holland started doing the same thing but did not have the right set up.
This is how simple it was..my buyers contacted me..
We need more new outboards..I asked.. how many, HP and length.
Called OMC Sweden with the order and they never told me NO over the 3 years.
I can add..every year close to September 30, OMC Sweden sales contacted me and asked if I needed another truck load of outboards before they close the books for that year.
Normally it was a yes.
This business was 100% legal and I always asked my lawyer for advice if needed.
I know there is a few people here at S& F who are upset about the export.
Sorry..but that is part of business..They should be mad at OMC, not me.
Every large order I did for export was way over my credit limit..and Peter Runestam the Chief Financial Officer at OMC Sweden must approve.
He could have asked for bank security or said No.. but never did. (No dealer Floorplan set up in Sweden..OMC, Sweden was acting like your bank up the an agreed limit)
OMC could have easy cut me out as a dealer..but that was never even considered.
This is over 35 years ago..OMC is long gone and so is my outboard dealership.
Thanks
Enjoy life.
How do the outboard dealerships look like these days in your old area?
Good question..my old dealership location in Stockholm is a computer store today.Quote:
Originally Posted by powerabout
Less than a handful dealers left selling outboards and service today. (Re-power)
Everything comes pre-rigged from the boat factories and dealers are more like MarineMax..many locations.
Nimbus Boats (public company) just purchased the three largest boat dealers around Stockholm.
Outboards today in Sweden are Yamaha-Mercury and Suzuki..yes in that order.
The 1984 Stockholm F1-V8 GP was the weekend June 30/July 1.
Same set up and location as 1983. Saturday and Sunday evening race.
Lots of issues the weeks before this race for me.
1. Sponsorship up in the air and I needed a new Burgess boat and much more. The $10,000.00 for each race OMC promised by one time sponsorship race deals was by far not enough. Very hard to find a great sponsor for a full season.
2. Renato Molinari was pouring money in his Martini racing team. We learned he made his own short mid section and gear case out of titanium. No way I could afford stuff like that.
3. Driver security was a concern for lots of reasons.
I talked to George Lamy OMC Belgium again before the Stockholm race..Told him I do my own sponsorship for the race.
Drove to the OMC Sweden headquarter in Vällingby outside Stockholm to meet with Bengt Nilsson..the CEO for OMC Sweden.
I had made up my mind and I wanted my friend Bengt to be the first to know..
The Stockholm GP was going to be my last race.
F1-V8 racing was no fun anymore ..and if no fun you must stop. If not you kill yourself from bad driving..you must be hungry to be a good safe driver.
I guess I was the first one to start the retirement trend..a few weeks later after Tom Percival crashed and left us in Liege, Belgium Roger Jenkins retired..So did Renato after the 1984 season.
A few pictures of my Lasse Ström Marin sponsored #8 Burgess/Evinrude V8 in the 1984 Stockholm GP.
Now I could concentrate on getting my Evinrude dealership grow faster than ever..A Yamaha Center was considered.
Did meet with the Yamaha distributor for Sweden a few times..but my export business was way to good to change anything.
First some reading from Powerboat & Waterskiing.
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...7&d=1622514870
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...8&d=1622514877
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...9&d=1622514891
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...1&d=1622514917
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...0&d=1622514900
Lars: Why and when did you get out of the marine business; your Evinrude dealership.
Thanks for asking Rotary John,Quote:
Originally Posted by Rotary John
The Stockholm location for my dealership was Tobaksspinnargatan 4.
A 3,800 square ft space in the street level of a residential building.
Large display windows and some parking outside. Also garage doors to bring in boats etc.
The City of Stockholm-EPA was not really happy with me running an outboard business with sales and service there.
Our workshop did have a large test tank for outboards with an exhaust fan all the way up on the roof. This was done before me..when it was Melins Motor and grandfathered in.
This large residential building sold and the new owner had a plan to restore the building. For some reason they forgot to end my 3 year lease late 1987 when it expired..meaning I was there for another 3 years. There was no way to kick me out and start restoring the building.
The owner of the building did everything he could to find me a similar business location but very hard in the City of Stockholm.
I made him an offer..I move back to my old place just outside Stockholm where I started my business 1975..I still used that location for boat service.
I gave him a number..and a few days later we agreed and I was back at my old place. I think it took us a month to get out.
Still running my Evinrude dealership at my old location and some time later sold the business. I think it was 1989/90.
This is my old location in red today..
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...2&d=1622569160
Strange timing..??
This picture came up at FB today..Roberto Saviero, Italy boat # 4 died a few weeks after I retired from racing at the Stockholm GP 1984.
He crashed at testing back home in Italy.
Very nice racing friend.
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...4&d=1622569869
The OMC outboard business and the effect of a new business policy by OMC overseas.
Sweden have always been a great market for boating for a lot of reasons. The beautiful archipelago in many parts of the country. The one outside Stockholm is still the most popular for boaters.
Sweden use to be the number three country in Europe for outboard sales.
There was three Swedish owned companies building up the Evinrude-Johnson outboard sales-popularity during sixties & seventies.
AB Linco and AGB..AB Linco was the Evinrude distributor and AGB the Johnson distributor in the sixties. AB Linco owned AGB.
Around 1970 OMC told AB Linco they could not have both Johnson and Evinrude in Sweden.
Billy Huzell and his company Huzells took over Evinrude.
Now it was an outboard sales war in Sweden between AGB Johnson and Huzells Evinrude.
Both companies owned more or less the new outboard sales in Sweden. NKK the Swedish distributor for Mercury did pretty good but was way behind Evinrude -Johnson.
AGB promoted Johnson very effective with great dealers and sponsorship of fun events. Also boat racing.
Huzells was doing the same thing and Billy Huzell was a very strong business leader. Signed up ABBA as Evinrude supporters.
Help me start my own Evinrude outboard business 1975.
A perfect timing..the Swedish new outboard sales peaked 1975/76. Around 50,000 new outboards was sold 1976. Probably 40,000 was Evinrude Johnson.
OMC Waukegan kicked out Huzells and AGB 1977...just told them to hit the road..Took over the sales in Sweden with a new subsidiary OMC Sweden owned by OMC 1977.
(This was happening all over Europe..not only Sweden)
Well..worked for a few years but overall outboard sales went down..OMC could not keep up with Yamaha & Suzuki in a lot of ways.
Huzells was now the Swedish distributor for Suzuki and AGB Mariner.
Later in the mid-nighties OMC was looking for an independent Swedish distributor again..OMC Sweden failed.
OMC,Waukegan even asked me..!!
Duells..a company in Gothenburg was the distributor for Evinrude to the end of OMC..
Today's outboard sales in Sweden are Yamaha, Mercury and Suzuki.
Evinrude/Johnson long gone..
So..when some people get upset with my export, they don't really know the OMC history overseas.
My export over a few years was still sales for OMC/ Evinrude.. made possible from their own policy.
Just a lot of unnecessary shipping.
First picture is Billy Huzell in a familiar t-shirt..the rest is Huzell Evinrude - AB Linco Evinrude & AGB Johnson ads.
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...5&d=1622661647
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...6&d=1622661666
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...7&d=1622661695
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...8&d=1622661702
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...9&d=1622661710
Back to racing again and the early days..(modern time)
My guess is Miami to Nassau 1967 or 1968...
Attachment 488084
Way back..before OMC and the Pavia - Venezia race 1929.
This was the first race and a Ettore Negri scafo powered by an ELTO 500
Overall winner..average speed 36 km/h
Pretty cool..Thanks Roberto Martini.
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...5&d=1622667425
#9 Roger Jenkins in Como, Italy. 1982 maybe 1983.
Not sure but I think its David Burgess in the hat.
https://www.screamandfly.com/attachm...8&d=1622669934
Early 1985 OMC asked me if I was interested in getting back to the F1-V8 series. OMC needed a Swedish/Scandinavian driver in the series.
This was when both Hodges and Velden was developing the new safety cell.
George Lamy..(still at OMC Belgium) told me he could get me a ride in another team..like Velden or Hodges.
This was when the famous Pro 1 race pro-motor was hired by OMC.
https://svera.se/blogg/pro-one-the-u...promotor-1985/
I told OMC the only way for me to get back in to racing is with my own team and a full season main sponsor. No sponsor like that was available for any driver. Martini was also gone but Renato was running a two boat team with Barry Woods and Kicco Vildoli as his drivers.
My friend Bertil Wik signed up to drive one of the two boats in Team Hodges.
Bertil Wik and I did visit Second Effort together in Florida early spring 1985 after Bertil signed with Hodges.
My experience with driving race boats owned by someone else was no good. I wanted to control my racing equipment and not forced the race/test something I did not like.
Pro 1 was hitting the ground running and got a very good start in Munich, Germany 1985.
https://svera.se/blogg/f1-v8/the-dre...s-first-event/
2021 Boat race at Lake of the Ozarks..
Drove down to the location for the upcoming race last night. No boats there yet.
Neon Taco is a nice new bar/restaurant and the best place to watch the race from.
Did see a very familiar face at a table..
3 hours and 4 Bud Light later we left..:cheers:
Attachment 488187
Lots of fun yesterday at the street party.
One thing I heard that was was no good..my F1 driver Greg Foster crashed during testing the new F1 Merc 360 APX a few days ago and can not race today.
Attachment 488304