FYI: Dec 12 MythBusters: Airplane Hour

Dudley Henriques wrote in
:

Got into racing boats as well. Really liked that. I had a place on the
riverfront in Maryland where we raced outboards. I had a D Utility made
by Sid Craft in New Brunswick New Jersey powered by a KG9 Mercury
running a quicksilver lower unit with an Oakland Johnson racing prop.
You knelt down hunkered on the floorboards wearing kneepads and held the
throttle in your left hand attached to the left side top chine with the
steering wheel in your right. When you opened the throttle, the bow came
up out of the water like a shot and went mid-air. When the boat came
back down, it was on the last several inches of the bottom near the
transom and you were going 60kts.
What a kick in the ass that was. Boy would I love to be a kid again and
go back to those good ole days for another round of "living" on the
river:-))


This one of those littel duck boat type things made out of one and a half
sheets of plywood?

It's true, you ARE a lunatic!

Bertie

Bertie the Bunyip wrote:
Dudley Henriques wrote in
:
Got into racing boats as well. Really liked that. I had a place on the
riverfront in Maryland where we raced outboards. I had a D Utility made
by Sid Craft in New Brunswick New Jersey powered by a KG9 Mercury
running a quicksilver lower unit with an Oakland Johnson racing prop.
You knelt down hunkered on the floorboards wearing kneepads and held the
throttle in your left hand attached to the left side top chine with the
steering wheel in your right. When you opened the throttle, the bow came
up out of the water like a shot and went mid-air. When the boat came
back down, it was on the last several inches of the bottom near the
transom and you were going 60kts.
What a kick in the ass that was. Boy would I love to be a kid again and
go back to those good ole days for another round of "living" on the
river:-))


This one of those littel duck boat type things made out of one and a half
sheets of plywood?

It's true, you ARE a lunatic!

Bertie

Right! Nothing between you and the water but a sheet of marine ply :-)
Slight correction though........that should read 'WAS' a lunatic! Now
I'm just a stable old retired gentleman reminiscing of days long gone by
when I was indeed the biggest lunatic you could ever imagine.

I guess when I cross that final finish line, I'll have some crap eaten
smile on my puss for having at least tried it all :-))


--
Dudley Henriques

Dudley Henriques wrote in
:

Bertie the Bunyip wrote:
Dudley Henriques wrote in
:
Got into racing boats as well. Really liked that. I had a place on
the riverfront in Maryland where we raced outboards. I had a D
Utility made by Sid Craft in New Brunswick New Jersey powered by a
KG9 Mercury running a quicksilver lower unit with an Oakland Johnson
racing prop. You knelt down hunkered on the floorboards wearing
kneepads and held the throttle in your left hand attached to the
left side top chine with the steering wheel in your right. When you
opened the throttle, the bow came up out of the water like a shot
and went mid-air. When the boat came back down, it was on the last
several inches of the bottom near the transom and you were going
60kts. What a kick in the ass that was. Boy would I love to be a kid
again and go back to those good ole days for another round of
"living" on the river:-))


This one of those littel duck boat type things made out of one and a
half sheets of plywood?

It's true, you ARE a lunatic!

Bertie

Right! Nothing between you and the water but a sheet of marine ply :-)
Slight correction though........that should read 'WAS' a lunatic! Now
I'm just a stable old retired gentleman reminiscing of days long gone
by when I was indeed the biggest lunatic you could ever imagine.

I guess when I cross that final finish line, I'll have some crap eaten
smile on my puss for having at least tried it all :-))


He who dies with the most toys wins!

Bertie

Dudley Henriques wrote:
Right! Nothing between you and the water but a sheet of marine ply :-)

Geezz, at least my brother put a few layers of fiberglass on the bottom of
his...

ManhattanMan wrote:
Dudley Henriques wrote:
Right! Nothing between you and the water but a sheet of marine ply :-)

Geezz, at least my brother put a few layers of fiberglass on the bottom of
his...


That was an option for both the Utility and the Hydroplane Utilities if
I remember right, and a lot guys did it and gained a few knots. Mine was
so pretty with all that McClosky's Man-O-War shining like a new diamond
through to the wood grain I didn't have the heart to FG it :-)
Kept the P51 the same way; as true to the original as I could. Took out
the old radios of course and replaced them with Collins. Those old
radios were HUGE :-))

--
Dudley Henriques

On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:27:29 -0500, Dudley Henriques
wrote:

Got into racing boats as well. Really liked that. I had a place on the
riverfront in Maryland where we raced outboards. I had a D Utility made
by Sid Craft in New Brunswick New Jersey powered by a KG9 Mercury
running a quicksilver lower unit with an Oakland Johnson racing prop.

I used to work with a guy who raced antique outboard hydroplanes.

I was blown away with how fast one of those things went with so little
power. That takes nuts! G

B A R R Y wrote:
On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:27:29 -0500, Dudley Henriques
wrote:

Got into racing boats as well. Really liked that. I had a place on the
riverfront in Maryland where we raced outboards. I had a D Utility made
by Sid Craft in New Brunswick New Jersey powered by a KG9 Mercury
running a quicksilver lower unit with an Oakland Johnson racing prop.

I used to work with a guy who raced antique outboard hydroplanes.

I was blown away with how fast one of those things went with so little
power. That takes nuts! G

Yeah; up to around 70mph can really get your attention when you're
kneeling on a piece of plywood, especially if you bury the bow in
somebody's rooster tail; but these new boats like the Formula 1's are a
whole new world of racing. In our day we never came close to imagining
the speeds these guys are capable of. Unbelievable!!

--
Dudley Henriques

On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 17:50:00 -0500, Dudley Henriques
wrote:

but these new boats like the Formula 1's are a
whole new world of racing. In our day we never came close to imagining
the speeds these guys are capable of. Unbelievable!!


Are those the boats that Top Fuel drag racer Eddie Hill used to race?

He used to say he switched to 300 MPH TF dragsters, because they were
"safer."

B A R R Y wrote:
On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 17:50:00 -0500, Dudley Henriques
wrote:

but these new boats like the Formula 1's are a
whole new world of racing. In our day we never came close to imagining
the speeds these guys are capable of. Unbelievable!!


Are those the boats that Top Fuel drag racer Eddie Hill used to race?

He used to say he switched to 300 MPH TF dragsters, because they were
"safer."
I've been away from boat racing for many years and not up on much of
what's been going on. I think Hill ran in Drag Boats if I'm not
mistaken. Formula 1 is a different category; not sure if he ran with
them. Either way, both categories are extremely fast and pushing 300
wouldn't surprise me one bit.

--
Dudley Henriques

"B A R R Y" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 15 Dec 2007 17:50:00 -0500, Dudley Henriques
wrote:

but these new boats like the Formula 1's are a
whole new world of racing. In our day we never came close to imagining
the speeds these guys are capable of. Unbelievable!!


Are those the boats that Top Fuel drag racer Eddie Hill used to race?

He used to say he switched to 300 MPH TF dragsters, because they were
"safer."

F1's are tunnel hull boats with large outboards. I also have been away from
boat racing for a long time but I believe straightaway speeds are around
140. I'm sure that someone that's more up-to-date with it will correct me.
One of the classes I used to run was a small tunnelboat with a small stock
outboard. Top end around 70-75. And!..I had a seat! Kneeling down never
appealed to me although it was probably easier to leave the boat if it
flipped. Also, the F1's and a couple of others of the faster classes are
known for their incredibly high-g turns. (That would be "gee" for anyone it
irritates) If you get a chance to see a race don't miss it.
Drag boats are a whole 'nuther matter.

BS, TP