Marietta, Ohio. July 7-8, 2001.

This was our first race for the new boat, and Brian's first race both in a tunnel boat and the APR series. Our goals for the weekend were simple. We wanted to stay out of trouble and hoped that the boat would run well. Racing on Saturday was shortened due to high winds, and we had some problems with the throttle cable, so we were hoping for better conditions on Sunday. On Sunday, the weather was great, although a bit too hot! The boat ran perfectly, and we had finally solved our throttle problems. In the final race, Brian drove well, seemingly getting faster as the race progressed. In the end, he finished 10th out of 17 entries in the class. For our first event, we were thrilled!

Buckeye Lake, Ohio. July 21-22, 2001.

This was our second race for the new boat. Our goals for the weekend were the same as before. We wanted to stay out of trouble and hoped that the boat would run well. The weather was extremely hot and humid, but unlike Marietta, no changes in the schedule were necessary due to the weather. Once again, the boat ran well, although we will need to find a bit more speed to run with the leaders. For now, Brian is just gaining experience driving a tunnel boat, and enjoying the ride! Once again, careful driving and a reliable boat resulted in a 10th place finish. Not bad out of 18 starters! Our next race will be the PPR race in Sudbury, Ontario. We will be bringing both boats...

Sudbury, Ontario. August 18-19, 2001.

Our first (and probably only) Canadian race this summer. This is a PPR sanctioned race, and features 3 classes of boats. The Formula VEE class consists of 14' V bottom boats, mainly Critchfields, powered by stock 3 cylinder outboards. OMC, Mercury, and Yamaha outboards are all used. Next is the Formula SST class. This class is similar to the APBA SST60 class, except in that Mercury SST90 engines are also allowed, but with higher minimum weight limits. The third class at this event was Formula 1.

Brian raced both boats at this event, making for a hectic, but fun, weekend. Both boats ran relatively well, although we had some problems getting either of them started off of the dock - until the final! For the final heats, both boats co-operated, and started when the button was pushed.

In the Formula VEE class, Brian won the first qualifying heat, but had to settle for third in the Final - the one that really counts!

In the Formula SST race, Brian had some good racing, the boat ran reliably, and we managed a 5th place in the final. Somehow, we need to find a bit more speed...

Overall, a great weekend with a good showing of boats!

Aurora, Indiana. August 25-26, 2001.

Back to the Powerboat Superleague in the U.S., we made the drive in time for the Sponsor's dinner on Friday night near the race site. With a lot of good food and great people, we had a great time.

At the race site on Saturday morning, we picked up some local sponsorship from Bucher Trucking and Excavating. Thank you! Saturday was a good day overall, while we tested out a different prop, and tried to figure out how to get the boat working better.

Sunday morning started with testing, and Brian hit something in the river, severely damaging his best prop. Not a good start to the day...

The first qualifying heat started with Brian getting hosed down by Carole Reno off of the start, resulting in a shorted radio system. The rest of the heat went well - except for the radio buzzing in his ear! Brian drove well during the race, and was slowly moving up through the field when he caught the spray from Dean Bowes, resulting in the engine swallowing some water and losing power. A number of other boats were able to pass before the engine cleared itself and started running better.

The final heat started with a brief thunderstorm as soon as the boats were launched. After the boats, drivers, and crew were thoroughly soaked, the weather cleared and the race was started. Once again, our radios were acting up due to the moisture. The race seemed to be running well, until Brian's trim pump started seizing up. After letting it cool for a lap or more, he tried the trim again. It worked enough for him to pick a spot and leave it there, forcing him to simply let off on the throttle and take the corners wider than usual. He finished 12th.

After the race, we checked the engine and found that the compression was very low in one of the cylinders, and two of the cylinders were badly scored. The engine needs a rebuild! When we stopped in Windsor on the way home to make sure the boat was still all there after the horrible roads in Michigan, we found a cracked midsection housing on the outboard.

Aurora is a great race site, but we had a very frustrating weekend...

Kankakee, Illinois. August 30 - September 2, 2001.

Kankakee was the site of the APBA OPC Nationals. A four day event, the schedule consisted of 112 entries in a total of 10 classes of boats. On Sunday alone, a total of 19 heats were raced in addition to testing time.

After our problems in Aurora, we thought that we might not be able to get ready in less than a week. Brian tracked down a new trim pump and midsection. We still needed an engine... Then Cameron Morley came to the rescue! He offered to let Brian use his complete outboard for Kankakee. Thanks Cam! Brian met him on Wednesday night and they switched the outboard from Cam's boat to Brian's. On Thursday night I installed the new trim pump - minus two fittings that I didn't have. Friday morning started with packing our equipment in the van, stopping at a store to buy the missing hydraulic fittings, and starting our drive to Illinois. We missed the Friday testing time, as we were still driving to Kankakee.

On Saturday morning in the pits, we completed connecting the trim pump, and were getting ready for our safety inspection when we discovered a dead trim solenoid. By the time we had that changed, we had missed the morning testing, but we were finally ready...we hoped!

We had two qualifying heats for the SST60 class on Saturday. The boat ran better, and faster, than we expected. We gained 800 rpm at full throttle! Brian crossed the finish line in 5th and 9th for the two heats. Unfortunately, due to problems at the start of the heats, he was penalized and awarded 11th place finishes for both heats. In the SST60 final, there were no problems on the start, the boats were evenly spaced on the dock, and all went well. The race went well, and the boat ran strongly. Brian finished in 6th place, a respectable finish considering the level of competition.

On Sunday afternoon Brian entered the qualifying heats for the SST70 class, running Cam's stock SST60 engine against some boats with modified engines. He was running well until the boat suddenly lost power in the first heat. It was a relatively minor problem, but we were unable to get it repaired before the second qualifying heat. For the final, he started near the end of the dock, but the boat ran better than expected, finishing 6th against some stiff competition.

Kankakee was a hectic, but fun weekend, and showed us a bit of what the boat is capable of with more power.

We'll be ready for Chattahoochee.

Click Here for Brian's report from the Florida Races