September 2006

NAMBA INTERNATIONAL PROPWASH
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY
Cathie Galbraith
1815 Halley Street
San Diego, CA 92154
(619) 424-6380
Fax (619) 424-8845
e-mail: cathie.galbraith@namba.com
PRESIDENT
Al Waters
162 Avenida Chapala
San Marcos, CA 92069
(760) 746-2408
e-mail: al.waters@namba.com
VICE PRESIDENT
Tony Rhodes
21931 Embassy Avenue
Long Beach, CA. 90810
(310) 549-6810
e-mail: tony.rhodes@namba.com
Web Page: www.namba.com
VOLUME 36, NUMBER 2
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
SEPTEMBER 2006
President’s Message
MMEU07 in 06 ……………………..
2
Safety Corner ……………………….
3
Onboard Outboard ………………….
4
News From Nineteen ……………….
6
News From Nine ……………………
6
2006 NAMBA Nationals Recap ……
7
Florida Fun ………………………….
12
My First Gas Boat …………………..
12
NAMBA Nationals History ………...
13
Racing In Sixteen …………………...
13
District Eight Director’s Report …….
16
Scale Chairman News ………………
16
District One-The Racing Continues ...
17
Tuned Pipes – Beyond the Basics …..
18
It’s a Record …Then Maybe Not! ….
20
Hall of Fame Report ………………...
20
Tony Rhodes Inducted Into HOF …...
21
Smokin’ Joe Enters Hall of Fame …...
21
News From Seven …………………..
22
By Al Waters
NAMBA President
As of this writing, I have just returned from the 2006 NAMBA Nitro/Gas Nationals
in Florida. To say the least, it was a very interesting experience. On my first day there,
an alligator was discovered right under our boat trailer wheel. Based on its head size, it
was probably three to four feet long. I say head size because that was all that was there.
Thank you Ron Bird for a Florida welcome. Needless to say, he scared the living
daylights out of me with his prank. It did however provide a good laugh for all of us on
the first day of the Nationals. Look further in the Propwash and you can read more on
some of my exploits at the Nats.
As soon as one Nationals is over, people are already asking where the Nats for 2007
will be held. At this time, District Nine will host the Nats in the San Jose area at
Raging Waters. A few more details with the city need to be finalized and we should be
good to go. If for some reason there is a change, Lake Minden is ready as a backup.
The 2008 Nationals has already been approved by the NAMBA Board of Directors for
District 20 in Denver, Colorado.
District 20 does not have the manpower for a Nats like District Nine does, but they
have a great location and a very dedicated group of model boaters. This will be our
first Nationals where District Eight Director Lohring Miller’s idea of a NAMBA
Nationals workforce will be available. It would be available for District Nine if they
request it, but our aim is for the 2008 Nats. The idea is that the hosting district would
line up the site, hotels, activities, and all logistics pertaining to the hosting location.
The additional committee help would line up race announcers, judges, pit bosses, radio
impound help, and any of the areas where the hosting district would need bodies.
Basically, the same as we have done for years at many of our Nats, only this would be
done in advance and take a lot of unneeded pressure off of the hosting district.
In the last issue of the Propwash I mentioned that District Eight would be ready for a
Nationals in 2009. That will still hold, however we may have a unique twist. The
possibility exists that District Eight could host the Nationals in conjunction with
District 16 and the location would be in Montana. Montana in July. What could be
nicer?
Many people e-mail me and ask me questions pertaining to the rulebook. While
they are flipping from page to page, front to back and back, to front, I find what I am
looking for in seconds. How, I hope you are asking? My NAMBA rulebook sits on my
desktop in my computer by way of downloading it from the NAMBA web site. When
Continued on page 2
PROPWASH
Presidents Message
(Continued from page 1)
opening the rulebook, you will notice that it is designed to be interactive. With a click
or two of your computer mouse, you can find anything you want in seconds. All
courtesy of the hundreds of hours spent by many people putting this together for your
convenience. Please give it a try.
Every year, the possibility exists that up to two NAMBA members could be
inducted into the NAMBA Hall of Fame. As it turned out, there were two inducted at
the Nationals in Florida. Congratulations go to Tony Rhodes, current NAMBA Vice
President, and Joe Monohan, better known as 707 Specialties. You can read more
about their accomplishments in this issue of the Propwash.
Over in District Two, we have a change in Directors. Kelly Brooks, the current
Assistant Director will take over the remainder of Terry Davis’ term as District
Director. Kelly is a very avid Fast Electric racer, and was instrumental in getting Scale
Unlimited Hydroplane as a recognized class for electric racing. Terry will continue as
NAMBA Fast Electric Chairman.
In the last issue of the Propwash we voted on four proposals. Three of the
proposals dealt with electric racing. They being recognizing Scale Unlimited as
NAMBA class, course sizes, and sport hull classifications. The other proposal dealt
with the measuring of db levels at race sites for those boats that are not as quiet as the
electrics. Unfortunately, the proposal submitted by District Eight for membership
voting was not written exactly as it was when voted on by the district. There was a
typo when sent to the NAMBA office and it could have possibly changed how the
members viewed the proposal. As a result, District Eight withdrew the proposal for
further review.
It’s now time to start packing. I am heading off to New Jersey to announce the
races for the 2007 NAMBA Fast Electric Nationals in September hosted by the Morris
County Model Boat Club.
Enjoy the articles and pictures about the NAMBA Nats in Florida in this issue.
Hopefully you will get an idea of what you missed by not attending. Start making
plans for California in 2007.
MMEU07 in 06
By Al Waters
NAMBA President
In June of last year I had the
opportunity to be the race announcer
at the MMEU06 race that also ran in
conjunction with the 2005 Fast
Electric NAMBA Nationals in
Dearborn, Michigan. Fifty drivers
and five hundred boats participated
last year in a four-day event which
meant keeping things going at a
pretty good pace.
This year the FE NAMBA
Nationals have moved to New Jersey
in September. However, the
The cold pits were nicely covered with shade
traditional Mid-Michigan Electrics
complete with tables, chairs, and electricity
Unlimited 06 continued its rich
tradition with its event in June of this year. I again was asked to announce the races.
Like all races I attend, it was good to see the people that I had met the previous year.
Fewer boats and fewer heats than what are at a nationals did not detract from the fun
and competition at this race. There was more time for bench racing, testing, and of
course getting together in the evening after the day’s racing.
2
This year I decided to hard core it and
instead of staying in a hotel, I camped
with some of the racers. The cabins were
pretty unique. They consisted of four
walls, a concrete floor, and a spring bed
with a rolled up nogahyde mattress. The
mini refrigerator was in a closet outside
the front door. It was like being in the
boy scouts when I was a kid. Personally,
I thought that it was pretty cool to rough
it a bit. A nice little walk down the
hillside and we had hot water for
showers and restroom facilities.
At night after the races, a bunch of us
would sit around a campfire and bench
race and lie with the best of them. Others
would work on their boats talking amps,
ratios, matching, and solder, solder,
solder. Whether its gas, nitro, or electric,
model boaters know how to tell stories
of woulda, coulda, shoulda. They also
share, loan, and give away their parts to
get another person on the water. The
whole experience of going back to
Detroit was just as much fun this year as
the previous year.
Contest Director Terry Davis and his
team did a very nice job in hosting this
race. Everyone knew his or her roles.
John Hainer took care of all of the
computer related duties from posting
entrants to heat sheets. Ken Joye handled
all the financial aspects including class
sponsorships. Fred Siewert was the
electrician providing electrical outlets
for all of the boaters. Terry’s wife Dawn,
was the most loved. She made sure that
we all had lunch every day. There was
pizza, hot dogs, and deli sandwiches
complete with all of the fixins. Nobody
was left hungry. And last but not least
there was Rebecca Hainer and Cathie
Joye who handled the scoring results,
judging, and keeping me in line.
Now we need to talk about the racing
a little bit. Electric runs small boats, very
large boats, and many sizes in between.
There are a lot of very popular hulls
within the electric community, but now I
am finding that there are a few nitrodesigned hulls popping up due to the
power advances in battery technology.
They are most commonly seen in the
offshore classes and in scale unlimited.
Speaking of Offshore, I found something
at the MMEU race that was pretty
unique. P Offshore and LSO did not
field a lot of entries. Offshore is all about
September 2006
PROPWASH
running a lot of boats during the race and churning up the water. The two classes
were combined to run together; yet they scored their own separate points. The race
was called “The Four Minutes of Fury”.
This year, Terry put me behind the wheel of one of his offshore monos in a
demonstration race with John Hainer and Fred Siewert. Offshore is a great event, as
not only does it help to have a fast boat, it’s a true test of one’s driving skills. I felt
pretty good that I was able to hang in there with the other guys, until I flew the boat.
Now I just need to find someone foolish enough to put me behind the wheel of one of
those scale unlimiteds.
You can bet that there will be a MMEU08 in 07. If you are looking for a fun event,
some good racing (boat and bench), and a well-run race, keep your calendar open in
June of next year.
The following are the results of this year’s event. Congratulations to all.
LSH
1. Larry Jaques
2. Chris Costanza
3. Ray Schrauwen
Super Stock
1. Neil Reesor
2. Tom Costello
3. Joe Kazmierski
P Mono
1. Doug Twaits
2. Jay Stotz
3. Neil Reesor
N2 Hydro
1. Doug Twaits
2. Chris Costanza
3. Ray Schrauwen
T Offshore
1. Howard Tucker
2. Neil Reesor
3. John Hainer
Q Hydro
1. Doug Twaits
2. Chris Costanza
3. Steve Reesor
N2 Offshore
1. Doug Twaits
2. Ray Schrauwen
3. Terry Davis
Scale Unlimited
1. Dennis Whitt
2. Steve Reesor
3. Alan Nayman
Q Offshore
1. Neil Reesor
2. Fred Siewert
3. Larry Jaques
Q Mono
1. Josh Joye
2. Tom Costello
3. Neil Reesor
N2 Sport Hydro
1. Alan Nayman
2. Neil Reesor
3. Chris Costanza
P Offshore
1. Neil Reesor
2. Terry Davis
3. John Hainer
Q/S Sport Hydro
1. Steve Reesor
2. Ken Joye
3. Larry Jaques
Mister Offshore - Doug Twaits Jr
S Offshore
1. Doug Twaits
2. Neil Reesor
3. Todd Saul
Unlimited Concourse - Steve Reesor - Miss Budweiser
Sport Concourse - Larry Jaques -Miss Madison
Michigan Cup Trophy - Team Rum Runner
N 2 Mono
1. Chris Costanza
2. Larry Jaques
3. Jay Stotz
P Sport Hydro
1. Alan Nayman
2. Chris Costanza
3. Doug Twaits
S Mono
1. Fred Siewert
2. Neil Reesor
3. Howard Tucker
LSO
1. Todd Saul
2. Ray Schrauwen
3. Mike Haag
September 2006
The Michigan Cup Winner was Team Rum Runner,
Neil Reesor, Doug Twaits Jr., and Chris Costanza
Safety Corner
By Lohring Miller
NAMBA Safety Chairman
For the first time in my memory,
there have actually been deaths as a
result of model boating. Neither of these
incidents involved a NAMBA member
or was the result of any organized
racing. The first accident occurred in
Puerto Rico when a boater running his
large (probably gas powered) boat hit a
child swimming in the area in the chest,
killing him. The second incident
happened in Florida and was widely
published. There, a boater paddled out to
get his boat while other boats were still
running. His inflatable, rubber raft was
hit by one of the other boats and sank.
The boater couldn’t swim and didn’t
have a life jacket with him. He drowned.
I don’t really need to point out how
stupid the boaters in both of these
incidents were.
The violation of standard NAMBA
safety rules was so flagrant that I doubt
that our insurance would have covered
either incident. In fact I wouldn’t be
surprised if criminal charges were filed
in the first incident since there were
reports that the boater was showing off
for the children. The scary part is that I
have actually had to deal with incidents
where racers were to going to allow
people or full sized boats with people in
them to be in the water near racing
model boats. Needless to say, we did not
permit that. However, sometimes the
answer to this situation isn’t as obvious
as you would expect. What if your race
is held on a river or similar large body of
water and you see fishermen a long way
off? At the 2005 NAMBA Nationals this
was handled by politely asking the
fishermen to move around a bend so they
were out of sight of the racers. This is a
practical solution to the problem since it
is very unlikely that a run away boat will
travel a long distance in anything but a
straight line.
What about the Team Marathon event
where the pit people are in the water
retrieving incoming boats? This event
has been run a very long time with no
injuries that I know of. Usually only the
most experienced drivers and crews run
this event, which helps the safety record.
Continued on page 4
3
PROPWASH
Safety Corner
(Continued from page 3)
Even so, boats need to be shut off before being caught by the pit crew and drivers
bringing boats in must be aware of other pit crews than their own. The pit crews need
to watch for other boats and not venture too far into the water. The CD and judges
need to enforce calm boat handling in the heat of competition. At this year’s
Nationals, there was even a demonstration of the proper way to pit before the gas
marathon. I believe that all this can be emphasized in the driver’s meeting, and the
event can continue to be the fun competition it always has been.
Another incident was reported recently. Our safety rules are clear on operating
boats while intoxicated or on
drugs, but what about boaters
who are not racing having a beer
while watching the day’s
activities? There are two
principles at work. There is no
safety violation and this activity
breaks no NAMBA rules.
However, the public perception
of drinking as a part of model
boating may be created. Also
drinking is illegal in many of the
public parks where we race.
Perhaps a polite warning from
friend to friend is all that is
Safety comes in many forms. Notice how Louis
needed. However, I should
Gerdik is launching the rigger after making sure
emphasize that your behavior at
boating events is being observed he has visually seen the other boat go by
and reflects on us all. Our
insurance carrier had observers at
District 8 and 19 races the past
year and found that, at least at
those two events, we were
running safe, family friendly
races. This perception is critical
in keeping our insurance rates
low.
Finally, I was involved in a
demonstration of relative risks in
model boating. I did not plan this
demonstration, and I don’t ever
want to do it again. While
attending the NAMBA Nationals Notice the posts designating where the spectators
in Florida, Butch Thibodeau and I should view the race. The shoreline was also lined
were involved in a very serious, with protective fencing
high-speed car accident.
Fortunately all the years of auto and highway safety improvements kept us from
dying, and we emerged with minor cuts and chest injuries due to air bag and seat belt
trauma. We both will be hurting for a while as a reminder that the most dangerous part
of our hobby is often getting to and from the pond. While not an issue with our
insurance it certainly is an issue with our continued enjoyment of the hobby as well as
our life. With all the above in mind, please be careful out there.
4
Onboard Outboard
By Chris Wittrig
NAMBA Outboard Chairman
Welcome to another great year of
NAMBA racing! I’ve been afforded the
opportunity to serve under Al Waters as
your new National Outboard Chairman.
Since most of you don’t know who I am
I will give you a little history.
In 1993 I met my good friend and
boat racing teammate Jimmy Johnson at
the Parker Enduro, which is an
endurance race for the real Outboard
Tunnel Boats that we love so much to
emulate. At the time, I was part of a pit
crew for one of the entries where one of
the two drivers, Stan, was a co-worker of
my brother who was also on the crew.
Long story short, the boat never finished
the first lap, opting instead to go out of
the race in a blaze of glory in the same
manner many of us model tunnel boaters
are familiar with…the dreaded blow
over. Stan was knocked out, but the
safety capsule did its job and floated him
above the waterline. The boat, a wood
Seebold hull, was all but completely
destroyed, and the aftermath was
dragged across the course with engine
dragging the bottom, held only by the
steering cables (I believe Jimmy was the
first man in the water working to recover
the engine). Fortunately Stan only had a
good bell ringing and spent a few
months going to the chiropractor getting
his sore muscles to heal. We piled the
wreckage onto the trailer, used another
thing we are all familiar with…duct tape
(200mph tape) and some rope to keep
most everything intact for the trip, and
left a good volume of splinters on the
road between Parker, Arizona, and
Perris, California.
Not to be deterred, Stan decided that
he would press on and bought another
boat. Shortly thereafter he and my
brother went overseas on a six month
work assignment, but Stan wanted the
new boat to race. Bring back into the
picture Jimmy Johnson. Jimmy had a
driving history with that boat that was
wrecked in Parker, and will be the first
to admit that he himself had made the
dry side wet and has the video to prove
it. Jimmy’s father used to race boats with
Stan starting back in the…well I don’t
want to age Jim…so back before tunnel
September 2006
PROPWASH
boats had seat belts, and Stan knew both Jim and Jimmy very well. So it only made
sense to get Jimmy in the new boat. Jimmy and I entered that boat in several Southern
California races, and had an incredible time and good success.
In 1995 Jimmy pulled a couple of R/C tunnel boats down from his rafters, and we
decided we would play with toy boats when the time permitted. He had a scratch built
Rick Hoffman boat that until a few years ago he used for straightline record trials, and
he mustered up an early 80’s LeeCraft for me. Using the Santa Ana River in Anaheim
as our running ground, and a few Mercury crank parts as weights for buoys we had a
great spot to run. We could wade anywhere in the water, so boat retrieval was not an
issue, though the hike into that area was a little challenging. Jimmy and Jim raced
these boats in APBA back in the 80’s. Jimmy raced the big boats up until 1998, last
running SST-120 (Formula 2) in PROP and actually won in Pittsburg the last year he
raced. Jim, Jimmy, and I went to San Diego to watch one of the holiday weekend
District 19 Outboard races hosted by the San Diego Argonauts and caught the R/C
boating bug.
1999 saw Jim and me enter District 19 races in the B Rookie class under the team
Seismic Racing. This was a time in District 19 when there were separate weekend
races for inboard, outboard, and gas, as well as monthly races for Scale Unlimited.
Saturday’s at outboard races were always A, B, and C Stock Tunnel, A Outboard
Mono, and A and B Rookie. Sunday’s were Mod Tunnel classes and A Outboard
Hydro. What a great time!
At any give Outboard race there were at least 15 and sometimes 20 B Mod
Tunnels, which was the prominent class. It was a great opportunity to meet new
people, make new friends, and learn. By the end of the year Jimmy couldn’t just stand
around and play pit guy and started to enter races himself. And so it started. Not long
thereafter K&B changed ownership, and people who ran outboards had a decision to
make. Would there be enough stock outboard engines available to sustain the stock
classes, and would there be enough parts left to keep the mod engines running for at
least a year? Several people decided that it might be best to change direction and
moved to Inboard and Gas. That year we merged our club with the Three Amigos
Race Team whose members were Mark Grim, Don Maher, Doug DeWitte, and Vince
Henderson (okay, kids and significant others were in there as well). A year later,
outboard participation was so low that it made sense to combine outboard and inboard
into a single weekend. It was also during that time that I was given the opportunity to
serve as District 19’s Outboard Chairman under Tony Rhodes, and had the honor of
assisting in the hosting of the 2004 NAMBA Nationals. In the past few years the
outboard entries at District 19 heat races have slowly climbed, with the exception of
the C Tunnel classes. Most of this has been helped along by the availability of OS
outboards as a stock option, as well as NovaRossi, Rossi, CMB, and MAC A mod
options, and CMB, Rossi, and Nelson in B Tunnel.
In December 2004 I relocated to Lake Mary, Florida, which is a little north of
Orlando on the way to Daytona. I was fortunate to have already had a working
relationship with Ron Byrd, who was the District 3 Assistant Director at the time, so I
was able to hit the ground (or water for that matter) running. District 3 combines
inboard, outboard, gas, and scale into a single weekend so we don’t have A, B, or C
Stock, nor C Mod Tunnel on a race weekend. Also, I don’t know of anybody who has
an A Outboard Mono, and I may be the only one with an A Outboard Hydro in the
area. Nonetheless I’ve met some tremendous people in Florida, and was offered the
role of District Three Safety and Rules Director by incoming District Director, Fred
Robson and Assistant Director, Don Riek. I’ve also been entrusted with fulfilling the
role as Webmaster of NAMBA.com and enjoy working with Cathie Galbraith and Al
Waters to find new ways to bring relevant and up-to-date information to the NAMBA
membership and those visiting the site.
So where do we go from here? I’m very interested in hearing from boaters in all
NAMBA districts to get a sense of the standing of outboard racing in their area, the
classes that are available, and the level of participation they see. Speaking from
personal experience, I enjoyed having a Rookie class for both A and B class boats in
District 19, and it is a great opportunity for new boaters to cut their teeth in on the
September 2006
water competition, learn the ropes, and
fine tune their skills to move up to the
next level. We also had the Kids Are
Boaters Too class that allowed our kids
to enjoy a hobby away from home with
their parents, and lay the foundation for
a whole new generation of boaters. My
two girls loved running their boats in the
Kids class and I can’t think of many
participants that haven’t moved up to the
Rookie class or into the full blown heat
racing classes. As more and more
manufacturers, prop benders, and engine
tuners get involved in this hobby (which
is good for all of us), it also seems that a
greater separation of the haves and have
nots exists, which in some cases,
discourages the have nots from
continuing to grow in the hobby.
That being said, I believe it is
important that we continuously seek
ways to find new members to join our
hobby and give them both the means to
jump right into racing via easy access to
class competitive equipment. For
example, the TopSpeed 2, OS .21
Outboard, radios, and pit equipment are
all available from a single retail outlet
such as Tower Hobbies online. We need
to give them the opportunity to
participate in classes that give them the
ability to learn without fearing that they
are getting in the way, or cannot find
satisfaction competing against boats that
are 10 to 15 mph faster in the same class.
We need to keep them interested and
keep them coming back for more.
I hope that everybody had a great
year of racing, and remember to have
fun! I can be contacted at
chris.wittrig@namba.com.
Chris Wittirg pits for daughter Megan in
the Kids R Boaters event at the Nats
5
PROPWASH
News From Nineteen
News From Nine
By Mark Grim
District 19 Director
By Mike McKnight
District Nine Director
Here we are more than half the way
through the season already. I would like
to congratulate all the winners of the
2006 NAMBA Nationals who competed
in Florida this July. I would especially
like to congratulate all of the Distinct 19
winners of the Team Championship this
year! Great racing guys! And last but not
least I would like to congratulate Tony
Rhodes and Joe Monohan for their
induction to the NAMBA Hall of Fame!
We had a clean-up day at Legg Lake
and I would like to say thank you to
everyone who came out to help. There
was a lot of tree climbing, cutting,
branch hauling, weeding, and trash
picking. I think the trees won the fight.
Some of us came home with war
wounds.
We are currently working with the
Parks Department on a long term weed
abatement program for Legg Lake so we
won't have a weed issue anymore. We
are also working on presenting a
proposal to the Parks Department to put
a permanent cover over the driver's stand
to make it more comfortable for the
racers and their pitman.
I'd also like to invite all NAMBA
members out to Speed Week in
November hosted by the Seismic
Amigos Club. The dates are November
11-19. The first three days are Fast
Electric straightaways only, then three or
four days of all classes for straightaways.
The last two or three days will be 2-lap
time trials. There will be pre-registration
for the event.
December will be here before we
know it. We have great plans for the
District 19 banquet this year. I hope
everyone will join us. I would like to see
a lot of participation. The banquet will
be held at the Edgewater this year with
lots of room availability booked. It will
be a time to have great food, share good
racing stories with friends, and maybe
have some surprises and laughs!
District 19 seems to be running
smoothly. If there are any issues please
feel free to call me or email at any time.
Happy boating and I hope to see you at
the lake!
Hello Everyone! My name is Mike
McKnight and I am the new District Director
here in District Nine. I must say that I am
pleased to be taking the baton from Gary
Crawford, and hope to continue where he left
off. Since I was so busy getting things
together for the start of the year here in our
district I missed the last deadline for the
Propwash. So I guess this makes my first
official contribution as District Director. At
the time that I am writing this we have just
returned from a race, and it was the first for
the Dixon Modelers, a newly formed club in
District Nine. I must congratulate them on a
job well done for their first time running a
race. Howard Moore and Jeff Brown were
the CDs for the event, but I would also like to acknowledge Jeff’s wife, Chris Brown.
She always does an outstanding job at the judges’ stand, and this time she jumped right
in and CDd a number of heats as well, with remarkable confidence and style. I take my
hat off to Chris for being a very hard working lady and a tough one too. She was
diagnosed with breast cancer late last year and underwent numerous treatments and a
couple of surgeries over the winter, but she was there at the first race of 2006 and
ready to race. She even won the first heat she raced in this year. Now she and the rest
of her club are picking up for another club that was dropping off, and they are
supporting the district well. She truly deserves a tremendous amount of admiration and
respect for not letting anything get in the way of what she wants to do.
There are also some other very hard working ladies in our district that deserve some
recognition as well. These are Nancy Moll, Peggy Sterner, Brenda and Allie Terry, and
last but not least Renee Piazza. I was told that these ladies jumped in and provided
much appreciated help at the 2006 Nationals in Florida. They were in the hot pits, on
the judges’ stand, and wherever they were needed helping with whatever needed to be
done. These ladies do this for us in District Nine all year long and we are lucky to have
them. They not only help but race too, and they are to be commended for their efforts
here and to wherever we travel to race.
Now, on to the subject of the Nationals, specifically the 2007 Nationals. In case
you are not aware, District Nine will be hosting this event. Hopefully, by the time you
read this we will have made our final selection for the race site. We had a preliminary
vote in June with the top two finalists to be voted on again in August. The top vote
getter was Lake Cunningham in San Jose, California. Lake Cunningham is a city lake
that is part of Raging Waters water theme park. We have received approval to hold the
Nationals there but we still have two issues to work out with the city before our final
vote. The next finalist is Lake Minden in Nicolaus, California. It is located
approximately 20 miles North of Sacramento. We have full approval for this site
should Lake Cunningham not work out. Regardless of which site is selected, District
Nine will present a top-shelf event for you to attend and we look forward to having
you here. We have already begun to get the organizational structure in place, and we
are also putting plans in place to take the promotion of the Nationals and our hobby/
sport to a whole new level. I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag just yet since
nothing is set in stone, but I am very excited about the prospects. Just stay tuned on
our website @ www.namba9.net, and eventually we will have the official website for
the Nats up as well. OK, I’m off to crank up my air conditioner again. See you soon!
6
September 2006
PROPWASH
2006 NAMBA Nationals Recap
By Lohring Miller
District Eight Director
The 2006 NAMBA Nationals were
held in District Three (Florida),
NAMBA’s newest district. Unlike the
West, summer in Florida is the rain and
hurricane season, so holding races in
July is risky. The good news was that
there were no hurricanes, but there was
rain. Most days the thunderstorms held
off until later in the afternoon, so very
few heats were actually rained on. As
Jerry Crowther stated, the pond got
resurfaced each evening for the next
day’s racing.
accustomed to. I don’t believe that it
made any real difference in the results,
since experienced racers adjusted
quickly.
Rose Crowther ran the lunch brigade
keeping husband Gary hidden in the
background slaving over the BBQ
Afternoon rains slowed down the Nats
just a bit, but the show still went on
Water conditions were perfect except
for the few times during thunderstorms
when the wind blew the shelters and
buoys away, stirring up white caps on
the water. Unlike the Northwest, the rain
was so warm that it really didn’t matter
if you wore rain gear. I’ve taken lots
colder showers.
Every year for the last three years we
have run a different mill pattern. This
year we ran a no cut mill, very different
from what West Coast racers are
No one could run a radio impound as
efficiently as Carol
September 2006
The race committee did an excellent
job, lead by overall CD, Jerry Crowther
and his parents, Rose and Gary
Crowther. A lot of behind the scenes
work was provided by Ron Ratoff, who
got the sponsorships for the trophies;
Dave Bestpitch, who designed the
trophies; Ron Byrd who handled the
computer scoring; Chris Whitrig, who
developed the web site; Mary Helwig
who took lots of the event pictures; Allie
Terry, who handled much of the scoring;
and Brenda Terry who was the pit boss
for much of the week. Other dedicated
people ran the retrieve boats and radio
impound. These are the thankless jobs
that make a successful race possible. The
site was first class, with a sheltered
course and huge driver’s stand.
The drivers stand provided plenty of
room for eight drivers and their pit men
The racecourse was located in a large,
beautiful park that had facilities for
many other hobbies.
It seemed to me that participation in
the nitro classes was down while that in
the gas classes was up. This was evident
on the first day where G-1 Cat was only
slightly behind A Mono, the largest
class, in total entries. G-1 and GX-1
Rigger each had almost the same number
of entries as each of the nitro hydro
classes, while G-1 and GX-1 Mono had
more entries each than any of the other
mono classes except A Mono. G-1 and
GX-1 Sport Hydro had as many or more
entries than the nitro sport hydro classes.
The entries in the tunnel classes were
especially thin. I believe that this shift
represents model boating everywhere,
with the experienced boaters still
running nitro, but new racers starting
with gas and electric. These days, the
speeds are close to equal, and the even
the costs are similar. Below are the
highlights of the bigger classes. For
more complete results see the District
Three or the NAMBA web sites.
The big classes ran Saturday and
there were impressive performances in
G-1 Cat and A Mono. In Gas Cat, Kurt
Stutz and Alex Reyes were tied going
into the last heat, but Alex’s DNF in the
final heat slid him to third. Bill Pryor
was second. Despite new boats from
Seducer and Insane, the first two places
went to Aeromarine Avengers, while
third was the venerable RC Boatworks
Stryker. Jerry Crowther won his first
three heats in A Mono, taking a safe
third to win overall. The surprise was
Ted Sterner, who steadily improved
from third to two firsts as the day went
on, finishing second overall. He also ran
the lone CalCraft in a fleet of Seducers, a
surprising performance for an old
design.
Sunday saw smaller classes, Jerry
Crowther again won three firsts in C
Mono, slipping to fourth in the third
heat. Alan Terry was very close, but a
third in the last heat gave the overall
total to Jerry. Seducers dominated the
class. The top four boats in A Hydro
Continued on page 8
7
PROPWASH
2006 NAMBA Nationals Recap
(Continued from page 7)
were extremely close with 175 points
separating first from third. One hundred
points separated Jim Wilson and Gary
Moll with Jim finally winning overall.
Third place was a tie with fast time
giving Russ Stark third. Jim ran his own
design, while the second and third place
boats were CMD Eagles.
G-1 Hydro also was hotly contested
with the Ricco hydro of Richard Lind
beating Mike Allen and Jeff Michaud’s
Insane hydros.
Jersey Speed Skiffs ran as an exhibition
class at the Nats. These boats looked and
raced like the real thing.
On Monday, Jerry Crowther
continued in his quest for National High
Points Champion with a win in B Mono.
Steve Winks from Australia followed in
second with Brenda Terry third. All were
driving Seducers.
Sport 40 II was a battle between Jack
St. Clair and Rick Bellinger, with the
final heat deciding the overall winner.
Jack won with Rick second giving Jack’s
very fast, original design sport hydro the
win. Rick ran a Phil Thomas sport hydro
while NAMBA President, Al Waters
was third with a Steve Muck hull.
G-1 Mono was dominated by Jeff
Michaud’s Insane mono with Kurt
Stutz’s Lazer 45 in second and Lenny
Blake’s Calcraft third.
GX-1 Rigger was a Ricco hull sweep
with James Trout first, Paul Hale second,
and Joe Calogero third. A rear exhaust
Quickdraw powered James’ winning
boat.
William Overton became completely
impossible for Betty (his wife) to live
with after getting his picture on the
Internet for third in A Outboard Hydro.
Tuesday saw Rich Moore and Alan
Terry battling for first in X Hydro. They
8
were tied at the end of the third round,
but Alan’s Eagle slipped to third in the
fourth round, giving Rich’s Roadrunner
the win. Wild Bill Annabel ran his twin
CMB 90 powered Cajun Bullet for third.
G-1 Sport Hydro was hotly contested
with Al Waters driving Vince Henderson’s very fast Insane sport hydro to
first. Butch Fields and Joe Calogero
were second and third, respectively with
PI sport hydros.
In Sport 20, Austin Piazza managed
to slide his Phil Thomas Sport 20 into
second place between the illegally (just
kidding) fast Pellerino hulls of Jim
Wilson and Ray Pellerino. Jim was first
and Ray was third overall in the class.
Wednesday’s big class was GX-1
Sport Hydro. James Traut’s rear exhaust
Quickdraw powered Aeromarine
Thunderbolt had a nearly perfect 1500
point day winning the class. Butch
Fields’ PI hydro was second, and Mike
Hilldale’s Insane was third.
The Kids R Boaters Too also had a
large turnout. The Edenfield clan
provided the most entries (five), but
other famous boating families were well
represented.
Thursday was much busier with three
big classes as well as the Nitro Team
Marathon. GX-1 Mono was a battle
between Jeff Michaud’s Insane and Jerry
Crowther’s Seducer. It came down to the
last heat where they raced together, but
Jerry got a DNF and Jeff cruised home
in third for the class win. Virgillo Guerra
was close behind in third.
A Mod Tunnel was the largest tunnel
class. It was won by the very fast
Topspeed III prototype driven by
NAMBA Outboard Director, Chris
Wittrig. Lohring Miller driving a stock
OS powered Leecraft was second, while
Randy Premo drove a Lynx for third.
Reliability was the key in C Hydro
where no boats finished all four heats.
However, Gary Moll’s two firsts gave
him the edge over Brett English in
second. No other boats finished three
heats.
The Nitro Team Marathon had eight
entries, which made the first laps and
early pit stops exciting. The field was
quickly narrowed down until the only
surviving entry, Wide Boy Racing from
Australia, died. This allowed all the
boats to be retrieved and put the
California Hey Mon Racing Team back
in the race. They went on to win the
wildest, wettest, weirdest marathon I’ve
seen.
I missed the racing on Friday due to a
serious car accident. It’s too bad since
several hotly contested classes ran then.
Saturday’s racing always features 1/8
Scale Hydros, and Jack St. Clair was the
one to beat. He had a perfect score going
into the final. The final was no different
as he drove his original 8255 hull to
victory over Steve Gaultieri’s similar
hull. Russ Stark was third with a Henry
Velasco hull.
The final points tally for the week put
Jerry Crowther in first as the 2006
NAMBA Nationals Overall High Points
Champion. Jeff Michaud was the Gas
High Points Champion. Seducers clearly
dominated the nitro mono classes, while
CMD Eagles were the most popular
hydros. CMB and MAC were by far the
most popular nitro engines, though
several K67 and K90 engines were in the
top three. Both nitro and gas racers
heavily favored Futaba radios, though
there were a few Airtronics and JR users.
Spread spectrum systems were very rare,
but mine gave no trouble in five classes
all week.
In gas the picture was not as clear.
Both G and GX-1 Mono classes were
won by Insane hulls, but Seducers and
Lazer 45s were also popular. Richard
Lind’s Ricco hydros won four of six top
three places in G and GX-1 Rigger with
Insane hydros taking the other two. PI
and Insane sport hydros were the most
popular, along with some Aeromarine
hulls. Aeromarine Avenger and Sprint
cats, the new Insane cat and the RC
Boatworks Stryker were all popular in
the catamaran classes. The new Seducer
cat looked promising, but didn’t place as
well. Zenoahs were by far the most used
engine, though the winners in a few GX1 classes used the rear exhaust 25cc
Quickdraw. MRD, Butch the Boatman,
CC Racing, and Toxic Al Marine were
the most popular Zenoah engine
builders. Bob Austin’s Propworks
supplied most of the winning props,
usually modified from Prop Shop and
Voodoo Props castings.
Please check out the following pages for
pictures and results.
September 2006
PROPWASH
The Aussies - Mrs. Grub, Mr. Grub, Steve, Bill, and Phil
William Overton, Louis Gerdik, Bob Austin, and Butch the Boatman
No one had a tougher week than Alan Hobbs ...
…but he never lost his sense of humor with Alan Terry and Greg Hill
The lemonade stand did quite well during the heat
Gary Crowther was a hit at the Bar-B-Q
September 2006
9
PROPWASH
Every Nationals favorite class - The Kids R Boaters Too!
Bobbie Robson and Mary Hellwig at the Pirate Party
William and Betty Overton partake in the pirate festivities
To view hundreds of photos from
the Nationals, please go to
www.namba3.net
Photos courtesy of Mary Hellwig
Jerry proposes to the future Mrs. Crowther
10
Allie Terry looks lovely at the awards banquet
September 2006
PROPWASH
2006 NAMBA Nitro and Gas Nationals Results
A Mono
1. Jerry Crowther
2. Ted Sterner
3. Russell Stark
GX-1 Rigger
1. James Traut
2. Paul Hale
3. Joe Calogero
A OPC Tunnel
1. John Otto
2. Randy Premo
3. Mary Hellwig
Sport 40-2
1. Jack St. Clair
2. Rick Bellinger
3. Al Waters
B Hydro
1. AlanTerry
2. Bill Annabel
3. Kent Sterner
C OPC Tunnel
1. Lohring Miller
2. David Rychalsky
3. Ron Byrd
G-1 Cat
1. Kurt Stutz
2. Bill Pryor
3. Alex Reyes
G-1 Sport Hydro
1. Al Waters
2. Butch Fields
3. Joe Calogero
Sport X
1. Jerry Crowther
2. Nancy Moll
3. Mike Haynes
Jersey Speed Skiff
1. Butch Fields
2. Peter Muller
3. Mike Allen
A Hydro
1. Jim Wilson
2. Gary Moll
3. Russell Stark
Sport 21
1. Jim Wilson
2. Austin Piazza
3. Ray Pellerino
C Mod Tunnel
1. Lohring Miller
3. Ron Byrd
X Hydro
1. Rich Moore
2. Alan Terry
3. Bill Annabel
C Mono
1. Jerry Crowther
2. Alan Terry
3. Mark Lawson
B OPC Tunnel
1. Don Osman
2. Lohring Miller
G-1 Rigger
1. Richard Lind
2. Mike Allen
3. Jeff Michaud
GX-1 Sport Hydro
1. James Traut
2. Butch Fields
3. Michael Hilldale
Open Multi Engine
1. Rich Moore
2. Bill Annabel
3. Jerry Crowther
GX-2 Mono
1. Jerry Crowther
2. Billy Morales
3. Richard Lind
A Outboard Hydro
1. Roy Edenfield
2. David Rychalsky
3. William Overton
A Mod Tunnel
1. Chris Wittrig
2. Lohring Miller
3. Randy Premo
B Mono
1. Jerry Crowther
2. Steve Winks
3. Brenda Terry
C Hydro
1. Gary Moll
2. Brett English
3. Robert Bjorkman
G-1 Mono
1. Keff Michaud
2. Kurt Stutz
3. Lenny Blake
GX-1 Mono
1. Jeff Michaud
2. Jerry Crowther
3. Virgilio Guerra
September 2006
Kids R Boaters Too
Matt Moore
Abie Lind
Hailey Schreiber
Billy Jhon Ro Santana
Megan Wittrig
Nicholas Nehls
David Zwolenski
Damon Montgomery
Andria Montgomery
Patrick Lester
Austin Lester
Madeliene Stark
Mikey Allen
Amy Montgomery
Nitro Marathon
1. Hey Mon Racing
2. Wide Boy Racing
3. Pretzfeld/Moore
Sport 60
1. Kent Sterner
2. Al Waters
3. Roy Edenfield
B Mod Tunnel
1. Steve Hearl
2. Ron Byrd
3. Tony Atwell
Gas Team Marathon
1. Team Seducer
2. Next Level Racing
3. Outlaw Racing
GX-1 Cat
1. Jeff Michaud
2. Mike Allen
3. Al Waters
Open Gas Cracker Box
1. Jeff Michaud
2. Mike Allen
3. Jason Miller
X Mono
1. Jerry Crowther
2. Kent Sterner
3. Jim Wilson
1/8 th Scale Unlimited
1. Jack St. Clair
2. Steve Gualtieri
3. Russell Stark
Classic Cracker Box
1. Rick Lamb
2. Austin Piazza
3. Louis Gerdik
Sport 40-1
1. Jim Wilson
2. Ted Sterner
3. Mark Walter
11
PROPWASH
Florida Fun
By Al Waters
NAMBA President
As I mentioned earlier in the Presidents
Message, my first day at the 2006 NAMBA
Nats in Florida started off with the alligator
prank. I learned real quickly that the
residents in Florida have no fear of
alligators. They say that you really have to
provoke an alligator for it to attack you.
Truthfully, I didn’t know what to believe
because the river we crossed to get to the
race site each day had jet skiers and boats
pulling inner tubes with a memorial along
the shore.
The race site at Markham Park was set up nicely. Boaters could line up their
awnings all along the site with plenty of space between them and the water with the
protective fencing. A road ran along the backside for loading and unloading, with
plenty of additional room for more awnings.
During the course of the week, we dealt with lightning warning sirens,
thundershowers, heat, and humidity. We were there to race during the day and
socialize in the evenings. The weather was not going to deter anyone from
accomplishing this. District Three, the host of the Nationals, rallied after a few bumps
in the road which every Nationals has on the first day. Other districts pitched in to help
and we had another great Nats. I have attended the last 16 Nats, and I have learned that
no matter how large a district may be, or how big a host committee may be, outside
help is needed, it is appreciated, and there are many boaters who are willing to step up
to the plate.
Okay, we had some heat and humidity while we were there. But you would never
have thought about it if you were at the welcoming party, the paddleboat races, the
Polynesian and Fire Dance night, the unlimited riding of go carts, and my favorite, the
riverboat cruise that had all you could eat barbeque ribs, chicken, Cajun shrimp,
buttered shrimp, and dessert cake.
Each Nats always has something that is so unique it stands out above everything
else. This one was no different. Each day, you could walk up to a four foot by six foot
display board and see hundreds of photos that were taken of boats and boaters daily. It
had to be one of the most entertaining features at the Nationals. For those of you who
were not there, and even if you were, go to the District Three web site and see
hundreds of photos from each day.
Thank you very much District Three. I had a great time.
My First Gas Boat
By Al Waters
NAMBA President
Many years a go when I first got up enough nerve to write an article for the
Propwash, District One Director Dave Rychalsky and I used to banter back and forth
with “My First” articles. It’s been a long time since either of us have had a “My First”
until now. Yep, I have a gas boat. And I am having a blast with it also.
At the Carlsbad NAMBA Nats in 2002, I had won an Aeromarine Gas Cat hull in
the raffle. I couldn’t get it home back to California in my truck so I gave it to Lenny
Blake of Rum Racing Products. Lenny knew his Cats and gas boats as well so I knew
that it would go to good use.
A few years went by and I was racing at the Grand Prix Race in Northern
California earlier this year. In the last raffle ticket drawn for the day, I won a Zenoah
260 PUM gas motor (I think I said it correctly). When I got home, I called Lenny
12
Blake and asked him about a boat
because I knew that he had taken over
the Cal-Craft line of hulls. Low and
behold, he asked me what was wrong
with the Cat hull that he was still holding
on to.
To make an Al Waters story short,
Lenny took the hull and motor and
presto-changeo delivered to me in a
couple of weeks a beautiful ready to race
Gas Cat, complete with all the
accessories. And since Lenny knew how
good of a painter I was (no Pigeon doo
on this boat), he was kind enough to
have Jim Osborne of Osborne Precision
Graphics do the vinyl work. The boat
was awesome looking. Just like the ones
you see racing off the Florida Keys.
But now I needed some help running
the boat. I had no idea what prop, fuel to
oil mixture, spark plug, spark plug gap,
or maintenance program to use. My good
fortune continued when I went to a Scale
Unlimited race and NAMBA Gas
Chairman Russ Stark and his buddy Jim
Feener were on hand. After the scale
race, Russ and Jim took my boat and
made a minor adjustment on the strut,
changed the spark plug, and tried a few
different props. After a couple of runs,
Jim decided on a Bob Austin Propworks
7016 two blade. They handed me the
boat and said, see you at the next gas
race.
A few weeks later I showed up at a
District 19 gas race. Needless to say, I
was asked what the heck I was doing
there. I pulled out my Gas Cat and said
“put us on the two minute clock.” I had
yet to drive the boat, so getting some
open water time was important. We had
a tough time getting the boat to start so
Russ put on an aftermarket carburetor.
Ron Buck, a local District 19 gas racer
jumped in and grabbed a screwdriver
and counted a certain number of turns
for the low end needle and for the high
end needle. I was told to put fuel tubing
around the needle to keep them from
self-adjusting. I was getting all kinds of
good help from the guys. Ron fired up
my boat on the second pull and adjusted
my idle with my radio. He tossed the
boat in the water and I was on my way. I
had a tough time at first as I was
oversteering which is easy to do with a
gas cat (or any cat hull for that matter).
Ron had his mono fired up and went out
September 2006
PROPWASH
on the pond ahead of me to rough up the water simulating a race. After a minor
adjustment with the steering throw, the boat was good to go.
In my first race, I finished all four heats and did not get lapped. It was a great day.
My biggest thrill was staying with Jeff Michaud from the start/finish line until the end
of the first turn in my final heat. He then left me like I was standing still. We were side
by side through the first turn, which is what makes racing racing. He came up to me
afterwards and we shook hands. It was fun for both of us. I got in one more race
before going to the NAMBA Nats in Florida. I actually won the GX-1 Cat Class that
day thanks to Jeff Michaud being called away early to run some family errands.
Maybe he was reeling me in just a bit, but it was working.
I really have to thank all of the boaters I have mentioned because they got me
running competitively in such a short time. This whole experience at the district level
carried over to the NAMBA Nats where Lenny Blake, Russ Stark, Jim Feener, and
Jeff Michaud continued to help me out even though we were running against each
other. Their philosophy was why have four boats going through the first turn together
when we could have five.
It proves what I have said in the past to new boaters that it really does make a
difference finding good people that will help you out. There are a lot of really good
gas hulls, gas motors, and good gas people in model boating. “My First” gas boating
experience was a fun one.
NAMBA Nationals History
By Dave Rychalsky
NAMBA Nationals Chairman
Well, for those of you that read the Propwash, you probably recall my quest to
obtain every NAMBA National patch from each year and re-create the lost banner.
That task was completed prior to the 2005 Nationals, and the tradition continued with
the addition of the 2006 District Three Fort Lauderdale patch. The banner was
displayed during the Awards Banquet on Saturday night. I hope those who had an
opportunity to take a look at the banner can appreciate all of the places NAMBA has
held a national event. We have had our national events as far northwest as Seattle,
Washington, southwest as far as San Diego, in the southeast in Fort Lauderdale
Florida, in the midwest in Wichita, Kansas, up into Vancouver, BC, Canada, and all
the way up to the northeast in Rollinsford, New Hampshire! Every national event
provides racers the chance to compete with new model boaters and to enjoy what the
surrounding communities have to offer.
Since I completed the banner patches will be added to it every year. I decided that
there are other items offered at every national event that provide a bit of history, like
the programs. So, I have started to collect the NAMBA National programs and the
pins, too. I need your help in locating these items to add to NAMBA’s collection. As
with the banner, I displayed the pin collection and the programs on a table at the
awards banquet. Roy Edenfield helped me out already and donated the 1986 program.
Thanks Roy. I’ve scanned through some of the older programs and it is very
interesting to see photos of the older racers when they were in their 20’s and 30’s, and
pictures of some of the hulls that ran in that era. It also provides some history to the
classes of boats we ran back in the 70’s, 80’s, and even the 90’s, and how it changed
from year to year.
For the pins, I am missing the following years: 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976,
1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, and 2001. For the programs, I am missing
the following: 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, and
1988.
For those that would like to donate their pin or program to the NAMBA National
Historical Collection, please send to:
Dave Rychalsky
10 Timber Road
East Brunswick, NJ 08816
Thank you in advance for your help.
September 2006
Racing In Sixteen
By Keith Warham
District 16 Director
Well racing in District 16 is half over
and two of our four races had to be
cancelled due to old mother nature. We
are hopeful that these can be made up
during the last part of our race schedule
in August and September.
The two races completed show the
hydro classes remain strong with good
participation and some extremely close
finishes. In the mono classes A and B are
the most favored, with points earned to
date showing some close competition.
Scale Unlimited is beginning to gain in
popularity, and at the last race we had
four people with identical final points of
1225, with the final placing being
determined on times. It doesn't get any
closer than that.
Like I mentioned earlier, old mother
nature played a major roll in the first half
of our race schedule and hopefully she
will be more favorable during the last
half. Hope ever one has a good and safe
summer
The Propwash
NAMBA International
1815 Halley Street
San Diego, CA 92154
(619) 424-6380
Fax - (619) 424-8845
e-mail cathie.galbraith@namba.com
Editors:
Cathie Galbraith and Al Waters
Newsletter Contributors
Mark Grim
Scott Grissman
Mike McKnight
Lohring Miller
Dave Rychalsky
Jay Turner
Doug Twaits Sr.
Keith Warham
Chris Wittrig
This newsletter is sent to all
members free of charge as a part of their
membership. All articles contained
herein may be reproduced as long as
proper credit is given as to author and
publication source.
13
EVENT SPONSORED BY
Seaducer Boats & Insane Boats
Hosted by The RC Modeleers / NAMBA District 9
NAMBA Sanctioned Event
NAMBA Membership required / single event membership available at $10.00
The Lake is a THOUSAND TRAILS facility
Camping, RV hookup, Trailers to rent,
Or day use For futher details on lake site
contact: SONIA at (530) 656-2702
at Lake Minden, Nicholas, California
HOST HOTEL
Quality Inn & Suites Fireside Inn
4228 South Hwy. 99
Yuba City, CA 95991
ph: (530) 674-0201 fx: (530) 671 5758
entry code for hotel & camping “NAMBA GAS INTERNATS”
ENTRY FEE $35.00 (includes first boat)
EACH ADDITIONAL BOAT $10.00 per boat
Email Entries: dave.bestpitch@namba.com
Mail Entries & Check to:
or call (916) 276-8726
Bev Bestpitch NAMBA 96
email & phone entries require Visa, MC,AMEX card
306 Natoma St
Folsom CA 95630
ENTRY DEADLINE October 13. 2006
make check payable to: RC Modeleers
NAME
ADDRESS
CITY
STATE
TELEPHONE
E-MAIL
ZIP
COUNTRY
NAMBA #
Friday Oct 27th:
** G-1 Mono
CHANNEL
Saturday Oct 28th:
CHANNEL
Sunday Oct 29th:
** G-1 Crackerbox
** G-1 Sport Hydro
** Open Rigger
** Open Mono
** Open Cat
** Open Offshore
** G-1 Rigger
** G-1 Cat
Event T-Shirts $15 each - Available sizes M___ L___ XL___ XXL____ = $________
CHANNEL
Place: Sunset Park, Las Vegas, NV.
Date: October 27 — 29, 2006
Open Water: Thursday, October 26, 2006
Awards Ceremony — October 29, 2006
On site security will be provided
Entry Fee: $35.00 for first boat
Additional boats $15.00 each
Make check or money order payable to:
Russell Stark
13976 Woodrose court
Chino Hills, CA 91709
909-519-1932
rstark372@aol.com
Non NAMBA Members add $10 for single event insurance
Entry Deadline: Saturday, October 7, 2006
ENTRIES ACCEPTED BY MAIL ONLY
Host Hotel - The Silverton Hotel and Casino
3333 Blue Diamond Road, Las Vegas, NV.
www.silvertoncasino.com
702-263-7777 or 866-946-4373
Reservation Code : NAMBA
R/C Boatworks
www.gasworldchampionships.com
As in past years there will be a raffle with lots of great prizes. There will be boat hulls, engines,
hardware, radios and many other promotional items. You can go to the website for a complete
list as items come in.
A high point trophy and fast time trophies will also be awarded.
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PROPWASH
District Eight Director’s Report
Scale Chairman News
By Lohring Miller
District Eight Director
By Al Waters
NAMBA Scale Chairman
This has been one of the slowest
District Eight seasons in my memory.
Bad weather early in the season
seriously dampened the Memorial Day
race, making it one of the most
miserable model boat races I have
attended. Racers got wet even with full
rain suits and boots. Even Mike
Bontoft’s electric hydro videos and
Jennifer’s excellent steaks at the
Director’s Picnic (held indoors due to
the rain) couldn’t cheer the racers up.
Pond conditions were perfect for
racing, though. It was the continuous,
cold rain on the drivers that dampened
spirits. The rain finally stopped just in
time for the Bontofts’ Fourth of July
Picnic. A great time was had floating
down the river, running boats, flying
airplanes, tanning, camping, eating, and
drinking. This event is becoming more
popular than formal boat racing.
Greg Roth brings along his little four
legged racing buddy
The weather was better for the other
races. Eric Bourlet continued his
winning ways with the lead in four
classes as well as the two high points
series. Greg Roth, Ken Mallit, and Mike
Hughes are each leading in two classes
putting them behind Eric for total
points. They are in a tight race, along
with Shawn Warren, for the next four
places. The last race of the season, the
double points race at Twin Lakes, will
be the deciding factor.
Unfortunately, restrictions on pond
use as well as the loss of the Spokane
waterfront race site reduced the total
district races to five. It was hoped that a
new site at Elma, Washington could be
developed for a race, but some issues
16
were not resolved in time for the 2006
season. The good news is that Al Hobbs
revived the Crazy Al’s Invitational and
the District Eight boaters will once again
meet boaters from District 16 (Canada)
and District 20 (Colorado) for a long
weekend of fun and racing. See you all
there!
A new boat on the horizon. The 1/4 scale
kneel down tunnel
District Eight racers traveled to both
the NAMBA Nationals and the IMPBA
Internats. Jerry Dunlap raced several
tunnel classes at the Internats, placing
third out of 30 boats in the very tough
Sport 21 class. I raced in five of the six
very lightly attended tunnel classes at the
NAMBA Nationals, winning two firsts
and two seconds. A more major
accomplishment was my surviving,
along with Butch Thibodeau, a highspeed car crash. Fortunately both of us
avoided serious injuries, though a rental
car was completely destroyed. My
children are looking for either in “I
survived the 2006 NAMBA Nationals”
or “Crash Test Dummy” t-shirts.
Wanted! One NAMBA Scale
Unlimited Hydroplane Chairman. I have
really enjoyed being the chairman over
the years, but I think that we could use
someone with a fresh take on things. I
put a feeler out a year a go looking for a
chairman and I did get some responses.
However, there was one qualification I
was looking for that I did not tell the
applicants. They had to be a person who
would write articles for the Propwash.
There are many Scale enthusiasts who
know much more about Unlimiteds than
I do. But that information will be useless
to the membership unless it is published
for us all to read. So the search will
continue at this time.
I attended the Mid Michigan Cup in
Dearborn, Michigan this year where
Electric Scale Unlimited ran for its
second year. This year was a little
different as Scale Unlimited in Fast
Electric racing is now a recognized class
where records can be set. Dennis Whitt,
who ran an unlimited round nose named
the Slo-Mo-Shun IV scratch built by
Roger Newton won the class in its
inaugural event and set a NAMBA
record as well.
Dennis Whitt with his Slo Mo IV
Outboard Tunnels are very popular in
District Eight. Here is Jerry Wyse’s Lynx
tunnel
The electrics are using the NAMBA
Master Hull Roster and following all of
the rules and guidelines that the nitro
unlimiteds follow except for power
parameters. I can see where this is going.
Give it some time and the challenge will
be there. I am already fielding questions
from the electric boaters on how fast the
nitro unlimiteds are running in race
conditions. They may be lying low right
September 2006
PROPWASH
now, but when the time comes, it will be
a pretty competitive event. I will be
looking forward to it. I just returned
from the NAMBA Nats in Florida and
Scale was pretty impressive. It was one
of the largest classes run. I really looked
forward to meeting Jack St. Clair and his
foam boats. I placed him as the favorite
and he did not let me down. Jack’s
American Speedy Printing is a well-built
boat, a well trimmed boat in race
conditions, and could really hang on the
buoys.
If you are into scratch building boats,
then foam boats are for you. They take a
lot of time to build but the rewards you
reap out weight the extra time spent.
You have to shave and sand and shave
and sand. Then a thin layer of ply is laid
over the boat. It is strong and very light.
If it takes a hit, it is a very simple filling
repair. Jack did not have to worry about
any hits at the Nats. He ran clean and
stayed out of trouble. That usually
happens when you are out in front.
Congratulations to Jack St. Clair, winner
of the Scale Unlimited Final at the 2006
NAMBA Nats.
Jack St. Clair’s ply over foam boat
Not to be forgotten, earlier in the
week Scale Unlimited Concourse was
held at the host hotel during the BBQ
event. It was a good time to hear stories
from scale boaters who raced real lay
down and vintage unlimiteds in the 50’s.
Did I say Perry Walter and Bob
Johnson? If you ever have the chance to
meet the “Captain” or the man behind
foam boats, keep your calendar day
open. These guys have the “tell all”
stories.
I am happy to say that a vintage
round nosed boat was the Scale
Unlimited Concourse winner. That
Continued on page 18
September 2006
District One - The Racing Continues…
By Dave Rychalsky
District One Director
For those that read my article on District One in the previous Propwash, you
should have noticed that I stated that I wanted to make a smooth transition from the
previous director, Charlie Ott, to me. Well, for those that know me, ummm, that didn’t
quite happen. I have an uncanny ability to “stir the pot”, aggravate just about anyone,
and provide Al Hobbs with enough ammunition to laugh himself to sleep during a
Nationals! At the first district meeting, my agenda was to develop the quality of racing
here on the east coast by refining the racing, improving the flyers, and establishing
some structure at the CD’s table. On that note, I would like to take this opportunity to
thank those who sent me “Get Well” cards while I was home tending to my cuts,
stitches, and propeller impalements. (I never knew a prop could spin that fast when
flung across a meeting room…). As many of you know, I say EXACTLY what’s on
my mind and I don’t hold back. From the looks of it, my plan may take yet another
year before it’s the “norm” around here.
By the time you read this, District One will have just two more races before the end
of the year is here. From what I can see at this point, all of the gas classes are
repeatedly holding strong with every heat being better than the previous one. Scale
always has interesting events with nearly 12 racers at every race. The Sport 40 class
remains a competitive one as it has always in years past. Our mono/hydro classes seem
to be the weak point of boat racing, though. I hope that more guys come back to the
staple of model boat racing in District One and drag their mono/hydro hulls to the last
two races of 2006.
The fast electrics group will be holding their Nationals in Randolph, New Jersey
from the 7th to the 10th of September. District One is THE home for Fast Electrics.
Many of the country’s best electric racers are right here, and we expect quite a few
guys from all over the country to attend. Doug Twaits, Jr. recently built a 1500 square
foot addition on to his house in order to store all of his trophies!
Dave Neelman has been a fantastic assistant to me and has been able to maintain
our website without any delay in updating the information expeditiously. As I stated
before, my plans are to continue to direct this district with the help of Dave, and try to
run successful races while promoting the best model boating organization in
America – NAMBA. At the 2006 Nationals in Florida, District One had eight boaters
that competed in the week long gas/nitro event. For years, it was Doug Twaits, Sr.,
William Overton, and myself attending the nationals. I guess the NAMBA Nationals
virus is spreading!
Now on to new business. I have been looking into a new District One site and from
the preliminary reports from the county officials, we may have another great site for
racing our boats. Once I get all of the insurance regulations out of the way, and I
understand what the county expects from us, it’s only a matter of paperwork signing
before it is a done deal. This would be a great addition to the other sites here on the
east coast. Many times a new site brings new boaters.
This year has been a good one for our district and I’m happy to be a part of it.
Thanks to all of District One boaters for making NAMBA racing exciting here on the
east coast.
Lou Gerdik winning Concourse at the NAMBA Nats
17
PROPWASH
Scale Chairman News
(Continued from page 17)
doesn’t happen too often in a world of Budweiser, Smokin’ Joe, and Winston Eagle
paint schemes. Louis Gerdik with his Green Dragon Miss Bardahl took
home the trophy. Congratulations Louie. I am sure that it made that long drive back to
New York a little more pleasurable.
This will be my sixth year in a row traveling to Tri-Cities, Washington to watch the
big unlimiteds and race scale. I have always said that this is a race to make if you want
to get a great view of the Columbia River, hang with over 110 scale enthusiasts, race
your unlimited and take in the social activities. This year, a couple of District 19
boaters have decided to come along for the ride. Russ Stark and his Century 21 and
Henry Velasco and his Squire Shop will see how they fare in a different racing
environment. I will have a report on how we do in the next issue of the Propwash.
Last but not least, don’t forget about the Oh Boy! Oberto Presents the Bill Muncey
Memorial in San Diego, California in September and the Northwest Scale Hydroplane
Championships in Seattle, Washington in October. See you at the races.
Tuned Pipes – Beyond the Basics
By Lohring Miller
District Eight Director
Tuned pipes are an essential part of our two stroke engines. Without them engines
would produce ½ their current power, or less. The Dooling 60 of the 1950s with cross
flow scavenging and open exhaust put out around 1 hp at 10,000 rpm. These days a
racing 67 puts out over 4 hp at 22,000 rpm. Improvements in scavenging from cross
flow to Schnerle scavenging systems and their interactions with the tuned pipe are
responsible for this huge improvement. Walter Kaaden and Erns Degner from
Germany realized the pulsating nature of flow in two stroke engines and greatly
improved the power of motorcycle engines in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Around
that time Suzuki produced 50cc two-cylinder racing engines that produced about 20 hp
at 20,000 rpm. Roger Theobald and Bill Wisniewski applied these principles to model
engines, winning the 1964 FAI World Control Line Speed Championships. Bill later
was responsible for the design K&B’s high output marine and ducted fan engines.
The tuned pipe acts as a no moving parts turbo charger. First the pipe uses the
exhaust pulse produced in the time from exhaust opening to transfer opening to create
a low pressure at the exhaust port. This draws fresh air and fuel mixture into the
cylinder through the transfers while the piston is near bottom dead center. Second, the
pipe creates a high-pressure pulse that arrives at the exhaust port in the interval
between transfer port and exhaust port closing. This, in effect, supercharges the
engine. These pulses are sound waves, not exhaust gas flows, and the pipe works
much like a wind musical instrument.
There are two main parts of the pipe that produce these pulses. The section that
creates the low-pressure pulse is called the diffuser. This is the part of the pipe that
starts at the piston and increases in diameter much like a megaphone or trumpet. The
high-pressure pulse from the exhaust port opening is expanded in the diffuser,
18
reducing its pressure, and a low-pressure
wave, or “suction” pulse, is reflected
back to the exhaust port. The exhaust
pulse continues on to the converging or
baffle cone where it’s pressure increases
and a high-pressure pulse is reflected
back to the exhaust port. The length and
position of these two sections determines
the time these reflected pulses, traveling
at the speed of sound, arrive back at the
exhaust port.
Tuned pipe design is largely
empirical. All the computer pipe design
programs represent the collected
experience of pipe designers and not
basic laws of physics. They start with the
length time the ports are open and the
time it takes a pulse to travel up and
down the pipe at the speed of sound in
the exhaust gasses. An excellent free
program for pipe design can be
downloaded at http://www.iwt.com.au/
pipedsn.HTM . A similar free program
for simpler pipes can be found at
http://www.mh-aerotools.de/airfoils/
javapipe_en.htm.
The basic program for pipes that
doesn’t make any assumptions for you
comes with the book Design and
Simulation of Two-Stroke Engines by
Gordon Blair. The hard part about all of
these programs is understanding how the
pipe really works and what parameters to
plug in. The Blair program gives you the
most freedom and that makes it the
hardest to use for pipe design without
experience as a guide.
The variables that need to be supplied
by the designer beyond the mechanical
dimensions of the engine are the average
exhaust gas temperature, the design
tuned rpm, the mid-section diameter and
the horn coefficient. Exhaust gas
temperature depends on the specific
power of the engine. For our gasolinepowered engines I have measured it at
around 400 to 450 degrees Centigrade.
It should be cooler (around 400 degrees
Centigrade) for nitro engines. Water
injection can be used to lower this
temperature and “lengthen” the pipe.
Don’t get carried away with designing
the pipe for high rpm. The idea is to
have a power band that the pipe works
in. I find that an rpm toward the
beginning of this power band is a good
starting point. The mid-section diameter
is also a judgment call. As a rule, it can
September 2006
PROPWASH
be somewhere between 2 and 3 ¼ times the minimum header diameter. The larger the
diameter, the bigger the suction pulse. However, there is a limit to how big you can
go.
The horn coefficient governs the shape of the diffuser. Early experimenters using
simple, cone shaped diffusers noticed that diffusers with total cone angles of about 8
degrees worked well as reported by Gordon Jennings in his book, Two-stroke Tuner’s
Handbook. Larger angles produced shorter, stronger suction pulses, while smaller
angles produced longer, weaker suction pulses. There is also a limit to how much a
simple diffuser can expand the exhaust pulse. The recommended belly diameter was
about 2 ½ times the header minimum diameter for a single-cone diffuser. Adding
stages with increasing angles allowed the diffuser to expand the exhaust pulse more
and produced a series of low-pressure waves. The horn coefficient defines how rapidly
Multi cone versus double cone pipe power
Power band with increased intake timing
September 2006
these sections increase in angle. If you
think of a trumpet, the horn coefficient
determines how flared the horn is. A
horn coefficient of 1.25 gives broad,
lower strength suction pulses, while a
horn coefficient of 2 gives steep, short,
high strength suction pulses. Somewhere around 1.4 to 1.8 seems best. The
baffle cone is usually a single cone for
our engines. Two cone baffles are used,
however on larger engines. Jennings also
reports that a total baffle cone angle of
20 degrees produces a sharp, short
pressure pulse; while an angle of 14
degrees produces a more broad, but
weaker pulse.
So how do these things affect real
engines? I have extensive dynamometer
tests on two pipes for Zenoah engines.
One is a conventional small diameter,
two-cone design. The other is a large
diameter design with a three-cone
diffuser. This pipe was made with an
adjustable center section to test the effect
of various baffle cone positions relative
to the diffuser. The single-cone diffuser
has an angle of 12 degrees while the
multi-cone diffuser has angles of 5.5,
11.3, and 21.2 degrees. The two-cone
pipe has a baffle angle of 17 degrees
while the multi-cone pipe has a baffle
angle of 25.3 degrees. The bar graphs
show the arrival times of the suction and
pressure waves compared to the port
open times at three different engine
speeds for each pipe. The low rpm is
14,000 rpm, the middle rpm is 16,000
rpm and the high rpm is 18,000 rpm.
Notice that the single-cone diffuser
generates a single suction pulse that
more or less lines up with the period the
transfers are open. Immediately
following is the pressure pulse that
arrives toward the time the transfers
close. As the engine speed increases
these pulses move to the right relative to
the port open bars. At the lowest rpm the
pressure pulse arrives too soon and
finishes well before the exhaust port
closes. At the highest rpm the suction
pulse is still in the transfer open area and
the pressure pulse is nearly ideally
located in the area between transfer
closing and exhaust closing. These
graphs say nothing about the strength of
these pulses; they only show relative
arrival times compared to port open
Continued on page 20
19
PROPWASH
Tuned Pipes - Beyond the Basics
(Continued from page 19)
times. The pulse strength does show up
on the engine power graph where the
power is considerably less than that with
the multi-cone pipe on the same engine.
However, the rpm can be increased
above 18,000 with this pipe and the
pulses will still not be too far out of sync
with the ports. This means that the
double-cone pipe with relatively low
angles has more “over rev” capacity than
the more complex pipe.
The three-cone diffuser of the multicone pipe produces three suction pulses
that cover the transfer open time better
than the single pulse from the singlecone diffuser. The exhaust pulse also
arrives at a good time. However, at
18,000 rpm the last suction pulse is
starting to arrive after the transfers close.
The exhaust pulse is also partly arriving
after the exhaust port closes. Above
18,000 rpm this will get worse, limiting
the power at higher rpm. Eleven of these
pulses are considerably stronger due to
the steeper angles and larger diameters
of the multi-cone pipe.
It all looks very simple, doesn’t it?
Just get the right computer programs,
plug in the right numbers and add ½
horsepower. However, look at the
second horsepower graph. This is a
comparison of the same two pipes on the
same engine with one modification. The
second set of graphs was taken on an
engine that had its intake duration
increased considerably. The two tests
marked 300/48 and 300/28 represent the
multi-cone pipe with either a 48mm or
28mm center section length. Now the
high suction capability of the multi-cone
pipe is wasted because the intake
restriction is much less. It still gains a
little at low rpm, but the giant improvement is gone. Only engine simulation
programs would predict this result, and I
have found that MOTA, one of the more
affordable ones, doesn’t correlate well
with dyno tests on our small engines.
Other programs, especially the more
expensive ones, might work better.
Lots of tests were done to determine
the best center section length, stinger
diameter, and whether an internal stinger
was better than an external stinger.
A somewhat shorter center section than
the program predicted worked best, and
an internal stinger, where the stinger
extends into the pipe for the full baffle
cone length works slightly better than
the same stinger reversed in the
conventional position.
The stinger diameter and length acts
as a restriction in the exhaust, increasing
the average pressure in the pipe. More
pressure means more supercharge, but
too much pressure worsens scavenging,
causes overheating, and reduces power.
Small diameter changes cause big
pressure changes while length changes
are much less effective. Doubling or
halving the stinger length causes a barely
noticeable power change. There may
also be a small pressure wave generated
by the stinger, but it is usually ignored.
The moral of all this is that there may be
big improvements in power from tuned
pipe design. There may also be big
improvements from porting changes
with a given pipe. They all work
together. An understanding of the basic
principles combined with lots of testing
is the only way to improve your engine.
It’s a Record …Then Maybe Not!
Hall of Fame Report
By Al Waters
NAMBA President
By Doug Twaits
NAMBA Hall of Fame Chairman
At the 2006 Nationals ten heat racing records were set and applied for. One of the
applications did not indicate the class the record was set in. Cathie Galbraith, the
Executive Secretary who handles the processing of record applications asked Dave
Bestpitch and myself to review all of the applications while the search continued for
the missing class.
In the process of reviewing the applications, our findings were that every one of the
applications were not filled out properly according to NAMBA rules and the
requirements printed on the form.
Records are a very important part of NAMBA model boating and their integrity is
paramount. The rulebook states that motors are to be tagged or secured for teardowns,
and this must be done. The record application asks for bore and stroke and
displacement, and this information must be checked by a tech person and filled out.
The application asks for the Contest Director and two other witnessing signatures from
different clubs, and this requirement must be followed. If you are the applicant, you
cannot be the person who is teching the record setting boat. And of course, all
signatures must be current NAMBA members.
As a result of our findings, Dave Bestpitch and I made the decision that all records
set at the 2006 NAMBA Nats were to be withdrawn. And yes, one of those records
was mine.
20
A big welcome is in order for
NAMBA’s two new Hall of Fame
members, Joe Monohan and Tony
Rhodes. They were voted on by the
existing Hall of Fame members during
the eight weeks preceding the Nitro/Gas
Nationals which were held in Florida. As
per NAMBA tradition, they were
inducted into the Hall of Fame at the
Awards Banquet on the last day of the
Nationals. The induction was made by
NAMBA President, Al Waters. As usual,
there were some of the existing members
on hand to celebrate the inductions. An
inductee into the NAMBA Hall of Fame
is so honored for his effort in promoting
NAMBA and for working within his
district. Racing ability and general
promotion of model boating is all part of
the qualifications that made these two
members the newest additions to the
Hall of Fame.
September 2006
PROPWASH
Tony Rhodes Inducted Into NAMBA Hall of Fame
By Al Waters
NAMBA President
Tony Rhodes was welcomed into the NAMBA Hall of Fame for 2006. NAMBA model
boaters inducted into the Hall of Fame are done so for many different reasons. It could be
for their longevity, the many records or championships they have held, their contributions
to their districts, or the everlasting effect they have had on NAMBA overall. Tony has
accomplished all of the above at one time or another, which convinced the Hall of Fame
members to honor him with the most prestigious award in NAMBA.
Tony Rhodes began his model boating career in 1990. He was known as an outboard
racer when he started, but quickly took on inboard monos, outriggers, sport boats, and
scale unlimited. He could always be seen at the NAMBA Nationals entering 16 or 17
classes. Tony won his first Nationals title at the 20th Anniversary 1991 NAMBA Nats at
Legg Lake in California, and has been winning many district and national titles ever since.
In 1993 he was inducted into the APBA Hall of Champions. Racing was not everything
to Tony. He wanted to do more. Tony was the Outboard Chairman in District 19 for six
years under two different district directors. Stepping up to the plate in a bigger way was
Tony’s next step. He became District 19 Director for two terms, during which time he was
the Contest Director of the 2004 NAMBA Nationals in Los Angeles. Tony has attended 13 Nationals since his model boating career
began. His biggest highlight was winning Scale Unlimited at the Manteca NAMBA Nats with a perfect score in a 20-year-old boat.
With the current construction boom and retirement just around the corner, Tony was unable to make the recent nationals in
Florida for his induction. He was notified of his induction into the NAMBA Hall of Fame during the week prior to the awards
ceremony, and expressed that he felt bad that he could not be present. When he was called by telephone during the week, the first
thing he said was, “Were the Kids R Boaters taken care of with nice awards?” Yes they were Tony. That’s the kind of guy Tony
Rhodes, our current NAMBA Vice President is. Tony, welcome to the NAMBA Hall of Fame.
Smokin’ Joe Enters Hall of Fame
By Cathie Galbraith
NAMBA Executive Secretary
Joe Monohan is one of the two new members of the NAMBA Hall of Fame inducted at
the Nitro/Gas Nats which were held in Florida in July. Unfortunately Joe was not able to
attend so his plaque was awarded to him at a District 19 race.
But what got Joe to this point? Many of you may know him as the man behind 707
Specialties, a company specializing in the manufacture of custom R/C boat parts. Some of
you know him as a great outboard racer in District 19. In fact, at various times Joe has
held many NAMBA records in both inboard and outboard classes. But this is only the tip
of the iceburg.
Joe started out in motorcycle racing before he moved on to model boating. I guess it
was less dangerous on the body. He has been a member of NAMBA for over 20 years and
has been President of the Prop-Nuts Model Boat Club for 20 years. He has attended 19
NAMBA Nationals and has taken first place awards in various inboard and outboard
classes at many of them. He also captured a US-1 in 7.5 Tunnel at an IMPBA Internats.
Back in the early days of K&B Manufacturing, Joe worked with them in the design and
testing of various outboard and inboard engines. He has spent countless hours helping
new boaters to build and drive their model boats.
But Joe is not all cold statistics and impersonal accomplishments. I feel very qualified to elaborate on Joe Monohan the person,
since I have known Joe for almost 20 years. In the early days of my model boating, when I knew Joe only by reputation, I attended an
outboard race at Legg Lake. My boat died after a couple of laps. Unfortunately, Joe’s boat was right behind me and hit my now dead
boat. As we both were waiting for the retrieve boat to come in he informed me that if I couldn’t keep my boat from being dead and in
other racer’s way I shouldn’t be racing. Well, that was certainly an auspicious beginning to my friendship with Joe. Luckily, it went
all uphill from there. Shortly thereafter he pit for me at the Ladies and Kids race that was held at Kingsburg, California. He got my
boat running so well, and was such a patient pitman that I got second place and an award for most improved boater. From that point
on, Joe was my pitman, boat builder, and mechanic for a number of years. He even goaded me into running a scale boat, determined
that I was going to be the first woman to run scale in District 19. I am not sure that I would still be running boats today if were not for
Joe’s early help and friendship. Congratulations Joe, you are certainly a Hall of Famer in my eyes!
September 2006
21
PROPWASH
News From Seven
By Scott Grissman
District Seven Director
Hello all from District Seven! We are
half way though our racing season. Our
last race was July 22nd and 23rd in
Carlsbad, New Mexico. We had perfect
weather and just about glassy water the
whole weekend. Those of you that have
been to Eastern New Mexico and
Western Texas know that this is rare.
We had some good, close heat racing.
Our next race is Lubbock, Texas on
August 12th and 13th. The Lubbock club,
the Lubbock RC Power Boat
Association has been in the process
of making improvements to their race
site. After a lot of hard work the city
finally OK'd the work. But it had to be
done by the members and paid for by
the club. A lot of soil work had to be
done to the steep hillside along the lake
shore. Three pit pads 5x25 feet and a
drivers’ stand were poured. It took eight
yards of concrete. Then a removable
awning was built for the drivers stand
because the city would not allow a
permanent awning. In addition, nine
trees were planted. The club spent close
to $1000 on this phase of the improvements. In the pictures to the right you
can see the work from beginning to
finish.
On a different note, I am happy to
report that District Seven was able to
add a new club to our area this past
month. The new club in the San Antonio
area joined NAMBA. I am not sure of
the numbers, but think there are 12
active members with as many as 20 in
the future. Way to go San Antonio!
They are planning to host a race in
February of 2007. This should draw
racers from the Austin, Dallas/Ft Worth,
and Houston areas. We are also working
at getting the Amarillo, Texas club back
up and running.
Lastly, let’s all remember to try and
bring a friend or child to an R/C boating
event. We need to promote our hobby,
and share it with as many people as
possible. I hate to cut this short but I am
on vacation deep sea fishing for a week
in Port Aransas, Texas and am heading
to SeaFair in Seattle the day I get home.
Until next time, happy boating!
22
The hot pit area was graded and leveled with forms placed where the start tables
would be located. The concrete was then poured, flattened and troweled for a nice
surface
While the concrete dried and cured, we then planted trees to provide shade for the
drivers and spectators for years to come
You can see the hot pit where we start our boats and the portable drivers stand.
Notice that the cold pit area is elevated so that spectators get a good view of the racing
September 2006
PROPWASH
NAMBA OFFICIALS AND CHAIRMEN
Revised September 2006
PRESIDENT:
Al Waters
(760) 746-2408
al.waters@namba.com
VICE PRESIDENT:
Tony Rhodes
(310) 549-6810
tony.rhodes@namba.com
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY:
Cathie Galbraith
(619) 424-6380
cathie.galbraith@namba.com
CHAIRMEN:
DEEP VEE/OFFSHORE:
Open
ELECTRIC:
Terry Davis
(586) 749-0114
terry.davis@namba.com
GAS:
Russell Stark
(909) 613-1819
russ.stark@namba.com
HALL OF FAME:
Doug Twaits
(973) 347-5765
doug.twaits@namba.com
MONO/HYDRO:
Bill Bridge
(858) 449-9344
bill.bridge@namba.com
NATIONALS:
Dave Rychalsky
(973) 724-4607
dave.rychalsky@namba.com
OUTBOARD:
Chris Wittrig
(407) 829-7916
chris.wittrig@namba.com
RECORDS/AWARDS:
Dave Bestpitch
(916) 608-1908
dave.bestpitch@namba.com
SAFETY:
Lohring Miller
(541) 345-7897
lohring.miller@namba.com
SPORT HYDRO:
Eric Bourlet
(253) 460-7283
eric.bourlet@namba.com
UNLIMITED HYDRO:
Al Waters
(760) 746-2408
al.waters@namba.com
District 1:
Dave Rychalsky
(732) 254-2165
dave.rychalsky@namba.com
District 2
Kelly Brooks
(513) 583-5837
kelly.brooks@namba.com
District 3:
Fred Robson
(954) 462-2096
fred.robson@namba.com
District 4
Doug Robichaud
(608) 767-2050
doug.robichaud@namba.com
District 7:
Scott Grissman
(806) 798-3484
scottgrissman.namba.com
District 8:
Lohring Miller
(541) 345-7897
lohring.miller@namba.com
District 9:
Mike McKnight
(209) 333-2306
mike.mcknight@namba.com
District 11:
Richard Grenier
(603) 524-2628
rey.medina@namba.com
District 13:
Rey Medina
(787) 509-5103
richard.grenier@namba.com
District 16:
Keith Warham
(403) 253-9031
keith.warham@namba.com
District 19:
Mark Grim
(714) 890-3127
mark.grim@namba.com
District 20:
Kelly Stout
(970) 454-0963
kelly.stout@namba.com
DISTRICT DIRECTORS
23
September 2006
PROPWASH
September 2006