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Memorial Service for Steve Smith
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Steve Smith’s sister, Kim Rawleigh is
holding a memorial service
The service will be held Saturday
November 1, 2008 at 2 p.m. at her home
Kim Rawleigh
671 Woodridge Drive
Chaska, Minn 55318
Any Questions call Kim at
1-952-250-2445
Posted by Karen on Thursday, October 16 @ 12:49:36 PDT (1985 reads)
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Steve Smith Memorial Fund
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Steve Smith Memorial Fund The entire SSRA family is truly saddened by the loss of Steve Smith. Our thoughts and prayers to his entire family and friends.
There will be a memorial fund set up for Steve's family through the SSRA. Please help with any donations possible.
Send checks to the
SSRA Steve Smith Memorial Fund
4965 Calle De Oro
Oakley, CA. 94561.
As soon as we have the details of a service we will let you know. If anyone has any questions feel free to call
me (Greg) at 951-265-7681 or
Denise Tuttle at 925-383-8511.
Thanks for all the support. Greg Shirley
Posted by karen on Monday, September 29 @ 20:06:12 PDT (1992 reads)
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2008 Long Beach Report
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As reported by Tom Tim:
Boat racing returned to Long Beach Marine Stadium for the Sprint Nationals event. The annual event has continued to grow in size and stature. At stake at the 2008 edition was the APBA Summer Nationals Championship for the Super Stock and KRR classes. The weekend action featured qualifying heats and finals on both Saturday and Sunday and the big race in both classes would be the Sunday final. The winner in each class would take home the Summer Nationals Championship. The Southern California Speedboat Club event marked the third race on the SSRA 2008 schedule and once again there was some awesome racing at the Beach and plenty of stories to be told.
The Sunday action kicked off with a couple early qualifying heats of Super Stock race action and lined up in the first heat was Rob Devine in the SS6 machine in the outside lane, Dan Bertone in his Broad Minded SS29 entry, Skip Tuttle in the SS711 Kryptonite machine, Hal Jones in the Ray Pauli owned SS501 Pegasus machine, and the SS80 Wild Child machine with a mystery driver. I say mystery driver because the normal driver of the Paul Pfaff powered machine, Dave Bryant, was in the Pacific Northwest driving the U10 Unlimited Hydro. It was also difficult to tell who was driving because the driving suite and helmet were those that are normally worn by Bryant when he is in the seat of the SS80 machine. Team owner Dave Rankin turned the steering wheel and hammered the throttle in the 80 machine on Saturday but he swapped seats and was handling the driving chores for the GN24 Body Snatcher team of Ted Kolby on Sunday. Apparently Joey Cucci was sick and unable to drive on Sunday so Dave, who won in GN two years ago at the beach, was gunning for the Summer Nationals Championship in GN while fielding machines in SS, PS, and the K class. Back to the subject of who was driving the SS80 machine only one of the best, if not the best, drivers in the flatbottom sprint boat classes it was Ty Newton hopping back in the SS80 machine at Long Beach. If you remember Ty drove the SS80 machine a number of years ago for Dave and the Wild Child team for a heat or two when Dennis Rankin was unable to drive as a result of a wild crash up the Long Beach backstretch. Ty also crashed hard in the machine at Irvine Lake while testing props and the machine was damaged beyond repairs. At the drop of the white flag Ty was first to the turn as the pack bunched up close and where literally within inches of each other as the negotiated the opening lap first turn. Ty made a flawless turn and had the shortest distance to travel and grabbed an early lead heading up the backstretch. Hal Jones was almost side by side with Ty and Skip was flying the bow trying to catch the two as he was less than two boats lengths back. It looked like Hal might have enjoyed a slight lead heading up the backstretch but if he did it did not last long as Ty drove hard through the turn and opened up a couple boat length lead. At the completion of lap one Ty was in first, Hal in second, Skip was in third, Rob in fourth, and Dan was in fifth. At the start / finish Rob was challenging Skip for third place. The five drivers on the race course would pretty much stay the course and finish in this order with a couple boat lengths in between each position as Ty was the heat one winner and Hal finished in second. Next up was the qualifier heat number two and Chris Kenner drew the inside lane in Danny and Karen Loveless owned SS741 machine. Greg Shirley began from lane two in his all white SS7 entry. Tony Scarlata was in lane three behind the wheel of the Jeff Brochheseur owned SS68 Loud and Proud machine. The SS8 Mango Madness entry of Mike Darner was in lane four and in the outside lane it was the SS15 Hot Flash machine of Denny Bertone. As the flag dropped at the start of the heat the field spread out quick as Tony and Mike got to the turn first. It was Tony coming out of the turn in first place but it looked like Greg might have beaten Mike out of the turn as the two raced up the backstretch. As Mike tried to take a set to charge up the straightaway his machine could be seen completely out of the water and he had to get off the gas. At the completion of lap one Tony had a good sized lead over Greg who was being challenged by Mike. Chris was in the fourth spot and Denny finished lap one in the number five spot. The SS15 machine of Denny looked to be a challenge to get around the tight turns as the all red machine darted under some good sized splash. Even though Mike and Greg were running what appeared to be just as hard as Tony it was the 68 machine out in front for the remainder of the heat as Tony would claim the win and Greg would finish in second. Chris had to pull off the race course after a couple laps as something apparently went away in the 741 machine and it might have been putting out some smoke in the turns. Mike placed fourth and Denny rounded out the field. In the APBA Summer Nationals final heat six racers team put their drivers in the water with the hope of taking home the win. The favorite had to be the 80 machine with Ty in the drivers seat and he would take the inside lane at the drop of the white flag. Greg was in lane two, Hal in three, Rob in four, Skip in five, and Tony was on the outside in lane six. As the flag dropped Ty took an early lead with Greg about a boat length behind and Tony was charging hard up the outside in third. Ty came through the turn in first as Tony drove hard through the turn way on the outside but looked like he came out of the turn in second. Ty stretched his lead up the backstretch and through turn two while Greg was right behind Tony. At the completion of lap one Ty had the lead, Tony was in second, Greg in third, Skip in fourth, Rob in fifth and Hal was broke on the outside of the course just past the turn one buoys. Out in front with quite a good sized lead there was no stopping Ty and he and the 80 team would go on the take the Summer Nationals Championship. Ty would also wrap the Summer Nationals Pro Stock Championship behind the wheel of the SS80 machine and compete in the K class in the seat of the K66 Blown Brothers machine. Tony would wrap up the second place finish in the Summer Nationals heat and he would also compete in the K class and the Pro Stock class. Greg finished in third, Skip in fourth, and Rob finished in fifth. Speaking of Skip he would also compete in the GN class in the seat of the GN711 machine and he drove to the APBA Summer Nationals Championship win in the 20 lap final on Sunday. The K class started off with five race teams on the Long Beach premises but he K24 machine of Steve Sequeira apparently hurt the engine and did not make it out for the Summer Nationals Championship on Sunday. The machines on the water on Sunday included the K16 entry of John Guthrie, the K66 Pat Braezeale owned machine driven by Ty Newton, the K50 Ghost of Coldfire entry owned and driven by Wayne Herbert, and the capsule K69 Freedom Child machine of Gordie Jennings and Dave Rankin. With Dave Bryant racing the unlimited hydro Tony Scarlata filled in as the driver of the K69 entry. In the morning heat it was all Ty Newton in the K66 entry. He and Wayne and John charged hard to the first turn on lap one but after that Ty easily outpaced the field to take the checkered flag. John finished in second, Wayne in third, and Tony broke in the middle of the racecourse a lap or two in. Ty was in his second race in the K66 machine and won the Long Beach event the previous two years behind the wheel of the K5 entry. He was certainly the odds on favorite in my book as Tony was relatively new, I know he had some testing in the K69 machine prior to the LB event, in the Freedom Child machine and Wayne and John were going to be hard pressed to deal with the aggressive driving talents of Ty and Tony. At the drop of the flag there was an apparent poor start and even through the machines looked to be lined up within a boat length of each other the black flag came out. Both Wayne, who was out in front of Tony must not have seen the black flag as they continued to push hard through the completion of a lap before the SCSC officials shot off a flare. On the second attempt with Wayne in one, Tony in two, Ty in three, and John in lane four the official dropped the white flag and off they went. Tony made it around the turn and started up the back straight with the lead but it was Ty who got shot out of a cannon in lane three who quickly pulled ahead. Wayne and John were about even at this point and both were right on the transom of the 69 machine. As Wayne, Tony, and Ty mad their way past the Marine Stadium sign it was Wayne charging hard on the inside and he pulled ahead of Tony who had a couple feet on Ty. They were almost side by side by side charging hard heading into turn two and Wayne looked very hungry and was going to have to make a good hard inside lane turn if he wanted to play with the heavy hitters. And that he did but he was not the first to the turn as he got off the gas before Tony and Tony went into the turn with quite a bit more momentum and the 69 boat grabbed a small lead as the three came out of turn two and made their way up the front straight away. Neither Ty nor Wayne was going to let Tony run away with it as Wayne pushed hard up the straight and went into turn one hard. Tony had a little trouble getting the capsuled machine set coming out of the turn which opened the door for Ty and Wayne and it looked like Ty was side by side with Tony on the outside as Wayne closed the gap on the inside. Tony remained the leader heading into turn two and Wayne and Ty were side by side Tony on both sides. Tony once again got a little too much air under the 69 machine and had to get off the gas for a split second and once again the door was opened for Wayne and Ty as the trio marched up the straight. As the group crossed the start / finish line Wayne was a boat length behind Tony and Ty was about one boat length behind Wayne and it was still anyone’s race. Wayne was driving his heart out, Tony was trying to hold off a mad man and one of the best sprint boat flat drivers in the sport, and Ty was not going quietly. Things got a little messy coming out of turn one as it looked like Tony swung wide then made a sharp turn to straighten his machine out meanwhile Wayne was driving a similar line as Tony and he had to take some quick action to avoid the collision. Tony would maintain about a two to three boat length lead heading up the backstretch and he was not going to give Wayne any extra room on the inside to make a move. At this point it looked like Wayne was avoiding the spray from the 69 roostertail and Tony would open up his lead somewhat. Ty was still chasing down and trying to catch Wayne while John was not too far behind Ty. On the last lap of the five lap final Tony stretched out his lead to take a commanding win while Wayne and Ty both gave it there all trying to get to the finish line ahead of one another. Wayne would take second, Ty was a close third, and John finished in fourth. Congrats to Tony on one heck of a driving job and what a K boat race it was watching three very hungry drivers running as hard as they could for five laps trying to capture the Summer Nationals win. It was extremely cool to see Wayne duel it out with Ty and Tony as the K50 machine showed some real muscles out on the water. I am already looking forward to the 2009 Sprint Nationals!
Posted by karen on Tuesday, August 12 @ 17:38:56 PDT (1370 reads)
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Tom Timm's 2008 Burley Race Report
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The second race on the Super Stock Racing Association schedule had the hard running flat bottom drivers and teams making the trip to Burley Idaho for the long running Idaho Regatta event. The three day (four day if you count the show n shine) event started off with time trials and a shootout and then the teams would run qualifying heats and a final on both Saturday and Sunday. The Burley race course is approx 1.25 miles in length and has about four buoys in each turn making it sort of an oval shaped course. This year there was no pace boat so the teams took a flag start. The weekend saw some very exciting racing that turned up the emotions both on and off the water. There were also some new faces in competition as well as a strong turnout from the Pacific Northwest contingent of Super Stock teams. There was one mishap that occurred in the final laps of the Sunday main as Jeff Gibson went over the SS31 Soaring Eagle machine. Jeff was running hard into turn two when the capsule machine went over and then could be seen floating upside town. Just as the Sheriffs Rescue team got to Jeff he undid himself from the *****pit and came to the surface. Jeff suffered some cuts and bruises to his legs but was otherwise okay. The Jeff Gibson / Jim Codling / Jerry Dugan machine was badly damaged but I am told it will be fixed and be back out.
Friday’s action saw eleven teams take to the water for the shootout. Gordy Jennings Jr. was the first out on the course for the time trails and he was smooth down the straightaway to take the start. He was fast in the first turn but got a little too aired out as he headed up the backstretch. His time would hold up for the top spot in qualifying and he would get the inside lane for the shootout. The line up for the five boat shootout included the 80 machine, Tony Scarlata in the SS68 entry in lane two, Skip Tuttle in the SS711 machine in lane three, Gee McClain in the SS24 machine in lane four, and the SS95 machine owned by Sid Rennells and driven by Dale Baker in lane five. As the group came out of the far turn and and headed up the long straightaway looking for the drop of the white flag Gordy quickly put a half boat length lead on the SS68 machine but Tony was hard on the gas to make a race of it. Gordy used his speed and made an excellent run through turn one and just like that had a couple boat lengths lead on Tony in the SS68 machine as Skip was in third place, Gee McClain in the SS24 machine was in fourth, and Dale was in fifth place at the completion of the first lap. Gordy would stretch his lead to take the checkered flag by about 5 seconds and the rest of the field finished in the same order that they were in after the completion of the first lap. What a way to start the weekend for Gordy and the SS80 Wild Child team owned by Dave Rankin and typically driven by Dave Bryant. Bryant was in Evansville Indiana competing in the U10 machine with the unlimited hydroplanes. Gordy’s plans were to only compete in the shootout and Dave Rankin would take over the driving chores the rest of the weekend.
The Saturday and Sunday race action featured three qualifying heats with four boats each and the winner and second place in each would advance to the final. The remaining six race teams would then line up in a last chance heat where the top two finishers would move into the final. The lane assignment in each of the heats was determined by a drawing and those who were able to get into the inside lane had the shortest distance to travel around the course. In the opening qualifying heat on Saturday morning Dave Rankin put his SS80 Wild Child machine in the inside lane while Fred Hart was in the seat of the SS741 Loveless family owned entry in lane two. Skip Tuttle put his awesome looking Dick Vale painted Kryptonite machine in lane three and in the outside lane it was Mike Devore in the SS78 Laveycraft hulled machine. Both Rankin and Tuttle got the lead at the drop of the flag and heading into turn one it was Dave, with the shorter distance to travel, who extended his lead coming out of the turn and as he headed up the backstretch. Skip was in second but certainly pushing hard and not giving up, Fred Hart was in third, and Devore was in fourth place. As Rankin and Tuttle came back around to turn two on the second lap Skip had made up the difference and was side by side with Dave. It was Dave however that had the inside lane advantage and he used it to take the lead as the pair hit the smooth waters on the back side of the island. As the two came out of the second turn Skip would move to the inside lane to try to challenge the 80 machine but it was to no avail as Dave would get the win. Skip placed second while Hart came in third and Devore came in fourth. In the second heat it was Scarlata in lane one, McClain in lane two, Hal Jones in lane three, and Dale Baker on the outside. Tony got a nice lead as the foursome hit the first turn. He was about four boat lengths in front of Jones and then it was McClain and Baker pretty much even as they hit the apex of the turn. Tony would stretch his lead as he headed through the backstretch but as he started into turn one of lap two could be seen reaching back and possibly turning some kind of device. It was obvious that he was slowing with some kind of problem and Hal whipped on by in the turn to get the lead. At the beginning of lap three Jones had a commanding lead as Baker and McClain were battling for second place while Tony slipped to fourth. At the beginning of lap four Hal continued to lead and McClain was in second. Tony was able to get by Baker with one lap to go and had his sights set on McClain for the second place finish. Jones could be seen pumping his arm as he crossed the finish with first place as McClain held on to the second place finish. In the third qualifier on Saturday afternoon the two capsuled machine had lanes one and two as Mike Darner was in lane three and Chris Pauli was on the outside. Lenny Baker was in the seat of his SS78 capsuled entry and Jeff Gibson raced behind the wheel of the SS31 capsuled Soaring Eagle machine. As the white flag dropped Darner got out in front by a boat length as Baker and Gibson were side by side heading into the opening turn. Gibson however carried the most speed into and out of the turn to grab the lead as the trio made their way up the backstretch. Lenny Baker was right on the transom of Gibson on the inside as the two looked to leave the competition in their wake up the backstretch. Baker carried the speed coming out of turn two and it looked like he was going to challenge for the lead but Gibson had other ideas as he mashed the gas in front of the Burley crowd. The finishing order for the heat saw Gibson get the win, Baker come in second, Darner hit the finish line in third, and Pauli finished in fourth. In the last chance qualifier six teams put their drivers on the water and only the first and second place finishers would move into the Saturday main. The SS78 machine was in lane one, Pauli in lane two, Dale Baker in lane three, Darner in lane four, Hart in lane five, and Scarlata was on the outside in lane six. When drivers got flag start it was Scarlata getting out in front by a lot as he was able to change lanes as he came out of the turn. Hart and Darner were battling for second in some very close quarters and Darner got squeezed somewhat in between Baker and Hart as the trio came out of the turn. The three had a good battle going as it was extremely important to get the first or second place finish. At the completion of one lap it was Scarlata in first, Darner just barely ahead of Hart for second, and it was Pauli chasing the SS78 entry. Scarlata would finish with the heat win and Darner would take second as both teams would move into the final. Dale Baker would finish just ahead of Hart for third. Pauli and Devore had an exciting battle going that lasted for a long time and it was too close to call who won as they were side by side at the stripe. A very crowded eight boat field made up the Saturday final and lining the machines up for the start proved to be a big challenge. Something happened with the Skip Tuttle SS711 machine as it looked like he might have got squeezed heading up to take the flag and he came to a stop on the course as the heat never got started. The race officials and racers got things squared away and off went the eight drivers for the final. The capsuled machine of Gibson had the inside lane and he was way inside as the pack of seven were within a couple feet of each other looking to get the start. Darner had the early lead in lane two but slowed somewhat as he got some big air in his Mango Madness machine. Scarlata carried the most speed into the turn and had a couple boat length lead as Darner, McClain, Tuttle, Rankin, and Jones were within a boat length of each other moving into the turn. As the pack got part way up the backstretch Scarlata pulled away by about six or seven boat lengths as Darner had the inside track in second place and Rankin was in third on the outside. The Jeff Brochheuser owned Loud N Proud SS 68 machine could be seen putting out some smoke coming out of turn two as both Darner and Rankin had their sights set on the all black machine. With one lap down Scarlata was in the lead and Rankin got out in front of Darner. Jones and Tuttle had a good battle for the fourth spot. The finishing order for the final showed Scarlata in first, Rankin in second, Darner in third, and Jones just barely held off Tuttle for the fourth spot. It was a good day of racing and there was still one day left.
With the Saturday race action complete the Super Stock teams would get things ready for another round of qualifiers and then the Sunday main. In the first group of four out for the Sunday qualifier Darner was on the inside as McClain took lane two, Hart had lane three, and Rankin was on the outside. At the completion of lap one Rankin held the lead over Darner and McClain was holding off Hart for the third spot. Rankin would extend his lead over Darner and take the checkered flag as McClain would hold off Hart for the third place finish. In the second qualifying heat Devore drew the inside lane as he would battle against Jones, Gibson, and Scarlata. As the flag dropped for the start both Jones and Scarlata got out in front and Scarlata was the first to the turn. Coming out the turn it was Jones who held a slight lead over Scarlata as Gibson was in third and Devore in fourth. Jones and Scarlata roared up the backstretch and it was hard to see who would have the lead heading into the turn. Scarlata was in first at the exit of turn two and Hal made a lane moved over to the outside of Tony as they sped up the front straight away. Gibson was not far off of Jones in third and Devore was sitting in fourth. The finishing order for the heat showed Scarlata taking the checkered while Jones finished second and Gibson placed third. In the last Super Stock qualifier Dale Baker started on the outside as Skip was in lane three, Chris Pauli was in lane two, and Lenny Baker was took the inside lane. Tuttle grabbed the early lead as the group got the flag start and charged hard to the firs turn. Lenny Baker was in second, Dale Baker in third, and Chris Pauli followed in fourth. Dale would get around Lenny at the completion of the first lap but it was Skip who was driving away from the pack. At the completion of the heat it was Skip getting the win and Dale finishing second and each would move into the final as Chris and Lenny would move into the last chance qualifier to battle it out to determine who would move into the final. Apparently there were a couple of infractions in the morning qualifiers as both Rankin and Scarlata took the checkered flag in their heats but both would be back on the water in the last chance qualifier. As the six machines took to the water for the last chance qualifier the sunny weather turned somewhat cloudy but still typical perfect Burley race weather. Scarlata drew the inside lane as Devore was in lane two, Hart in lane three, Rankin in the fourth lane, Pauli in lane five, and Lenny Baker was on the outside in his SS78 capsuled machine. As the six racers lined up and looked for the flag start it never dropped as the race official did not like the start and they had to make the their way back around the second island to line up for a second start. On the second try Scarlata got the best start as he was out in front of Hart, who was a boat length ahead of Rankin, as the trio made their way into the first turn. Scarlata would open up a nice lead as Rankin raced on the outside of Hart as the two came around the opening turn almost side by side. Rankin would get past Hart on the outside of turn two on the opening lap but it was Scarlata who was out in front. Only the top two finishers would move into the Sunday final and it looked like Tony and Dave were going to be hard to get around but there was always the chance that breakage or mechanical issues could play a role in the race action but not on this day as Tony cruised to the heat win and Dave followed with a second place finish. Chris Pauli and Mike Devore made it an exciting heat as the battled it out deck to deck for the second time during the weekend. Only one race was left for the Super Stockers as eight race teams put their drivers and machine on the Snake River for the all important Sunday final. Hal Jones was on the inside lane and lined up next to him closest to farthest was Skip Tuttle, Gee McClain, Tony Scarlata, Dave Rankin, Mike Darner, Dale Baker, and Jeff Gibson was on the far outside. And off they went as the flag dropped and Scarlata was slightly out in front of Rankin and then it was Darner and Jones side by side for third. Gee McClain had problems and brought the SS24 machine even before taking the start and he was done. Tony came out of the first turn in front but Dave was pushing hard in the 80 machine and Hal was also right there on the inside as the group went behind the island. As Tony and Dave raced hard to the farthest buoy in the turn Tony went out to far and had to whip the wheel to avoid collecting Rankin and it was enough to slow down the 68 machine and Dave would take the lead. Dave would extend his lead heading up the backstretch as Tony followed in second, Jones was in third, and Skip was running in the fourth spot. Skip would get around Jones on the inside as the two finished the lap as the two were deck to deck in front of the Burley crowd. As Jeff Gibson made his way around the first turn the machine went over and could be seen floating upside down and a flare was shot as the Sheriffs Rescue team tended to Gibson who sustained cuts and bruises to his legs in the incident. Once the SS31 machine was put back on the trailer it was obvious there was significant damage done. What a shame as the SS31 Soaring Eagle machine was an awesome looking ride and I hope to see this team back out on the water soon! The Super Stock race teams took their machines out of the water to refuel and were back on the water to rerun their final round heat. With only six boats remaining the lane assignments would stay the same. At the drop of the white flag four of the machines, the 501, 711, 68, and 80 boat were all bunched up and it was a good start. Jones rocketed around the turn with authority and looked to be the early leader until the bright yellow 80 machine with owner Dave Rankin at the controls peaked out from behind the roostertail of the 501 machine. Tony was behind a couple boat lengths back in third and was being followed by Darner, Tuttle, and Dale Baker. Hal and Dave came out of turn two side by side in as both drivers looked for any advantage they could get. Dave exited the turn better than Hal and grabbed the lead as they finished up the first lap. Skip got around Mike Darner heading into the turn and had his sights set on Scarlata who looked to be slowing somewhat. At the completion of the second lap Dave had a nice lead over Hal but there was a good battle brewing between Skip and Tony as they battled for the third spot. An exciting weekend of Super Stock racing would be capped off with a win by Rankin and the SS80 Wild Child team and it was Hal Jones and the SS501 team taking the weekend win with a bunch of good runs and finishes. The SS80 team would take the second overall and in third place for the weekend was the SS711 team. The action did not end as the checkered dropped however as there were some heated emotions at the conclusion of the Sunday final and it just goes to show you how competitive the SSRA series is.
It’s off to Long Beach for the next SSRA race where there will be a completely different kind of race course the competitors will have to adjust to.
Posted by karen on Monday, July 14 @ 20:43:53 PDT (1115 reads)
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Burley 2008 is in the Books
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Pepsi Burley Idaho Regatta 2008 Winners:
As it was reported in the “South Idaho Press” newspaper on Monday June 30, 2008
The three top places in each of the classes were:
Super Stocks
1st Hal Jones SS 501
2nd Dave Rankin SS 80
3rd Skip Tuttle SS 711
K-Boats
1st Duff Daily K 69
2nd John Guthrie K -11
3rd Ty Newton. K 66
Pro Stock
1st Mike Darner PS 8
2nd Chris Kenner PS 74
3rd Ty Newton PS 70
Crackerboxes
1st Scott Schatz and Mike Schatz;
2nd Amy Ottinger and Missy Monroe;
3rd: Matt Bookey and Dallas Ambrose.
Competition Jet
1st Glen Dilworth,
2nd Scott Dayley
3rd Toby Clark.
Nostalgia Flat
1st Michael Devore
2nd Mike Todd
3rd Randy Slinker and Brandon Brodecki.
2.5 Liter Stock
1st Justin Squires
2nd Mike Hoffhine
3rd Joe Gutierrez.
The Moyle Mink and the Faulkner Memorial Trophy are given each year to the driver who either breaks or gets the closest to the course’s mile-and-a-quarter record for their boat classification.
- This year the winner of the Moyle Mink and the Faulkner Memorial Trophy at the Pepsi Idaho Regatta was Toby Clark from the Competition Jet Class.
According to race organizer, Mark Moyle, a total of five of the Burley course records were broken over the weekend and Toby Clark was the fastest of them all at 102.22 percent of the record.
- The runner up and winner of the Boise Corporation Idaho Cup was
Ty Newton in the Pro Stock Class with PS/70. He ran at 101 percent of the record.
- Third places and winner of the McCain Foods Governors Cup, at 100.10 percent of the record was from the Cracker Box Class. This went to Scott Schatz.
The following comments are from me and the information presented here is not official news, it is all from my memory or what I heard from the announcer over the PA system.
There were a total of 12 Super Stock boats, 6 K –Boats and 7- pro-stock boats that took part at the Burley race this past weekend. We had a team that traveled all the way from Maryland. They had been to the Burley race last year and loved it so much they are planning to make this a yearly race that they put on their schedule. We that have been blessed to go to Burley over the years already know that it’s that beautiful of a place to race. All in all, we could not have asked for any nicer weather or water conditions for this year’s race. Mother Nature must really love Burley, and her fans.
Hopefully, someone else might have some more detailed or more accurate notes of the race and would be willing to send them to me of how each day’s races went and I can post an update later. All I can report is the highlights as I seen it, and how my memory serves me. I was very busy helping to prepare two boats for competition, taking care of some of our grandchildren and a grumpy husband/crew chief, (just kidding) Any details I might leave out or wrong info, please forgive me. I am doing the best that I can from memory to give some form of a report for those of you who were not lucky enough to have been there in person.
For those who been around this sport for a long time like my husband, there was an extra special treat this Burley race weekend. In the flat bottom ranks we were honored this year with some of the sports long time legends. On the ramp either watching or in two cases still driving, there were drivers like Julian Pettingill, Paul Grichar, the two Georges, “Woods and Nordling” Gordie Jennings Jr and Duff Daily What a treat it was to see these guys and hear them share their stories of some of the great races they had at Burley over the past 30 plus years. It is just a shame that we could not get them all together for some photos or a heat…
Friday night the SS shoot out featured the return of the great Gordy Jennings Jr in the SS-80 who then showed the crowd and also the SS field that he still has what it takes to school everyone in the first turn. WOW…. was that a crowd pleaser, Gord showed us all how well he and the SS-80 can turn. A certain member of our crew is still shaking and talking about it..
Another crowd pleaser took place in the Super Stock final on Saturday. A three boat wide battle went on for four laps vying for the second place spot, which was not decided until the last quarter of the last lap, with 2nd going to Hal Jones at the wire in the SS 501 boat. The crowd was on their feet cheering, with what looked to be a photo finish. It looked like less than a quarter boat length decided the 3rd and 4th spot. Third was the SS 8 driven by Mike Darner and fourth going to the SS 80 with the owner Dave Rankin returning to the driver’s seat and doing an awesome job. Tony Scarlata took first place in this Saturday’s final, but was not that far ahead of the other three boats that all had to battle for their finishing spots.
The good thing this year was that no one on the beach or in the pits was ever really sure how the final points total for the weekend would shake out because there were so many changes in who won the qualifying heats and then the finals. This is the way all SS racing should be with the races really close and the outcome not decided until the checkered flag drops. The crowd really seemed to love the excitement that these close racing heats offered, so... good job race teams.
Next SSRA race is the first weekend of August, in Long Beach, so get your hotel rooms booked. Come and see in person the excitement our boat race teams put on. There is nothing like the sound of the engines on the water at full throttle; and the smell of race fuel.
A side note…congratulation is in order to Skip and Denise Tuttle (the SS 711 boat) on the birth of their baby daughter. They brought their daughter to the race, so she was the youngest race fan at the race at 10 days old…she is an adorable little baby girl. Thank goodness she got her looks from her mommy, just kidding Skip.
See you all in Long Beach
Posted by karen on Monday, June 30 @ 21:42:23 PDT (2025 reads)
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2008 IHBA Nitro Nationals - SSRA Red Bluff Report
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Attached is a race report of the 2008 IHBA Nitro Nationals - SSRA Red Bluff from Tom Timm at Spect8foto.com.
The 2008 Super Stock Racing Association season officially kicked off over the weekend of Memorial Day at Lake Red Bluff in Northern California. Many of the race teams towed their machines to downtown Red Bluff for the Friday night Palomino Room sponsored show n shine. Talk about an excellent place to show off your race machine to the fans! It wasn’t until the following weekend however that the SSRA race teams got to get their machines wet for some circle boat race action. Eight race teams were on hand over Memorial Weekend however only five of the teams were able to make it back for the postponed race. The five teams on hand put together a bunch of exiting heats as each of the five drivers raced hard up and down the short Red Bluff race course. It was another excellent weekend of Super Stock racing that was dominated by the SS80 team with Dave Bryant at the controls.
The five race teams began their second weekend by getting some time on the water very early Saturday morning for some testing. The teams on hand included the Dave Rankin owned SS80 Wild Child team with Dave Bryant doing the driving. Hal Jones was behind the wheel of the Ray Pauli owned SS501 Pegasus machine. Skip Tuttle made his return to the SS ranks after quite a few races in the seat of his Kryptonite SS711 entry. Mike Darner made the tow from Arizona to compete in his SS8 Mango Madness ride. And making his return to the circle boat wars was Tony Scarlata who suffered serious injuries in an extremely hard crash at a race in March at Lake Ming. Scarlata was once again teamed with Jeff Brochheuser and the Loud n Proud SS68 team.
In the first heat on Saturday Hal would get the inside lane with Dave in lane two, Mike in lane three, and Tony was on the outside as Skip had trouble with his machine before the flag dropped. As the machines raced up the back stretch to take the flag start both Dave and Mike were side by side but it was Tony in the outside lane that was ahead as Scotty dropped the flag. Dave was the first to get to and come out of the turn as Hal fought for second with Mike and Tony. As the foursome raced up the front stretch in front of the huge Red Bluff crowd Dave would take the lead by a couple boat lengths. Behind him Tony was slightly out in front of both Mike and Hal. Skip would get his machine fired up and take the start where he was about a half lap down. As the race wore on Dave had a good sized lead over Hal who also had a good sized lead over Mike and it looked like the SS80 machine was going to take yet another heat win. As the heat wrapped up both Dave and Tony had to be towed back to the out ramp as they broke on the course and the winner of the first heat would be Hal with Mike coming in second.
As the race teams started into their parade lap for the Saturday final Skip once again had some trouble getting his machine fired up. This time however he did get going and into his lane position so he could take the start flag with the group. The lane draws for the final saw Dave in lane one, Mike in lane two, Skip in lane three, Tony in lane four, and Hal started from the outside. As the teams charged hard to the start line they were all within one boat length of each other for an excellent start. Dave made another text book turn and could be seen out in front with a slight lead as the pack came out of the turn in real good fashion. Skip looked to be the closest to Dave as Mike was sandwiched in between the two right on Dave’s transom. As the teams race up the front stretch in front of the very attentive crowd Dave would take the lead but not by much as Skip was up for the chase. Dave could clearly be seen with the lead coming out of the second turn as Mike and Hal were all bunched up together pretty close. Tony cut the turn a little too tight and actually hooked onto one of the course buoys and he dragged it for half a straight away. With Dave still leading Hal was able to get around Skip on the outside in the first turn of lap two. Mike was also trying to put a move on Skip as he was pushing hard on the inside as he came out of the second turn on lap two. From there on out Skip and Mike would battle deck to deck for third place as Dave easily drove to the win and Hal finished in second. It was an extremely close photo finish and it was so close that I could not tell you who took third place. Skip and Mike put on an awesome race for the Red Bluff crowd.
The lane assignments for the first heat on Sunday morning showed Dave in lane one, Hal in two, Tony in three, Skip in four, and Mike in lane five. As Dave and Hal came out of the first turn it almost looked like they were going to bump into one another and Dave whipped the steering wheel in the Wild Child machine to get closer to the very inside of the race course. This opened the door a little for Hal and he and Tony challenged Dave for the lead as the three machines started up the straight away. Dave hammered the throttle in the 80 machine and the Pfaff powered entry drove away from the pack up the straight. As the group came out of turn two Hal was in second and Skip looked to be in third ahead of Tony and Mike. Dave would open up about a six to seven boat length lead as he and Hal finished their second lap. Skip continued in third place and Tony was holding off Mike for fourth. At the completion of three laps Dave continued to increase his lead with Hal in second and Skip in third. Mike was able to get around Tony as the two came around the second turn on lap three. The finishing order for the heat showed Dave in first, Hal second, Skip third, Mike in fourth, and Tony finished in fifth place.
With the weekend coming to a close the final heat of Super Stockers took place late Sunday afternoon. Mike began the heat in lane five with Skip in lane four, Tony in lane three, Hal in lane two, and Dave once again started from the inside lane. As the five racers came out of the turn and began to charge up the straight away it was the inside machines that were slightly staggered ahead of each other in a close battle. The big power in the 80 machine was too much as Dave began his march to distance himself from the crowd. With one lap in the books Dave led and Hal was trying to catch him in second place. As the racers closed in on the completion of lap two Skip was in third and being chased by Tony who was definitely taking a much more cautious approach making some very wide turns in the Loud n Proud machine. Tony and Mike had a good battle going for fourth place as Mike made really tight turns and Tony swung wide. As the checkered flag came out it was Dave getting the win and Hal taking second place. Skip would finish the Sunday main in third place and Mike would finish ahead of Tony in fourth place.
Just when you thought the circle boat race action was complete the Red Bluff fans got a little bonus. If you follow some of the internet banter you might have seen the bench racing between Tony and the Dave’s with Dave Rankin and Tony talking about a K5 versus SS80 match up. Low and behold the K5 and SS80 machines were on the race course and off Tony and Dave went. At last years event Dave Bryant shoed the 80 machine to the win over Tony in the K5. The outcome at the 2008 Nitro Nationals would be the same as Dave beat Tony in an exciting four lap heat. For a couple of laps Tony could catch and get out in front of Dave heading into the turn with Dave taking the inside lane. Dave however made up enough ground in the turn that he would put a bunch of distance between himself and Tony as the two hammered the throttle heading down the straights. On the third lap Tony took a couple hops coming out of the turn two and that was it as there was no way that he could make up the distance between he and Dave and Dave would take the huge grudge match win.
Thanks Tom for your report update.
The Next Race is Burley the weekend of June 27 - June 29.
Look forward to another great race.
Posted by karen on Friday, June 06 @ 01:25:41 PDT (2039 reads)
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2008 SSRA Officers & Board
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2008 SRRA Officers:
President - Chris Kenner
VP - Greg Shirley
Secretary –
Treasurer - Denise Tuttle
2008 SSRA Board of Directors:
Ray Pauli
Mike Darner
Dave Rankin
Jeff Brochheuser
Skip Tuttle
Posted by karen on Monday, April 21 @ 02:16:25 PDT (2007 reads)
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SSRA NEEDS YOU !!!!!
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Ladies and Gentlemen..
We are putting out a plea for all to respond to this update.
Please send us your current team bio and any information that could improve our communication lines between everyone.
We need to hear from you... So please take a minute and send your team news and a updated bio and any information that we could use to help the SSRA grow ASAP.
Send your info to dkloveless@gmail.com Attn: SSRA Website
Posted by karen on Thursday, April 10 @ 17:10:11 PDT (2192 reads)
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