Old Flight Marine - "Top Cat"
 

Does anyone remember this old Flight Marine called "Top Cat"? This is the first boat that I ever raced in back in 1988. I lived in North Carolina at the time. The registration on the boat was from New Hampshire.

Brownie, I would have to believe that you would know the most about it.

Thanks, Ben Hedrick

thats it a dead race boat post.......I know h20boater would remember this one.......if you are serious about buying it back, theses guys can find.............

Top Cat
 

Ben, Did Mike Alesse throttle the boat with you? I remember the boat in the NPBA races in Greenwhich, Conn. Didn't one the drives rip off in one race? Keep the pic's comin' ! Dave

Dave,
When I raced it, it wasn't painted as "Top Cat", it was painted different and a guy by that name of Fran Geniesse drove it and I throttled it. We were based in NC out of Larry Good's shop, who Larry is Fountain's x-VP. I will dig up some more pictures of it with the different paint job. It was repainted white with splash blue, teal & pink down the front. No comments on the paint scheme; it was the late 80's and I didn't choose the graphics. Mike Alesse might have throttled it prior to me. I do know that it was raced up north somewhere. It had NH registration on it, but I don't know who owned it at that time and I remember that it did have a NPBA sticker on it. I was told also, that it was involved in a "shooting" onetime while leaving a bar or dock and we did find what looked like holes in the transom. I guess someone pissed someone else off...

Thanks, Ben

awesome boat, well kept up

That is the original "MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM", Mike Whitmire's original P-class raceboat.

Brownie:

Was that the boat that had the unfortunate accident on the Intracoastal one night?

T2x

Negatory. That was a customer's boat (and the end of the company).

WOW! Brownie, We're gonna need details on that one...
Have you got any pics of it as MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM? I will scan pictures of what it looked like after it got repainted, when we ran D Class. It wasn't very nice looking though as I really thought that it looked great as Top Cat.

Thanks for the information. Ben

Also, I saw Mike Whitmire's M Class raceboat on HORBA and it looked like a Flight Marine Cat too, but the drivers pods were on the outside like Sheer Terror, not in the center as a sit down boat. Maybe it was Sheer Terror repainted as MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. I couldn't tell from the picture on the HORBA website.

I found this in a 1980 Powerboat Magazine. ??

That's the picture I saw too. See how the crew is standing up outside over the sponsons? Our Flight Marine was a center driven seat down style boat. Now, it could be the same boat but had its cockpit redesigned... I don't know. Maybe Whitmire's had more than one Flight Marine too.

Does anyone know how many Flight Marines were ever built?

Thanks, Ben

There is one on Harsens island in Mi. near San soucie Has not seen the water in years it has side cockpits and old 3.4 300 mercs on it.
next time I am over there I will take some pic's.


Spark

[QUOTE=ViciousOne;2058646]There is one on Harsens island in Mi. near San soucie Has not seen the water in years it has side cockpits and old 3.4 300 mercs on it.
next time I am over there I will take some pic's.

Spark,, is that the one with the drive's that move up and down, like a jack plate,, but different , its one of a kind, been up their for at least 15 years ????????

Mark, Thats the one ! That jack plate works just like the stainless marine porta jack it goes up and out. I guess it used to sit around Rosses shop way back before I was even there. Then he sold it to one of his neibors on the island.

Spark

wow..when i was like 12 i saw that boat at the offshore boat race out of marina bay in boston. I thought it was so funny that it said the cats ass on the "ass " of the boat. The only other boats i remember from the races those 2 or 3 years were "jesse james" and "barrys moova" Seeing topcat and that phrase really brought back memories.

Brownie

Wasn't " Sheer Terror " a Flight Marine Cat ?

Steve

Yes, Steve - it was !

PHIL

If I recall correctly, back in the late 80's Donzi and Arwin Marine (I think) co-ventured a Flight Cat powered with twin turbines, it was black, did over 100 MPH with 8 of us on board! I was lucky enough to get a ride in it when they had it at South Seas Plantation one time. It was supposed to be in the Mississippi race that year. Anyone recall this boat? I have pictures I could try to scan....

Thanks Phil....I thought it was......

Yup! My dad raced it with Bob

I bought the truck from Bobby. Here it is when I brought it home to Jersey and after I took the writing off.

LS

that boat was a 30 chris cat, black and silver. i was in that boat several times with ted mcintyre from M T T fame. with arwin and arfons and ted. i ran that boat several times with ted in sarasota

:cool: :cool: :cool:

I'll have to dig out my pics of the boat and look again. I could have sworn they called it a Flight Cat. I had the opportunity to talk with one of the crew when they were at South Seas, he also said the boat was going to be or had run the Mississippi River Race that year, he mentioned Don Johnson was participating. Did that ever come to pass? Do you know what ever became of the boat?

Don Johnson was with Wellcraft in those days. It was probably an Excalibur.

My bad. Yes, Johnson was running a Wellcraft, I meant to ask if the boat (the turbine one) ever saw the race and what the outcome was.

no it didnt.
was later ran with a warlock cat

Top Cat
 

Hi Ben, a friend of mine from Waltham Ma has that boat, well he did as of 12 years ago. Not sure if he still has it. Have been in the boat up in Mass. Mike

From the 1983 Key West World Champ programme - Bob Sheer's Sheer Terror Flight Marine cat.

The One On The Inter Coastal That Had The Accident Was Night Stalker With Al Feldman And Mike Whitmire In It.

Mike,
You mean the boat in the picture that I raced? Where?

Ben

Info
 

do you have any more information or pictures of Mike Whitmire and The Night Stalker

I own that Flight Marine cat now if you're interested in it. It's been completely restored and will be for sale soon.

Catamaran
 

Tho one I have ie a Stalker

Post some pictures of it please, you may need to get your post count up to 10 Post first for the forum to allow you to post pictures

Old Flight Marine "Top Cat"
 

Also of interest...I think it was the Bass player from Granicus posted on the old board and said that there was gonna be a new Granicus release. Im assuming old recordings.

I'll post pics,as soon as I get my post count high enough to do that