OPGP viability???
 

i agree with the contents of this article. discuss.........

http://speedonthewater.com/in-the-ne...e-is-deafening

Drag racing, Offshore Boats, throw in a little support for terrorism and now the latest.... on to Snowmobile Racing I understand he's going to have an International Sno-Cross Gran Prix in Qatar this year :D

Lay down with dogs..... get up with fleas

It was just a matter of time. Thank Matt for bringing it to the surface. The information was very slow coming and conflicting at times.

Am I missing something? Last I was told they are still putting on a race in Sarasota with large purse to be paid out at the site. What is wrong with that?

Hopefully they will still run the Qatar Cup in 2016. I heard it was a bucket list event.

Its a cycle every 3 or 4 yrs history repeats its self.

[QUOTE=TYPHOON;4303778]Am I missing something? Last I was told they are still putting on a race in Sarasota with large purse to be paid out at the site. What is wrong with that?[/QUOTE

Randy I don't think anyone is talking about Sarasota lol. Thats a whole nother issue....!

Money, Money, Money! Randy your just a fu(king whore!

even since trulio published it, information has remained a vacuum. based on the silence, and nebulous answers by leadership, it appears this will be a sarasoata 2015 only event. if that holds true, what happens to sota in 2016? does lucy go in pursuit of JC/SBI after giving OPGP dibs in 15?

I can't remember how long the Marathon SBI contract was. Unless it's a credible org like OPA or SBI that Sarasota chooses, well... this happens. Hopefully poor choices of the past don't end up hurting the charity in the future.

"The build it and they will come" business model is not going to work. Its been tried how many times now? Big tents, and no boats is a bad show. A bad show is much worse than no show. Boat racers are a pretty loyal bunch. Florida is cover as the Northeast. Time to think outside the box instead of doing the same thing over, and over again.

Do a Winter series, do an Endurance series, just do something different than a big tent and prize money.

And that is exactly what most fear. The charity and proceeds may be at risk due to the selection process that took place for 15.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]541029[/ATTACH]....

There,s always OSS .Arent They are still in the game ?

Come on guys lets show some respect and quit beating a dead horse, well in this case a dead camel.... Lets all have a moment of silence for OSS part 2, they came in with high hopes, lots of promised money and sooo much promised professionalism, then couldnt get out of the gate. RIP OSS part 2, prayers and thoughts go out to you

Winter series, Funny we were thinking of doing a couple races here in Las Vegas, Phoenix, and San Diego with our boats in the winter of 2017... Maybe something IROC style that would be a break from winter and step on no one's toes. Just a thought. mayber I am not the only crazy one. #yearroundracingaddict

That is some interesting damn reading there.

That should of been thought about a long time ago. To late now the horse is out of the barn.

SBI has a 3 yr contract with Marathon.

I reserved rooms in Marathon and Sarasota long ago. I will choose at the last moment.

I love the Sarasota venue, and it's much more spectator friendly, but I have a soft-spot for Marathon as I won my very first race there in 2004. I hope that the eventual decision is tough do to the boat counts and show.

[QUOTEoops got bad warning to back off . mod?

That's hilarious.

I have nothing to add to my commentary, but I am kind of mystified at those who object to any new organization as a "splinter" group.

How do you think SBI started?

No dog in the fight—clearly, Jason Johnson and I put in a lot of time and effort covering the SBI circuit and will continue that coverage throughout the 2015 and the foreseeable future—just a point regarding "history." In SBI's case, the split turned out to be successful. But there are those, especially in in the loyal APBA contingent, who would argue that the split divided the sport. If we're going to talk history, we should have some knowledge of it.

Wasn't me.

As for your comments: I ALWAYS offer my room reservations up to OSO members before I ever cancel. Also, since my rooms are at the HYATT, at both pit locations, I am sure they will not lose any revenue. My guess is that if I cancel they will resell It for far more than my advanced rate.

On top of that the hotels have been earning interest on my prepaid rate for about 7-8 months at this time.

Not to mention that just about every hotel on the planet has a thing called a "cancellation policy," usually from 48 to 72 hours. If the hotel isn't worried, about it, I'm not sure why anyone else should be.

Race promoters have been dealing with these problems for many years. They have to chose a side be it SBI or ABPA then jump thru all the hoops each requires to have a race. Then there are the racers how without them you have nothing. So again the race producer has to cater to them with prize money, discounted rooms, parties with band and food. Then you have TV and Radio spots to promote getting people to come watch. All this is done by a small group of people who are racers or love racing. The out of pocket expenses for these people is enormous. So when a group with money comes in a says we can fully fund you if you do this or that these promoters jump on the wagon and go thinking this will be the greatest thing ever. Been there done that. It costs 10's of thousands of dollars just to get a race off the ground. Then another 10's of thousands to pull it off let alone a whole series.

The SBI and APBA group get paid to do this. The small groups like OPA and what used to be the GLSCS did it out of their own pockets to enjoy there sport always keeping the interest of the racers first and the money second. I know this because I was President of the GLSCS for 3 years and on the board for 10. I haven't been involved in any offshore racing for almost 8 years now and sorely miss it. But I know there is only one way to be involved. As a racer only or as an official which is almost as expensive as racing. I wish everyone the best. and to those who are throwing stones at promoters or races, don't unless you walk a mile in there shoes.

Randy is a stand up guy who supports his SVL class and the sport. Out of his own pocket if I'm correct.

You have been out of it for 8 years? Couple things have changed. APBA has almost nothing to do with offshore racing except for riding on OPA's coat tails. OPA is NOT a small group. It is one of only two credible race organizations. The only thing that haven't changed is Randy is still only out for himself and not the sport.

not worth it

Day one you were sucking up to me like you do with all the new racers. Explaining to me how Steve and George have no kids and lots of money and we need to stick together to do what's best for us. That's when I realized what you were about. I complain when I don't get what I'm entitled to, like being included on class meetings and votes. You kept Steve, Steve and my self out of a class vote because you didn't want the new racers to hear what we had to say because it wasn't in your best interest. I also complain when I'm told I can run with SVL only to be told on race morning that I cant. That's because you were a little ***** and got together with your club members and complained to the ORG. Same thing you did to George and Steve years ago. I may be jealous of some racers but definitely not you.

I am not sure APBA has been out of offshore. They have be n part of p1 for the last 5 years. They just recently joins with OPA. P1/APBA count each race as a separate race so on any weekend they run they run 4 races. As that up and they prob put on just as many as anyone else.

Second I have raced with randy since the 1999 in the factory 1 class. Always a stand up guy. Always. He always wanted parity. Now that everyone can basically run what ya brung it sucks. Stick with one motor. Period. Make it a 8.2 Mercury. Might be a little slower but the parity would be awesome. Wouldn't be check book racing. Would sound the same and be a whole lot cheaper. Some guys just done get it. When it was f1 and f2 look how many boats there were. Those 2 classes where more than total at coca this weekend. If you want to find out if you can really drive. Go out and race in a class where everyone has same boat, motor and prop. A lot of guys would get their big egos in check. Guess that's why they don't give it a shot.

Btw I won a world championship in SbI In 99. Tore me down and I was legal. Won all 3 races. I am not a keyboard cowboy.

I agree Warlock. I raced F1 against Randy and had a blast. I remember 21-27 boats in St. Pete in 01 or 02. I also raced F2 on the west coast. Those were days of great racing.

Randy hit up my inbox its .clear

The Adrl article sure is eye opening

Things change quickly.

Which boat and class?

Don't want to be dragged down to his level

wow, I thought all the whining was to happen over the winter not at the opening weekend of offshore racing.

I'm sure you explained everything. Then deleted it. I'll see you around Randy. Come by my pits for a beer.

:QUOTE=Matt Trulio;4305068]Not to mention that just about every hotel on the planet has a thing called a "cancellation policy," usually from 48 to 72 hours. If the hotel isn't worried, about it, I'm not sure why anyone else should be.[/QUOTE
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