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Future Safety Suggestion - Shorten the Shootout Courses

Old 10-17-2016, 08:08 PM
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Originally Posted by Jupiter Sunsation
Fiore's crash was at similar speeds, very similar aerial launch and still had the same result with a canopy and additional safety measures in place.

I have never gone these speeds in anything except an airplane! I think as a participant of these races/events you need to accept the risk yourself and live your life as you see fit. I don't see the need to run 150+ in a boat (or car but I have in the past), I don't skydive (I have in the past) but I certainly don't want to stop others if they want to. I'm not pressing my will onto others so they can be safer as it is their choice to run their boat the way they want.

On the safety concern, lets say they are more protected but end up paralyzed from the neck down as a result of the accident. Is that better than being dead for these guys? I had an uncle that had a pretty cool life. Raced Porsches, rode Harleys for years (not a biker type guy but a guy that owned a chain of drycleaners!), he rode bikes from New England to Sturgis then on to Southern California. He rode Harleys on the autobahn in Germany! Guy fell off a porch (railing was dry rotted) while taking out the garbage, fell about 15 ft. Broke his neck in 3 places, he stayed alive for about 12 hours (with machines). It was worse than the Christopher Reeve injury, his living will stated......"Disconnect" all artificial life support methods in the event of a vegetative state/paralysis etc. For him, living like Christopher Reeve wasn't living and he died at age 56. The plug got pulled and he lived about 3 minutes.
Don't forget that in reality the canopy in that accident did a pretty good job...a 46 foot boat landed on it's head from 50 feet in the air at 150mph..I get it, Mike isnt here anymore, But that wasn't from impact from the accident, it was an unfortunate circumstance at the hospital, and the driver is still with us. Cat Can Do blew over at a kilo run a few years ago....canopy boat...both still here with us. I get it, there's no way to make any of this perfectly safe, but why not try and make it as good as we can? Safety measures from 1985-1995 leaped forward....then kinda just stopped...problem is, the speeds didnt.
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Old 10-17-2016, 08:09 PM
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Originally Posted by Jupiter Sunsation
How many people are still trying to beat Ken Warby's record (including Ken himself and his son!)......
It wont be in a open canopy boat though will it? Nor on a random weekend...and trust me, "Let's not do this today" will absolutely be an option.


Before anyone takes this and twists it into a form of me trying to be disrespectful, I have the utmost respect for the gentleman lost this past weekend and their hobby is still the coolest in the world. I can't imagine the pain their families are going and I'll always be a massive Skater supporter, I just hope after a particularly tragic summer we can finally make some moves to make this sport safer.

Last edited by TeamSaris; 10-17-2016 at 08:24 PM.
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Old 10-17-2016, 08:35 PM
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Originally Posted by TeamSaris
Don't forget that in reality the canopy in that accident did a pretty good job...a 46 foot boat landed on it's head from 50 feet in the air at 150mph..I get it, Mike isnt here anymore, But that wasn't from impact from the accident, it was an unfortunate circumstance at the hospital, and the driver is still with us. Cat Can Do blew over at a kilo run a few years ago....canopy boat...both still here with us. I get it, there's no way to make any of this perfectly safe, but why not try and make it as good as we can? Safety measures from 1985-1995 leaped forward....then kinda just stopped...problem is, the speeds didnt.
I would agree 100% with your post but also consider the canopy isn't a fool proof solution as we saw in Key West a couple years back..... You are correct on safety improvements stopping 20 years ago and the speeds jumped about 50%+
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Old 10-17-2016, 08:44 PM
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Originally Posted by Bowtiepower00
I agree with the last couple of posts, shootout course length is irrelevant. These cats are made to trap air and fly, and at speeds approaching and in some cases exceeding 200mph, all of the safety systems in the world are not going to prevent these boats from going airborne. They already do that at just about any speed given the right conditions. The safest solution I see, although a large amount of risk would still be involved, is a return to offshore racing roots, where 40'+ deep vees battled head to head in true offshore conditions, like they used to do in offshore racings heyday. Throw in some helo coverage and I think it could be a success in providing some needed exposure to the sport.
Of course it would limit speeds, at least for these runs. If a boat does 160mph in a mile run(I don't know how long these courses are), then shortening the course to to a half mile or 3/4 of a mile is going to reduce speeds.

There isn't going to be a "one size fits all" answer for this.

As far as racing offshore. I agree but most of the guys doing these runs aren't interested.
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Old 10-17-2016, 08:51 PM
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Originally Posted by TeamSaris
if you want the ultimate thrill and consider yourself a competitive guy who has to be the one to beat, buy a raceboat, join OPA or SBI. Beat Jay Muller. Beat Johnny Tomlinson. Beat Peter Meyer. Hell, beat me.
Not getting into the safety, design and speed stuff here.. BUT.. Would love to beat yaaa.. even better... love to run against yaaa. (or anyone else for that matter) but my racing days ended in the mid 80's. Not that I would not love to do it again, but $'s and a F'up back somewhat makes it a bit hard. But I do dream about it often. And If things were right or different for me and get back to racing...no safety laws, no designs, no risk would stop me doing the best I could, push the envelope way passed it's edge take the risk that comes with it and go for broke. I done tons of poker runs and races. I slow down not for lack of balls or what one might think or say. I slow down when it's the right think to do. What's right? when it's right? and I'm not always right.. but that's the big question. I have no answer to it. I ran 16' speed boats to the point I thought it would take off, flip or fall apart. ALONE. I ran bigger boats to the point of craziness, ALONE. I slow down,, limit my risk when others are involved. Even if he/her may be my "racing partner". I will risk my life, and I live on the adrenaline rush doing it. I won't risk some one else. My definition of right and just my .02 IMHO.

Last edited by PARADOX; 10-17-2016 at 08:53 PM.
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Old 10-17-2016, 08:56 PM
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Originally Posted by Jupiter Sunsation
I would agree 100% with your post but also consider the canopy isn't a fool proof solution as we saw in Key West a couple years back..... You are correct on safety improvements stopping 20 years ago and the speeds jumped about 50%+
We're on the same page
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Old 10-17-2016, 09:03 PM
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First off I truly feel for the families of these drivers and all the previous drivers who have passed in these horrific crashes. These boats at these speeds are just asking for trouble and all who do it know the risks. I am a lifelong boat in recreational and performance. All those who want to over analyze calling it "drag boats" or not by what they call rules or discrepancies is BS. These large cats at these speeds in flat water.....oversize drag boats is exactly what they are! Offshore cats in the ocean were meant to run I flatter ocean for speed when they could beat the Vs in flatter water and could run what, 120,130 in the flats and people were dying then pushing the limits, it's going to happen. Did anyone watch that video in Mayland or the OL cat at LOTO flip a couple hundred feet or whatever in the Fkn air
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Old 10-17-2016, 09:05 PM
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Time to wake up
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