Aqua Banshee

Nothing is going to change in offshore till John Carbonell is no longer promoting races.

phragle

iTrader: (3)

Should we start a pool on what the next racing org's letters are going to be???

Rules
1. 3 or 4 letters per entry
2. you do not need to accurately guess the name of the new org, just the letters...
3. The new org has to claim to have offshore races, but in reality never has a race that goes further than 2 miles from shore.

AB From Windsor

I don't think Offshore Powerboat Racing can Survive another Circuit. Forget about the same old story that "this is not Offshore Powerboat Racing" on a 5 mile circle course on a lake or on a river, it is not like racing in the wide open Ocean with Monster swells, its past history and times have changed and most realize that fact with the exception of a hand full who still can't let go of the past. On the other hand their are those who continue to argue who can see the "Offshore Raceboats" racing in the ocean unless you are the racer or it is Televised, NO ONE, you see them leaving and then coming back and thats it. When the "Offshore Powerboats" race on the pond, lake or river the spectators get to see them and the 5 mile race course let's them see continuious race action rather then a couple of times seeing the boats leave and return but it is the same old story those who continue to dream of the good old days of Offshore Powerboat Racing and those who like the new 5 mile circular race course. I respect all those who had raced back then and had that experience but like I said, times change. As for boat counts I believe that Poker Run boats took many potential racers away and many of todays Poker Run boats could easily race in the top Cat Classes of Offshore Powerboat racing, like I said times have changed. What I would like to see is one organization racing together at a number of select race sites. Sorry but thats my 2 cents.

TYPHOON

If you go as a fan to watch boats flying across the water wouldn't you want to see them? At race sites people are always asking where is the best place to "watch" the race. No one has ever asked me where is the best place to only see the boats a couple of times all day LOL

F1-00 Racing

iTrader: (1)

I wholeheartedly agree with Randy and Andy.... I'll take it a step further and back it up with a simple fact. Over the past 10 years a gentleman has attempted to produce a "Around Long Island" race... Dont get me wrong, 30-40 teams express interest but when it boils down to brass tax, 3-5 show up and maybe 1 finishes. I saw some pictures of the few boats that ran, however I never saw any pics of the fans along the route. While I am very respective of history and love to know where we come from, I hear about how great it was and to bring it back, just off this example, seems our sport would be going backwards instead of forward due to the total lack of interest...

Our sport can NOT survive another organization, point blank. Due to economic variables and leadership, our sport has dwindled to low numbers and 2 of the groups are now targeting the same small group of racers. Its one thing if you divide 200 boats in half, but to divide 40 racers down to 20 flat out wont work. While many fault JC, we must respect the fact that he came in with a business plan and has lasted over 30 years as many with a ton of money have tried and failed. Is JC the individual that can bring the sport forward and to new higher levels? No, but we should take notes of such things like a paid staff, EVERYTHING is in black and white(no grey areas) Spec has tech, etc these all worked and can easily be utilized as a foundation for someone to bring it to the new heights. We are not NASCAR, but there are so many things that have worked and failed over there that can be taken over here on the business side. The "Club" mentality has to be taken out to the garbage, rule books followed to a tee(and not following it with the el presidente can over rule anything stated at his/her discretion rule), non paying race sites, i mean really? They probably do more damage to our sport than anything, only 2nd to us the actual racers and our egoes.

BenPerfected

....some things never change.

f_inscreenname

I have never raced but I have been into the history for a while now. There is a few things I don't understand. like;
Why cant there be a happy medium?
The new courses are to short and the old ones were to long. Sprint races in these big boat suck imho. Why not make it a single race and have a longer course that actually goes out a few miles but maybe not as far out that you would need a passport and then they can make few passes by the grandstands? Someone mentioned Nascar. You can follow their races online and they have all kinds off stuff for the phone-a-holics of today. They have recetrax. Tells you where any car is on the track, what position it is in, lap times, distance to leader, etc, etc. Hell for a couple bucks you can get scanner talk and in car camera of your choice. They (off shore racing) need to team up with one of the tech companies so they can have something like that. When they get out of sight you flip open your laptop or tablet and watch from the cockpit of your favorite boat. Also something to think about when being negative about longer courses. The Baja 500 is not on a short course and seems to be doing fine. Want people to come have some lesser classes.
Any sport needs a feeder minor league. Have local folks show up with a run what you brung class, classic boats, fishing boat class or even a work boat class. One of the biggest (most boats and people show up to watch) races I have been to was the lobster boat races in Portland Maine. They come (gets them in the door) and see what is there, competition sets in and next year they bring something better. Before you know it the guy with junk is racing a 40' cat. Hell, send the big off shore boats out, run a smaller course race of one of the lesser classes, clean up and let them pass, repeat. Now you can let the big boat stretch their legs and still have entertainment for the stands while they are gone.
Also a thought would be that they need to hook up with a show group like the ACBS and have a boat show going at the same time. Also gives people something to do when the race is not in sight.

klaatutooyou

As the superboats got faster ,attrition set in.


Most newer superboats are still not able to run those old courses with current power and come close to finishi.( A few have )

insurance also plays a major role.

sbracing

The sport of offshore racing is a quagmire of difference of opinion. The only issue that everyone agrees on is that they are boats and they race on water. Beyond that, we disagree on what boats and what water right from the start.


The one comment that always comes up is "We're going to be the next NASCAR". Anyone who says that doesn't have a grasp of the sport. Offshore racing doesn't have anything in common with NASCAR. No ticket sales at events, no manufacturer involvement, no national circuit, no corporate sponsors, no viable tv. That's just for starters. The best offshore could do is look at NHRA. A few national classes and everyone else sportsman.

The reality is offshore has always been participant driven. We as participants pay the bills. Yes there is some local sponsorship that offsets it, but until someone can move it out of participant driven, not much will change.

Top Banana

I agree with Stan. For the guys that want to race in the open ocean, start a new organization and recreate the old courses all over the country.

As Stan suggested, create a few classes from smaller boats to larger, so people can learn on smaller boats and then move up to faster equipment.

The groups that put on these races now are not interested in racing on open ocean waters, period. Forget about conflicts with these groups on dates etc.

No disrespect for the racers in the other groups, just as we have no disrespect for Unlimited hydroplane racers or Jersey Skiff racers. What they do is not ocean racing .......and if you don't want to do what they do....... stop and find an ocean race.

Below is a photo that totally describes what real open ocean racing is like. If you want a challenge and you want to test yourself with navigation and keeping a boat moving towards a finish line way out of sight of land.....try it before you diss it.