This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

As I stated this is only an opinion so take it as such.

Lets sit back a minute and process all of what is happening in the ongoing APBA saga. Have any of you thought about the rumour that LLC is in financial trouble and took forever to pay out Gino due to the birth of ORL. Mr Allweiss is a smart, sucessful, and wealthy LAWYER. The smart business move for him would be to bankrupt LLC and go forward with ORL. I stupidly paid my 2004 fees to LLC and not directly to Detroit. So I will probally never see my membership card or heck since Mr Allweiss tryed to put a gag order on the F1's, I will probally be sent a letter stating that I am banned.

As I have stated from the beginning, I just want to race, I have proven such, but I am tired of spending and spending and not seeing a return. We are supposedly labeled as "Professionals" and to bring up something that was stated in a previous thread, professionals are paid.

What is a shame is that Robyn and Gary have put together one hell of a venue and they have to put up with this childessness and I am not refering to the racers. There has been contraversy with APBA LLC since its inception and the racers have and will continue to be the buzzard in the Bugs Bunny cartoon and keep on opening up their wallets and say "OK" I really wish I could go to OB but with there not being payout I'll just have to wait until next August, that is if I even to continue to race because I am so disgusted with what is going on right now.

Also everyone brings up how great STARS is and all of that, which they are great, but everyone seems to forget that SBI has a top notch medical staff and so does OPA. I wouldnt get in a race boat if I felt unsecure in case a "what if" situation arises and those who know me. know that I have raced all 3 circuits.

Just out of curiouslty, I am sure most of you have close ties to the manufactuer of your boat, why dont we purchase the motors thru them with minimal markup instead of being forced to buy them thru APBA with a higher markup? Its all about the Benjamins I guess, but I would much rather spend my Benjamins on something productive, not a bottemless pit that shows no chance of a return.

Good luck to all and be safe, and I will state again that this is my opinion so come on peanut gallery take your shots.

Trent....check your mailbox

You want to enjoy yourself !!! See you in Deerfield !!!

SBI NOT PERFECT ACCORDING TO CASH
 

Cash,
You were right about the LLC meltdown. You, Shane and a few others took much heat for your predictions.

But if you have not seen SBI lately, you have not seen SBI at all. There is more improvement every race. Is it perfect yet? No. Can we voice our pinions freely? Yes. can we count on our schedule? Yes. Have we had a significant rule change requiring a major purchase in the past 5 years? No. Does the Boss ask US to vote on any issues regarding our class? Yes. Does the Boss make every decision based on how much he can profit from it? No.

Could we use a few more boats? Sure.................But not many. 50 or so is the goal.

How to make it more fan friendly, I'm not certain. Miller's thread was incredibly insightful. His ideas, like them or not have the best chance of taking it to the next level. SQ

Trent,
I missed the part of Mike A. trying to put the gag order on the F1' s....diD I miss something.

Gino
Yes you did miss something...shame on you...for that you get 2 demerits.
In St Pete.
After we were TOLD that everyone in F1 and 2 will be running new motors next year, we were TOLD to keep quiet about any issues we had with LLC and to stay off the OSO board. Orders not given to any of those who agree with the party line I noticed.
Actually I have a problem with that since last I looked we were in America, and slavery was abolished 200 years ago.
And since no one seems to be forth coming with the truth anywere else, I will continue to voice my opnions and ask questions here.

Dan

The reason there has been no changes in equipment purchases for SBI racing is because there have been basically no weight rules for racing. Running slow? Shed more weight off the boat because there is no scale. Running slow? Use high rev boxes to go faster and MAYBE you'll get caught, like Bankbeaters did. If rules are'nt brought into place soon into SBI, especially in the stock class, SBI will be down to 7-10 boats a race.

Steve,

Well put,and getting better everyday...
See you in a few days.

Frank
Koolhand

Viper One
 

Glad to hear from you. Your kind words are welcome. You are obviously concerned about the future of Offshore and the Stock class in particular. I'm sure I can speak for my classmates when I thank you for your input.

But because WE vote on the changes to our class you will have to talk to US directly. We have had so many different people win races in our class it's hard to determine who is running the super light hull. But we will work on it.

My partner missed our last award presentation. We were having our two day old motors (direct from Mercury with receipts) torn down by the so called nonresistant SBI inspectors.

I'm really glad you brought up the Bankbeaters debacle. That incident brought about so many positive changes where we race. That particular lemon is now lemonade. Most people know this and wish us well, if they race with SBI or not.

SBI's goal is fifty boats. We had fourty at our last race. SBI might not be the answer to all of the problems of Offshore. But we are improving race by race.

We expect a 10 boat field in Stock Class alone next year. I would like to chat with you a bit longer. You seem to be knowledgeable and in touch with the latest news. But I have a race to go to. And I can't wait to get there. I think that's what it's really all about. SQ

[QUOTE]Originally posted by xtremeracingf1
Steve,

Well put,and getting better everyday...
See you in a few days.

Frank
Koolhand [/QUOTE

I'll be at the meeting tomorrow Frank. See you there. SQ

Hey Dan,
I quess it was good I was'nt in that meeting.....well who knows maybe were banned from racing APBA, I could see it now a Disabled Vet in court fighting for he's freedom of speech...I could hear the phone call from GMC....all have to call them and see if we are banned on Monday.......if we are.....you thought I was a pain for what I wrote.....then you would see what business is about.
I'll let you know.......you would have thought my buddy Randy would have told me.....I'm sure him and Mike have been in contact in the last 2 weeks....I was woundering way he is so quite latley.....hey thats one way to win World Championship....get rid of the boat thats been beating him all year......That will get his attentions...Hi Randy

Tearing down the motors is a great step in making the playing field level. However, if everyone is running legal motors and there are boats in your class weighing 4300 pounds and there are boats in your class weighing several hundred pounds less, the playing field becomes very tilted. It should be a really interesting week in Deerfield this week, especially if the water is calm.

Viper,
It seems to work out the lighter boat might have an advantage in the calm water but the heaver boat seem to do alittle beet in the big water. Believe me I'm not as heavey as some of the other F1 and that isnt always a good thing. I've been adding weight all year and the more I add the better the boat handles.Yes I might have lost 1-2 mph but the handling is much better. I dont think the weight is as big a factor as HP. LLC proved that,they made the 525efi boys add weight and they still ran away with he class. Running even hp and one boat weighting alittle doesnt really make that much of a difference. But you are correct we do have to stay on top of it and keep the engine HP close or the same.Great input this is the kind of stuff that helps make changes and possible make the sport better.

Frank
Koolhand

I think that weight plays a much bigger part in low torque outboard motors than it does in higher torque motors. Look at lap times and speeds in all classes as boats burn off fuel and become lighter. Yes in rough water the weight is not as crucial a factor as it is in calm water, but the lighter boats, especially outboards with low torque can get thru the turns alot faster than heavier boats. The whole contention of my post is that SBI needs to make the playing field level before more racers become distruntled that they are'nt competitive and leave the sport. ie Last years Super Cat Limited class.

It sounds to me VIPERONE like you are really pouting about Gary Ballough's new boat. You guys are just lucky there wasn't a regular open cocpit 28' Skater racing this year or he would have S-1 on his boat. A 28' Skater can come in under 3500# and run 118MPH. Besides I think Gary could beat us all in anything. Hey I feel bad too because we want to build a boat and race there too.

Once again I'm not pouting about Gary Balloughs new boat. I'm just basically saying that there needs to be an enforced weight rule for all classes in order to keep everything equal. Failure to maintain equality in a class will kill it. ie. Super Cat Limited.

Well that's why alot of guys went to SBI from APBA in the first place. They didn't like the way APBA was making rules so the wanted the more laxed rules of SBI. This doesn't even come close to comparing to last years fiasco. Gary built a new boat it's light and it's fast . YES this will be a set back because he will be tough to beat. If you are racing agaisnt someone that won't be beat and can't be beat second place ain't ****.

Totally agree. Gary will be the one to beat this week in Deerfield. Can't wait to see how that boat runs.

The topic of this thread is... This is strictly an opinion. It seems that some people have taken my opinion, spent way too much time reading into it and taken it as a personal attack on them. The comments that I have made are just my opinion, nothing more or nothing less. I have NOTHING to gain one way or the other on the way that SBI decides to conduct its business, the out come of its races or otherwise. My comments are just my opinion as a race fan.

That "particular lemon who is now lemonade" I believe just won a world championship.

Your point being.......? The actual quote"that particular lemon is now lemonade". Was in reference to the entire incident not any one person. SQ

well put steve.

Dan,
You're kidding us here, right?
Maybe you should discuss some of the latest developments with your team. Could be some of the reason as to why things went down the tubes.

Comments to F-1, F-2
The rules for APBA offshore next season are the same of this season. If you would have made it to OB. then you would have heard Mike Tomolson say this him self in the drivers meeting. To go back to another topic, yes we're gonna have to keep paying out of our own pockets to race our boats in a sanction. The only way this will ever change is if we get over whos better and all unite as one to race together. No matter wether your SC to One design what it costs the big teams in money it costs the smaller teams in the same. A million to one team could only be a hundred thuo to another.

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

Hmmm. I guess weight really does matter. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/o...5117864.column

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

Here is a thought that is "just my opinion".

We try to live in the now
We try to let go of soiled and stained memories from the past, and move on.
We accept that every dollar and every decision we might have been made under the old APBA Banner didn't go exactly as planned
We Give John Carbonell credit for being a survivor, in an environment where many have not.
We give Bob Bull and Mark Skrypeck credit for trying to start anew with little to no personal or self enrichment on the horizon, and for giving Racers who want it an opportunity to have a choice about where to race

We accept that Offshore Powerboat Racing is very expensive, has always been very expensive, will always be very expensive to participate in.

We get out our calculators, we learn how to use them, and we do what we can for unification sometime in the future, since it is really the only way to get a respectable boat count and garner credibility for the sport overall, I know, its a Wild and Crazy thought, but once again, just an opinion.

Gregg Reichman

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

Wow, I thought this thread died with LLC. Good luck to all this year and more importantly be safe no matter what association you race with!

Trent

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

Well Viper one this is just my opinion! I think you should ask gary, if SBI weighs each vessel going in and coming out. If I remember correctly Gary and mike were penalized one minute for wieght issues. Also if I remember correctly SBI purchased a new scale prior to the 2004 season and has been at each site hanging between each and every vessel and the crane. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong .

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

I just think thats its pretty damn funny that some racers were in the pits prior to the Worlds in Deerfield trying to tell people that weight was'nt an issue in boats in their class and now a year later, weight is a big issue in their class. Once again, as I pointed out last year, weight is important for a level playing field.

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

\

Well dude , Get a Grip, Things change and for the better. So if you dont have any positive input SSSSSHUT the f%$ up.

Re: This is strictly an opinion!!!
 

Now theres an intelligent oxymoron.