I dont think you are going to see any did suprise there. APBA is already working on a new site,and went into it in lenght at the St. Cloud race.
All the teams that race 2 races this year with any of the groups are welcome. I think it will be great,and it will be good to see 100 boats at a World Championship race again. SBI rules and APBA rules are the same so the teams shouldnt have a problem with that. It will be cool to see who the true big dogs are,all in one place at one time.

Frank
"Koolhand"

So Frank, APBA is definately not going to Key West?

Have all talks of running a joint World Championship been washed away? :confused:

If APBA does thier own thing, I just hope they pick different dates.

What a shame if they can't get together. Maybe the racers can make thier voice heard and unite in Key West even if APBA doesn't want to go there.

From what I got out of the meeting it sounded that way. APBA is dead set on racing there own race.They keep saying about the problem with the rules being different,but I think they are the same. I know it would be an Insurance nightmare if you tried to have to Sanctioned bodies running one race so on and so...the problems wouldn't stop. Doesn't matter what group it is but you can only have one running the show. I'm sure if they are willing to give alittle they could make it work but it doesn't look that way.

Frank
"Koolhand"

There's 8 months before KW, ya NEVER know what could happen in 8 months!

Even though Bertel has been a pain in the a$$, He is not one to hide.

Most certainly.

Augie is right...anything can happen in 8 months.

it just depends on how the pieces fall in place over the next month or two.

if its meant to be, it will be.

Bertle aka Peconic is not Throttleman. Think about it, Bertle has said many things to ruffle your feathers and he's never tried to hide yet, why would he start now? What would he gain?

PS... the permits were awarded to Conch Republic Offshore Racing Association/SBI today.

To All Concerned:

The APBA message to it's racing membership which was conveyed at the St Cloud event this past weekend was as follows;

The APBA management team has made 4 trips to Key West and 1 trip to Florida in the past 6 weeks to meet with and attempt to work out a method for an event that would have all organizations racing in Key West together during November of 2004 on the dates that the APBA had first applied for permits on. The results of these meetings were as follows;

1.) The only time an OSS representative showed up at a scheduled meeting was on the March 31 TDC Board Meeting date.

2.) The only offer ever made to the APBA from the Conch Republic Power Boat Racing Association represented as an offer from the SBI mandated that the APBA would have no television rights from the event and it's major corporate sponsors could not have a presence at the race without negotiating a separate agreement with the SBI.

3.) All races must be run under SBI technical rules and SBI Safety services.

4.) The SBI representative at the 3/31 meeting stated that there was continuing conversation with the APBA regarding the event. This was in fact not true. The discussion had ended previously, with the above conditions being unacceptable to the APBA and the executives of each organization had wished each other good luck on their respective 2004 seasons.

5. In addition the Outer Mole area in Key West which previously was a major factor in spectator viewing was no longer available for use.

6. Another factor was a now restricted area size available near the Truman annex for Dry Pits parking which would limit the number and size of parking areas for teams.

7. The APBA had previously in earlier meetings held over the past 6 weeks presented a plan to allow all groups to race without restrictions and were open to any reasonable compromise that respected the identity of each organizations brand image and the identity of it's racers classes.

With the above situation and positions noted the Key West TDC voted to give the essential funding grant to the local Conch Republic group that had applied for the same dates relative to Coast Guard permits that the APBA had applied for 1 1/2 months earlier.

Given the above decisions, facts, sponsor issues and the fact that the APBA being recognized by the UIM sanctioning body authority in the USA as it's representative which mandates that the APBA not sanction or race in any event that does not utilize UIM rules and regulations basically requires the APBA to seek another alternative and direction.

While we were disappointed in the outcome, we are moving on with alternate plans at another site. We wish the city of Key West nothing but the best in their event plans and appreciate the past courtesies extended by the City of Key West, to the APBA group. We ask only their understanding of our commercial, technical and organizational issues, and their recognition that we truly tried to create an atmosphere for compromise.

Mark Skrzypek
(aka HelmPilot)

For the APBA Offshore Racing Association.


***(Supplemental Note)*****

In the interest of what is best for the sport, let's all accept the decisions that have been made and respect the rights of each organizations management to make those decisions in the best interests of their membership.

I was told that other OSS board members put a muzzle on Peconic's inflammatory posting, but I don't see how anybody would not realize that these two are the same person.

THESE POSTS ARE FROM THROTTLEMAN-

1. It could be the coming shut-down of Lake X, it could be the secret sauce served at Throttle-Up: More and more teams go to St. Petersburg for Spring Break to have their props tweaked and their set-up optimized at Julie and Matt Croce’s shop. Add to that that Julie can be quite entertaining to look at and to be around of, and you have a recipe for world domination.

With this year’s season starting in April, the Throttle-Ups are solidly booked for testing. If you want an appointment with the speed-freaks, take a number.

What they lack is a high fence and heavy security. Their testing work in Tampa Bay is a public event, and it is not unusual to see people armed with binoculars and stopwatches who spy on the progress made by the competition.

2. Will the SVL boats make it to Biloxi?

While others are busy testing, some OSS SVL boats are said to have a hard time getting in the water at all.

Wildcard, the Phantom of the Cuban Couple Will & Larry, has been seen languishing in Will Smith’s shop in Sarasota, and it’s said to be nowhere near to be finished.

Typhoon, the former Extreme Stainless Marine boat throttled by Randy Schleuss and driven by Glenn Murray, was spotted collecting dust at Grant Bruggeman’s new shop in Fort Lauderdale. My spies saw a big hole in the transom, right where other boats usually have a drive. Randy & Glenn are infamous for cutting it right to the wire. Last year, they had their black Kryptonite delivered from the factory straight to the Savannah race, where they raced it totally untested. Some say the lackadaisical habits were the reason for the engine gremlins that plagued the Schleuss boat in the 2003 season. At one time, it was even on fire, because someone had forgotten to attach a raw water hose.

3. Mark Kowalski and the American Dream

Latest intel from my assets in the Lake Cumberland area: Mercury powered MTI SCL American Dream was seen (and heard!) testing with their new throttleman Mark Kowalski of Winnebago F1 fame. My spies couldn’t read the on-board GPS, but they picked-up whisperings of "well over 120."

American Dream bosswoman Donna was heard bragging that they will kick everybody’s behind at the OSS opener in Biloxi. The American Dream might very well be the competition’s nightmare.

THESE POSTS ARE FROM PECONIC-

1. Testing With The Nutz, Take II

While other teams are cautiously testing the waters in tropical climes, the OSSVL Nutz are in the midst of their sea trials in the cool Northeast. Today, they meet at “Mad Dog” Randy’s shop in South Plainfield, in scenic North Jersey. Will Ros gets ready to mount the new round ear 5 blade Hydro, courtesy of http://www.Throttle-up.com

2. "After the run, everybody came to the boat like bees to honey," reported a thoroughly happy Randy Schleuss after the Kilo runs in Savannah, which are the first event of the weekend's APBA sanctioned race.

Randy's Black Beauty, a 29 foot Kryptonite powered by a HP525, was finished on Wednesday noon at the Eastport, Long Island location of Kryptonite. After a short test, the boat was loaded on a trailer and driven down the East Coast for the debut at the Savannah race.

There was no time to test the boat on Thursday night. Also, the opportunity to test the boat on Friday morning evaporated. The Black Beauty was entered in the run completely untested. If there ever was truth in "run what you brung," then this time.

Randy's GPS-powered Monster speedometer was showing a max speed of 85 mph. The way Randy and Glenn are driving, average speed should be around 82-83 mph. Spectators in Savannah could hear the rev limiter hitting several times, which means that the boat is good for even more speed when properly propped.

They racing community appears to be divided over the boat. Some are in love. Some are clearly intimitaded. According to Randy, their usual comment is: "This chit is effing fast."

On Tuesday night, Randy Schleuss, the reigning World Champion of F1, had thoughts about selling all his boats. Including the new one. These thoughts are now forgotten. His previous boat, a white 98 Kryptonite, is now definitely for sale.

3. The OSO Bat Clash: West against East in St. Petersburg

The lines are drawn in the water:

West Coast Bat Boat Titans Rick Young (RYoung) and Tim "Hi-Test" Haines are winging their way over from the left to the right coast to take on Randy "Mad Dog" Schleuss and Bertel "Cmdr. Solo" Schmitt.

It will be the greatest West against East duel since the fall of the Iron Curtain!

If not on water, it will be so at the bar:

"Randy better watch out" shouted Hi-Test Haines from their home in NoCal, "I'll drink him under the table on Saturday night!"

Randy laughed the threat off; "The kid would have to violate his amateur status to do that," said the Mad Dog from Edison, NJ, "I am factory trained."

The alcofrolic triathlon (beer, shots, and Cherry NyQuil) will take place at the home of Mike & Jill who will throw an "East meets West" bash on Saturday night.

I assure you that based upon e-mails that I've received, plenty of racers are convinced. More smoke, mirrors and deception.

Phantom, I see your point. A very similar style and subject matter between both authors. Hummmmm...Scratching head and wondering...could I be wrong???.:rolleyes:

Mark, thank you for coming to OSO and talking with us. It sounds like you truly tried to make it happen. Best of luck this season.

Please don't schedule your worlds on the same dates.

:) :) :) :) :fish:

Every thing is in place for Key west only thing left to do is get ready to race. Make your reservations early you dont want to miss this one. I want to thank John C for all his hard work to make Key West happen,and getting OSS involed. With SBI,OPA,and OSS it will be one hell of a show. Also dont forget any other boats interested in racing in the worlds only have to race 2 race with any sanction body to be able to race in the WORLDS.

Frank
"koolhand"

nice work frank you da real deal kick ass in miami and keep your hands on the sticks

Frank,

Do the SOBs also need to run 2 races prior to Key West?
Being it is the 1st year for the class, I was hoping for no restriction for them...

Thats a good question I will find out for you.

Frank
"koolhand"

Sharkey: The Worlds are in frikken NOVEMBER!!!! If you guys don't get two measly races under your belts before that, your SOBs will be torpedoed and sunk.

Well until now, knowing APBA has picked up the class, you are right.

The Southern guys now have a place to race. My logic was anyone in Florida that didn't come up to race in the OPA races, would have the opportunity to give it a try at the Key West race.

If they liked it, then maybe they would travel...;)