Parker 300

**H2oSki2Fast** · 10-19-2013, 05:28 PM

My feeling is the handicap deal is a joke. It should be run like they do in off road. In the Baja races a 1-2 1600 car driver knows he doesn't have a chance at overall (unless something truly magical happens), and is racing against his class, not trophy trucks and class 1 cars. They all do so on the same course at the same time. They know if they want a chance to win overall they need to build a vehicle capable of doing that.

If you want to win the race overall, in the enduro, build a boat to compete in a class that has contentions for an overall victory.

If you want to cut down on closing speed, why limit the fastest class? Why not get rid of the slowest class? After all no one is there to watch a 60 mph boat, they can see that on any given weekend in Parker. The majority of spectators come to see the fast class, as with the circle races. Why do you think they put the SS, Gn's and K boats at the end of the day? If they put them earlier in the day, spectators would leave after seeing them run.

**ChumpChange** · 10-19-2013, 05:38 PM

Seems there is a lot of interest in this thread.

**HB Vic** · 10-19-2013, 05:43 PM

Originally Posted by CampbellCarl

I just wanted stop by and say hi before the name calling restarted and the thread got locked again.............

CC

It's been pretty civil lately. Just a good discussion on racing.

**2FORCEFULL** · 10-19-2013, 05:52 PM

Originally Posted by Hotboat

It's been pretty civil lately. Just a good discussion on racing.

somethings have to be aired , then get to the real business.... I don't have a boat in the race, or a dog in the fight, but all in all it's a pretty informational thread....I read it...

**H2oSki2Fast** · 10-19-2013, 06:04 PM

Originally Posted by Hotboat

It's been pretty civil lately. Just a good discussion on racing.

We can change that!

**HB Vic** · 10-19-2013, 06:09 PM

Originally Posted by H2oSki2Fast

We can change that!

Oh I know that, in a split second I'm sure

**gn7** · 10-19-2013, 06:48 PM

Originally Posted by H2oSki2Fast

My feeling is the handicap deal is a joke. It should be run like they do in off road. In the Baja races a 1-2 1600 car driver knows he doesn't have a chance at overall (unless something truly magical happens), and is racing against his class, not trophy trucks and class 1 cars. They all do so on the same course at the same time. They know if they want a chance to win overall they need to build a vehicle capable of doing that.

If you want to win the race overall, in the enduro, build a boat to compete in a class that has contentions for an overall victory.

If you want to cut down on closing speed, why limit the fastest class? Why not get rid of the slowest class? After all no one is there to watch a 60 mph boat, they can see that on any given weekend in Parker. The majority of spectators come to see the fast class, as with the circle races. Why do you think they put the SS, Gn's and K boats at the end of the day? If they put them earlier in the day, spectators would leave after seeing them run.

I tend to agree with you. I stopped drag racing when bracket and E.T. classes started becoming the norm. But just like drag racing, it you get rid of it, the entries will tumble. Big time.
When the GNs run the enduro, they are too busy and concerned with where the other GNs are, specially if they are in the top 3-4 in the points. They are also too busy playing chess strategy with each other to bother noticing or caring where they are in the overall. The 2 GNs that have won the over all, never knew they were leading untll maybe 10 laps from the end, and then the decision is, do you push it to stay up front at risk of break the thing.

I personally have no problem with a heads up race. I think the fast boats have the right and deserve to win the over all because of the investment in those things. But I can assure you it will impact the entry count considerably. That was the belief RD had originally. Heads up, mass start like the old race, with the fast boats up front on the start. The idea was that class win would be good enough and the prize money would make up for the fact that you have no chance of the overall. Too many people don't see it that way, and that is exactly why the race was set up this way 8 years ago. I don't think you could ever come up eith enough money for somebody to pass on the overall win, and remember, the overall SHOULD get the bulk of the payout. The over all is a double pay out. Division win and overall. If try to pay the classes enough to not care about the overall, then you down play the over all win.

The reason the race died to start with was that in the early days, most of the boats were all pretty much equal. Some where high dollar, but the hulls and engines were all pretty much the same, you mainly had to endure. Then the factory outboards from Merc and Evinrude started showing up and ran away with every race, and the average guy said screw it and stopped coming.
I understand your thinking, and it is the normal thinking of those not racing it, but the reality is, I don't think that many boats will show up for a heads up race. Its something that was kicked around from the very start years ago, and it didn't get much response.
Now flip the thought, and say the top guns say screw this racing with handicaps, we're gone. You lose maybe 5 boats, as opposed to 25. You have to make the most people happy to get the most boats on the water. Most of the boats aren't in the caliber to run heads up for the overall.

**Sharp shooter** · 10-19-2013, 10:43 PM

Originally Posted by gn7

I owe Shooter a THANK YOU for getting this on video. Its not cheap for Jerry to do this kind of stuff, and there is virtually no return on his time, and money. If Jerry had not shot this video, this would only be a memory, as would all the races he has video'd. Nobody shoots a boat race like Jerry does. He is the best at what he does because he understands the races. The vid concentrates a lot on my boat, but that's because Jerry was using two cameras, one on the lead boat, one on all the others, but he never edited the two together, and this is the raw footage from the lead boat camera.

Now that's a wave full of compliments! Thanks Bob!! It's very appreciated!