Thread: Old School

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    #21
    Registered ICDEDPPL's Avatar
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    That fountain is nice,love the drives !
    Whats the scoop on the Predator, make/ size? Looks really roomy
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    #22
    Female / petite
    Oh there is a boat under them?!
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    #23
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    it was hard to spot but I believe there may be a boat there
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    #24
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    50' Nortech with triple 750s, I think? It later became "Leviathan" and had a REALLY wild paint job.
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    #25
    Welcome to the old school club. Nice time line of your boating experience.Sweet pictures too. All the Fun runs, and photo runs were always good times. It was cool getting everyone together and going for a Gentlemans Cruise.
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    #26
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    This is a great thread Mike!!
    Keep it coming!

    And hey, where can I get another copy of the 2005(?) poker run DVD that you CPC guys passed out at the Formula plant tour in 2006(?). I loaned mine out and it never came back. It was a great vid!
    "Keep the bottle on the bar Ira, I won't be long".
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    #27
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    I'll have more tomorrow...all the pics are on my computer at work. And as for that DVD...if I can get my hands on a burnable one, I can get you a copy. I'll see what I can do. I have 05, 06 and 07.
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    #28
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    Great thread indeed. 2002 was the year we started coming up to the big pond......Good Times.....
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    #29
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    So...summer of 04 ends with me scouring the interwebz for a new boat...and searching for ways to PAY for it! Figuring I needed a new boat also meant I needed a new truck to pull it with...as I had been pulling the Powerquest to Michigan and back for the winter using a trusty 1978 GMC dually (with a 350!) that I had bought for under $3k. In the fall I found a red F350 diesel to fill the bill...now I just needed something to tow with it. My search spanned far and wide...when in the spring of 05 I stumbled across an ad for a 1994 35 Fountain down at Raymond's in Lake of the Ozarks. I called on it, and spoke with Charlene, who was just about the sweetest lady I've ever encountered. "I'm sorry, hun, but that boat has just been sold." Bummer. Back to the web again, and to Raymond's site, when I laid my eyes upon this beauty (and yes...I do still have the actual pics from the ad!):
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    #30
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    To get a better understand of my mindset at this time, one needs to back up about two weeks...my fever for a new boat has been stoked to a new pitch by the latest COPS event: a party in South Haven, MI and tour of the Douglas Marine facility up in Douglas. Mmmmm.....Skaters. Mmmm...Sterlings. And yes, that is Michelle with the legendary Cashbrain.

    During the tour, we were only allowed to photograph certain things...one of the things we were NOT allowed to take pictures of was a V-bottom. Now...Skater had just come out with the 399, and we saw Hull #2 (which was being rigged with 1075s) in production. This one looked bigger...a LOT bigger. A question to our guide confirmed that fact. Fast forward a couple months and Cigarette appears with a 46-footer aimed a breaking Reggie's V-bottom speed record...built by Skater. Cool.
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    #31
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    While in Michigan, we had met a ton of people. We sat next to Baronmarine and his wife for lunch, met Boatme for the first time, and reconnected with a bunch of our COPS friends, including the always-ready-to-party T-dockers.

    But the meeting that left the biggest impression was set up in a strange way. Back at that time, Cashbrain had his own boating forum (after being bounced from OSO repeatedly). A chance discussion on that site led to the discovery that a fellow powerboater lived a mere two blocks from me. Our computer correspondance was short-lived...he told me essentially "I don't type so good" and told me to give him a call. Which I did. Ol' Brian Miller (scarrab30) was just about as good ol' boy as they come...and when he told me he was a trucker...well...let's just say I wasn't shocked. We spoke for at least an hour...he told me he had a son about my age and that we should meet. And by chance...his son was going to be at the Skater party and described to me what he looked like.

    So...my first line to Brian Miller (Straight Jacket) when I instantly recognized him via his dad's description was: "Hey, I met your dad online." I'm fairly certain Brian's response has something to do with just what the hell kind of websites have you and my dad been visiting....

    Yeah...we hung out the entire rest of the evening.
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    #32
    Mike,
    I haven't logged in here for a few months, until today. Reading your journey made my heart smile..
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    #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by kerigoff View Post
    Mike,
    I haven't logged in here for a few months, until today. Reading your journey made my heart smile..
    Ha! I was gonna send you the link once I got to the Brian part! More to come...
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    #34
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    Back to Charlene...finding that red boat on her site set my heart afire, and I picked up the phone once again. "Sure sugar, that boat is still here and ready for you." Do you take trades? "Why of course honey, just tell me what you have and we'll set you up right as rain." Or something like that. All I really heard was that she'd take a trade AND the value she placed on my PQ sight-unseen was right in the ballpark of what I was looking to get. Now I need to get down there and test drive.

    Now...even though I had owned a boat for three whole seasons now, and now knew a bunch of people with similar boats that had a wealth of knowledge, I still wasn't very sharp in the ways of the boat. As in...motors were motors to me...they just needed to start when I wanted them to, and run all the time. I could handle the oil changes, gear lube changes and winterizing...but that was about it. Plus...a boat was pretty much like any other...I had been all over my PQ, but wasn't terribly familiar with other things I should be looking for in a boat.

    I needed advice. I needed a second opinion. I needed a wingman. But who would drive 14 or so hours for no reason other than to look at a boat and go for a ride? Oh yeah...that one guy I met last week...Click image for larger version. 

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    So, I picked up the phone. "Hey Brian, what are you doing Friday?" "Nothing, why?" "Wanna go test drive a boat?" "Sure, where at?" "Lake of the Ozarks." "We should leave early." "See you at 5am."

    We got down there around noon, talked to Charlene in person ("Ain't you boys just the nicest young men? Your boat is in the water, Preston (the mechanic) will take you out. Preston just LOVES the red boats. Now you boys have fun."

    We went down to the boat launch...it was in the water already...and I fell in love.Click image for larger version. 

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    #35
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    We went for a test ride. Brian proved his worth immediately by detecting a misfire...and found the culprit (a dropped plug wire). I was excited enough to know that I was probably not thinking entirely clearly...but Brian went over every inch of the boat along with me, and we saw that it was well-cared-for and very clean...just a few little nicks in the rubrail and one small mar in the gelcoat on the bottom. I tried to take pics of any flaws to show Michelle, who I was sure I'd have to convince to make this move.
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    #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by redhotsommer View Post
    I'll have more tomorrow...all the pics are on my computer at work. And as for that DVD...if I can get my hands on a burnable one, I can get you a copy. I'll see what I can do. I have 05, 06 and 07.
    I'd really appreciate that. Hell, I'd love all three!
    "Keep the bottle on the bar Ira, I won't be long".
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    #37
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    We headed for home, pictures, video, and one red Fountain tanktop (courtesy of Charlene - a gift for Michelle) in hand. It was a bit of a power play, but I got Michelle to sign on to the deal, and we were going to own a new boat.

    Now...if you know me, you know that for some reason or another, nothing is ever easy. I attribute my sense of humor and my writing style to the well-developed perception of the ridiculousness that seems to follow me in perpetuity. So why should purchasing a new boat be any different? Really...what could be simpler? Hooking up and towing a boat farther than I ever had to a destination I'd only been to once, to trade for a boat I was in love with but still unfamilar with (left hand throttle....wtf???), do a poker run the NEXT DAY (another thing I'd never done), and come home. Settle in kids...you are going for a ride with Mike....

    We hooked up the PQ and rolled south when I finished work on Thursday, taking our sweet time as I was still nervous about towing. For some reason, the Ozarks seemed so much further in those days...I had planned to spend the night on the road and divide up the 7-hour drive. We ended up stopping just west of St. Louis...it was about 10 pm and I was tired of driving. Well...the exit we chose for a hotel turned out to be a less-than-desirable neighborhood...I didn't really notice until I had finished checking in to the hotel. Michelle, who had stayed in the truck, simply said "I am not staying here." What? Why? Turns out her reasoning had a lot to do with the small crowd that had gathered around the boat...and the fact that we were apparently the only people that did not LIVE at that hotel. Sooo....I went back in, told the clerk I had a family emergency and needed to cancel my room, and got back on the road. We stopped again in St. Charles, and the nice people at that hotel even let me have a VIP parking spot for the rig under a light.

    My wife has an issue. She grow VERY attached to things she owns. I had to beg her to let me buy her a new car...and even the prospect of a BRAND NEW Firebird did not prevent TEARS (lots of them!) when she had to give up her old Toyota Celica. She has since repeated this performance when I bought her a Corvette and traded the Firebird...wouldn't even go to the dealer to pick up the Vette...just stood in the front room in tears as I drove her Firebird away. Who does that??? Well...as you can imagine...tossing the keys to our first boat to some stranger and then being shown our new boat was more than a little traumatic. Did I mention she is a bit meticulous? Oh yeah...even after the deal was done...she went over the Fountain, pointing out minor scratches in upholstery, stains in the carpet, excessive dust on the steering wheel, etc. Her conclusion: why did you make me trade my PERFECT Powerquest for this dirty piece of crap? I did my best to assuage her concerns...but mostly, I was just nervous as hell. Did I make a mistake?
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    #38
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    Quote Originally Posted by redhotsommer View Post
    She grow VERY attached to things she owns.
    Hey,,,,dont pick on her,,,,, I do the same thing !!!!
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    #39
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    Well...I towed the Fountain away from Raymonds, whilst trying to ignore the tears in my wife's eyes, and headed for the boat launch on the west side of the lake that was right next to the resort we were staying. On the way, we stopped for lunch...and the sky opened up in a manner that I have seldom seen outside of the Ozark region. It freakin' POURED. But, by the time we finished eating, the sun was shining again. However, the road was now wet, I was towing a larger boat AND it turned out that the brakes on the trailer did not work. Oh...and then there was the road. I mentioned the wetness...but the hilliness and curviness were such that Michelle actually laughed out loud at how absurd this particular segment of pavement was. By the time I hit the Shawnee Bend launch ramp, there were impressions from my fingers in the metal of the steering wheel.

    After a 5 minute timeout to lower my heartrate, it was time to launch. No problem. Michelle backed the truck and trailer up and dropped me in, then parked the rig and I did a touch-and-go to pick her up...as there are no piers at this ramp. We idled out of the small bay onto the main channel and got on plane...by this time, even Michelle was smiling. Suddenly, the sky turned...ugly. It was the Black Wall of Death...and it was on us NOW. The deluge was instant...we were completely soaked and desparately scanning the shoreline for our resort. We slowed to an idle, and finally caught sight of the resort and...COVERED BOAT SLIPS! I pulled into the nearest slip as far as I could and we tied off...the rain was thundering off the aluminum roof so hard we could barely talk to eachother. Looking to the stern of the boat, I saw the bilge pumps working furiously...which was cause for instant concern. What if a hose came off? What if the plug fell out? OH MY GOD THE BOAT IS GONNA SINK. Also, we had pulled into a 30-foot slip with a 35 foot boat...so not only was it still raining on our split engine hatches, but all the water that was hitting the roof and running down was pouring onto that same area. CRAP. I fired it up and executed my very first back-in dock....and the bilges kept on pumping...there was a TON of water in the engine compartment...I made the decision that we needed to get back on the trailer....NOW. Panic was setting in....even my normally composed wife was freaking out. We grabbed the lines, jumped in the boat, and went back out into the deluge. On the way to the ramp, I tried to get up on plane, and the boat seemed so full of water it would not come over. I was blinded by the rain and could BARELY see the bow of the boat...I'm sure the guy driving the pontoon boat that I missed by 20 feet was NOT happy, but I didn't care. We got back to the cove, I gave Michelle the keys to the truck, dropped her off, and she flawlessly backed the trailer down. I put the bow up, tied it off, and collapsed to the ground...just as the rain quit. The bilge pumps ran for 20 minutes as the boat sat on the trailer.
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    #40
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    more more more!!!!! don`t keep us hanging!
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