What year did Jesse James 48 Race?

[T2x]

Sorry, but I don't claim to be an EXPERT on this subject. I was born in 75 actually so I was alittle older than 5. I actually spent a lot of time with the Lavin's when they came to the Keys every year. In 1985 when the won the Modified class worlds I was with Mark, Francine, & Miles in the boat parade. Mark is one of my heros, & I have a picture of the 35' hanging in my livingroom to this day.....

Hey Ryan:

I was teasing you...... I clearly recall how passionate you were...and are.... about the sport..... and as I said...I can relate. What I am reacting to is the assumption that today's boats are somehow a quantum leap ahead of the mid 80's cats...... and that is nonsense. After all even Peter's 24's and 32's were both a product of that same era....and nothing is demonstrably better than those hulls today..... in fact his bottom design and angle of attack are very similar on the newer hulls....albeit with more anti stuff built into the forward entry (Ala Big JJ)......

There is (sadly) nothing really new under the sun in hull development....... even Reggie's preposterous "beak" is now pushing 20 years in age.......as are the steps that he and the Fiore's "invented".

T2x

[MarylandMark]

Sort of off topic but since this kind of went a little off course about hull designs..

I asked on the Statement thread with no reply- is the front edge of their cat for aesthetics or serve a function?

[Ryan Beckley]

I was told the Statement packs more air into the tunnel and make the entry of the boat more aerodynamic......

[fobes]

I was wondering the same thing. I saw it in Miami and it is unlike any other tunnel entry I have seen. Is there any merit to it that has been proven to work or is it an untested theory?

[40FlatDeck]

I was wondering the same thing. I saw it in Miami and it is unlike any other tunnel entry I have seen. Is there any merit to it that has been proven to work or is it an untested theory?

I would like to hear what T2x thinks about this also......

I'll take my 40 Skater over that "new" design any day of the week...

[Brownie]

An interesting side note. With the advent of the 50' cats, it became possible to beat the boat to death, while experiencing an "arm chair" ride. That was partly true of the 38's, but absolutley true of the 50's.

[McCaffertee]

What is the idea behind the Statement hull design?

[Rik]

The 50' of today are not measured the same way those 50' that were built in the past were measured. Those boats today would be a 55'!

Today, they count from the deck to the tip of the sponson. A 50' Mystic for example is a 44' Bottom with a 40' LWL.

The 48' Cougar probably had a 43-44' LWL and was somewhat heavier but also had less tunnel compression in comparison.

I think the theory was, four smaller engines would live a lot longer than two larger engines. (Say hello to Keith Eickert new V16!) As back in the early 80's, 800 hp was a stretch.

Joe Mach's 4 engine boat would reach 175 ish according to Smitty and Lanier. Fast by any generations expectations.

[T2x]

Joe Mach's 4 engine boat would reach 175 ish according to Smitty and Lanier. Fast by any generations expectations.

And that boat would dwarf a Mystic in size........ I always loved the lines on that thing....it reminded me of some kind of a wild mid 50's fighter/bomber. It looked like nothing else before or since.

Today everything is buttery smooth....and redundant...except for the MTI's which are simply .......ugly.....and I know ugly.....after all we created the Shadow "dumpster" cat....

T2x

[T2x]

I would like to hear what T2x thinks about this also......

I'll take my 40 Skater over that "new" design any day of the week...

Is that the cat with the "filligree" on the inside of the pickle forks..... increasing the mold cost for no apparent reason?

My first impression takes me back to my favorite Renato Molinari story.

Molinari OWNED outboard tunnel boat design in the late 60's and early 70's. In '71 or so he debuted (see 1st picture below with Bobby Hering at the wheel) a beautiful pickle forked variant of his tried and true full tunnel hull. After winning it's debut races, he put small vertical fins on the forward pickle forks. Within weeks most other racers had similar fins on their (now pickle forked) boats. At that point Renato put small fins on the after planes abreast of the engines....and won....... You guessed it, the others quickly followed suit. Renato then put horizontal "winglets" on the fins and upright portions of the canopies....and won...... Others followed quickly (see Miles Hull below on the right)....

Finally, at seasons end, Renato appeared with a hull in the original form sans all the fins and winglets...and won again. When asked about why he had discarded all of the added "aero-technical" hardware...... He replied "That Sh*t never did anything anyway."

...But it sure kept the others from doing actual testing and development.

The Statement makes the same kind of "statement" to me.

T2x

[Rik]

And that boat would dwarf a Mystic in size........ I always loved the lines on that thing....it reminded me of some kind of a wild mid 50's fighter/bomber. It looked like nothing else before or since.

Today everything is buttery smooth....and redundant...except for the MTI's which are simply .......ugly.....and I know ugly.....after all we created the Shadow "dumpster" cat....

T2x

Maybe all those rivets disrupted the laminer flow (like vortex generators) of the air over it so it would not blow over

Maybe CUV knew something.

No reference to a Mystic meant.

[MarylandMark]

I just realized (again) how much I love reading your post T2x!

[Steve 1]

I used a tunnel like that on my 40' Cheetahcats in 93!

[40FlatDeck]

Is that the cat with the "filligree" on the inside of the pickle forks..... increasing the mold cost for no apparent reason?

My first impression takes me back to my favorite Renato Molinari story.

Molinari OWNED outboard tunnel boat design in the late 60's and early 70's. In '71 or so he debuted (see 1st picture below) a beautiful pickle forked variant of his tried and true full tunnel hull. After winning it's debut races, he put small vertical fins on the forward pickle forks. Within weeks most other racers had similar fins on their (now pickle forked) boats. At that point Renato put small fins on the after planes abreast of the engines....and won....... You guessed it, the others quickly followed suit. Renato then put horizontal "winglets" on the fins and upright portions of the canopies....and won...... Others followed quickly (see Miles Hull below on the right)....

Finally, at seasons end, Renato appeared with a hull in the original form sans all the fins and winglets...and won again. When asked about why he had discarded all of the added "aero-technical" hardware...... He replied "That Sh*t never did anything anyway."

...But it sure kept the others from doing actual testing and development.

The Statement makes the same kind of "statement" to me.

T2x

Didn't Buzzi basically do the same thing with his rear "wing"??

[T2x]

Didn't Buzzi basically do the same thing with his rear "wing"??

Yes, but he laughed all the way to the bank with his idea. It seemed that all the Euro-trash would buy (lease) anything he offered, and the more gimmicks the better. On the other hand he has a great sense of humor and probably got some good chuckles out of his "flights of fancy".

[chewiekw]

I think it was the Trump worlds in 89...

[Dude! Sweet!]

Where'd the drives, rudders, etc. all end up? Seems like single-purpose stuff, so I'm guessing none of it's hanging off the back of an American Offshore cat in the Monongahela River...

[shifter]

The whole boat (Big JJ) minus engines was at Archer Marine for a long time. In 93/94??? It was sold minus motors and is sitting in the AZ desert as far as I know.

pat W

[Sean Stinson]

Do tell Pat someone is looking for it earlier in this thread

[T2x]

I think it was the Trump worlds in 89...

Thank you...That is the best picture of it running I have seen.

I love the internet.

T2x