Qatar X-Cat Boat Goes Airborne

[Ratickle]

they landed in the inside lane at the buoy, maybe they should of ran there instead... looks like good racing to me.

the leader took the preferred line through the corner (swept it), qatar had a choice to take the inside and scrub speed or go through the tail, looks like a bad choice in hindsight.

Thanks Sean. Both of you say enough room, I'm satisfied.

No matter what, it was a bad choice in hindsight......

[ThrottleUp Props]

I can tell you the fleet does not feel that way.

They were ALL up in arms over that move and I am not just speaking of Mohammad and Khalid, the Qatar/Delma team!

Julie

[AugiePensa]

Thats how we spun out last year when I got thrown out. Kevin elected to TRY making a sharp left turn around turn 3 with two other boats along side us instead of going across the wakes, hence The Condo's a$$ went airborne, spun out and I went for an expensive swim. No ones fault but ours, just glad they are alright.

[glassdave]

is is just me, or did the driver climb out of a hole in the canopy, not the hatch?

did kinda look like that.

[T2x]

looks like the door got closed on him......

If the door got closed on him there would have been no space next to the turn buoy. He left a lane... a narrow lane...but a lane nonetheless. From the video it does not appear that the lead boat moved over abruptly ......and....in any case the trailing boat had ample water to avoid the roostertail..... I don't see any evasive movement on the trailing boat's part...simply a gradual merge into harm's way. It is always the responsibility of the driver of each boat to maintain his own safety and not point fingers at anyone else. Had there been a fleet of spectator boats, a bulkhead or a stone wall on the starboard side, this would have been a different story...but the trailing boat had plenty of space to move to the right and enough space IMHO to squeeze past the buoy. On the other hand the spacing and lanes are not shown from an overhead perspective so maybe the lead boat was in a long gradual tangent from the intended direction of travel and was deliberately tightening the playing field... regardless it looks like the lead boat had the speed and distance to win anyway.

As far as people/spectators being irate is concerned, you always have to factor supporters, political status, and plain ignorance into those comments.
It has been my experience that oftentimes terms like "You cheated" translate more correctly to "You beat my boyfriend!"

T2x

[Ted]

It did look like there was a lane at the bouy if you look at where the trail of the orange boat is in the overhead shot as the other boat comes to rest. And the trail did not appear to have wavered that much as he approached the buoy.

[Scarab KV]

Think that may have happened to Rich?????

lol...it seemed like a lot of detail for what "could happen"

That's why I love read'n these guys posts. They're knowledge, experience and stories that they bring to the game are priceless.

[ThrottleUp Props]

did kinda look like that.

Right out the windsheild!~

Safety is ongoing......

Julie

[T2x]

lol...it seemed like a lot of detail for what "could happen"

That's why I love read'n these guys posts. They're knowledge, experience and stories that they bring to the game are priceless.

Many years ago I flipped an English Mod U tunnel boat at the finish line of a race on a river..... I have posted pictures of this a few times previously. The shore line behind the start finish dock consisted of a bluff which led up to a road about 60 feet up the slope with a narrow trail through the woods leading up at a steep angle.....

So you have the picture........

Now the details........

After the flip I was semi conscious but not badly injured....(It was just a concussion, and other stuff.....not my private parts or anything important). As I was floating face up courtesy of my Lifeline, I heard a voice yelling at me "Don't move". I did as I was told because in the woozy state I was in, I had an IQ of about 7.
A few moments later I saw a rescue boat approaching (an aluminum flat bottom skiff with a stokes stretcher on board and two EMT's).... One called out "He's over there and he's not moving.....hurry up!" By then I had floated into about 24 inches of water a few yards off the shore. The driver who was tiller steering from the rear and obviously unable to see the intended rescue target proceeded to drive the skiff half over me only stopping when I lay under the middle of the boat with my helmeted head floating on one side and my feet sticking up on the other. They managed to pull me out and place me on the stokes stretcher....strapping me in. I thought this was odd but considering that I couldn't tell you my own name at that point it made some sort of wacky sense to me.

A few seconds later a group of people were attempting to carry me on the stretcher up the slope to a waiting ambulance. This resulted in a series of stops and starts and advancing 2 feet only to slip back 1. After about 3 minutes of being dropped, retrieved, and re-assured, I suddenly snapped out of my trance, shouted out to remove my straps, jumped out of the stretcher and helped the group carry it up the slope. I then jumped back into the stretcher whereupon it was moved into the ambulance and I was whisked off to have my hyper extended hip, pulled groin and bruised ribs tended to....and to get nice pills.

You can't make this stuff up.

T2x

[SKATIN]

After about 3 minutes of being dropped, retrieved, and re-assured, I suddenly snapped out of my trance, shouted out to remove my straps, jumped out of the stretcher and helped the group carry it up the slope.

T2x

That is one of the best stories I have ever read!!!!

Glad you were ok but that is hilarious!

[glassdave]

think i saw that on the three stooges once

[MarylandMark]

Good stuff!!

Looks like around 17 seconds lead boat walks over a tad- lane still there but tightened it up considerably.

[Ratickle]

think i saw that on the three stooges once

And which one are you comparing Rich to???????

Do you think that's where they got it?????

[Scarab KV]

That's why I love read'n these guys posts. They're knowledge, experience and stories that they bring to the game are priceless.

I suddenly snapped out of my trance, shouted out to remove my straps, jumped out of the stretcher and helped the group carry it up the slope. I then jumped back into the stretcher whereupon it was moved into the ambulance and I was whisked off to have my hyper extended hip, pulled groin and bruised ribs tended to....and to get nice pills.

You can't make this stuff up.

T2x

Precisely what I mean...funny stuff.

Now if you'l excuse me while I clean the coffee off my monitor

[SteveDavid]

The inevitable became evident. The pedal (or throttle) goes both ways. Sometimes it just isn't your day to win, but it could (and did) become your day to crash when you forgot that some day just wasn't your day to win..... They are alive, probably a little smarter..............
Steve U-1

[TYPHOON]

Its always better to be a leader than a chaser. In OSS we have a 50' rule that you own any line you want as long as the boat behind you is 50' back. Those X boats are about 30' long and it looked like a boat lenghths lead from what I could see. I am suprised he left him that much room going into the last turn. At 110 MPH and the destortion of your mirros I wouldnt have given that much room. Maybe there rules are differant over there. Its racing and driver skills come into play. If you dont think you can make the pin in your position following that boat then get out of the throttle. If you dont want to do that then take your chances or the other option is miss the turn if you dont feel safe crossing over the roostertail.
Look at it this way, If he would have left even more room and let the boat behind him have the turn on the inside lane and lost the race beacause of his worrys about being not liked by the other team then I as a throttleman would have thrown him out of my boat for loosing the race on such a stupid move. Its racing folks!!!
MD

[MOBILEMERCMAN]

He flipped and still made it on the proper side of the pin. He had plenty of room.

Driver Error. It was nobodies fault but his own.

[audacity]

he was just looking to get a bit more compression to get that 4mph he would have needed to get around him in that time period. lol

randy the 50 foot is for overtaking. if you are the lead boat u can give him 5 foot or nothing. if u go around someone, then u have to clear 50 feet before slamming the door.

[ThrottleUp Props]

The inevitable became evident. The pedal (or throttle) goes both ways. Sometimes it just isn't your day to win, but it could (and did) become your day to crash when you forgot that some day just wasn't your day to win..... They are alive, probably a little smarter..............
Steve U-1

Yes, they are!

Julie

[SHARKEY-IMAGES]

Tail is one thing, but what many people forget is the air coming off the lead boat is enough to increase the pressure in the following boat's tunnel to create an instant blow over. I watched it happen many times in the APBA SST 45 class. It is not only best to keep away from the rooster tail but leave also enough room for the air coming off the side of the lead boat to avoid the instantaneous pressure.

Drive along side a tractor trailer one day and you will feel the push on your vehicle as you make a pass.