Team Johnson

[Ron Hill]

Havasu, November 1972....32 years ago....Jeff Briggs, Mac McCune, Art Kennedy, Tommy Posey, Johnny Sanders....Nordskog's name on a boat, but he wasn't Team Johnson...

[Mark Poole]

32 years.....I was 10 years old and remember this well. My older brother was a Mercury fan and I was all for OMC. Mercury had been kicking OMC's butt at all the big races. This was the first year of single engine boats. Seebold flipped early, Velden blew over and was seriously injured. Johnny Sanders had been trying for years to win this race and finally did with a Scotti Craft and a Stinger GP.

The following year Mercury refused to enter claiming the new OMC rotary engine had an unfair advantage. (It is unlikely that the rotary engines could have survived two days of racing). That was the end of Havasu as we knew and loved it.

[Balzy]

for a OMC buddy of mine and I forgot about it the day of the auction. Damn, he woulda liked this one.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4519553443&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

Havasu, November 1972....32 years ago....Jeff Briggs, Mac McCune, Art Kennedy, Tommy Posey, Johnny Sanders....Nordskog's name on a boat, but he wasn't Team Johnson...
Hi Ron, got the impression you were ther in -72, do you remember
Dieter Schulze (111) attending wis his new picklefork and Johnson Stinger, if so how he finished ?

Can you tell me how I can enclose pictures to a quote ?
Thanks alot

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

Dieter Schulze, got the picture from Dieter winther -72, told me it was taken in Lake Havasu, not sure weather he attended the race. He build the next boat for me.

[stingray240cs]

Hi,

the picture was taken 1972 in Parker, not Lake Havasu..
Dieter went there with Michael Werner...
Best Regards,

Roman
Vienna/Austria

P.S. The picture showes Dieter and me 2005-12-28 in his house.

[Mark75H]

Thanks for the pic, Roman! Next time you see Dieter tell him his class win at Havasu in 1966 is known as the beginning of tunnel hull racing era in the US.

Please ask him if these details are correct:

He built the boat at the Sidson shop in New Jersey, had the motors prepaired by Jon Culver in Ohio and trailered the rig from Ohio to Arizona with a used station wagon. After the race he sold the boat to Bud Babbitt.

I know something that would be of great interest .... could you ask Herr Schulze when he built his first tunnel hull and where he raced it? Does he have any pictures of it?

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

Hi,

the picture was taken 1972 in Parker, not Lake Havasu..
Dieter went there with Michael Werner...
Best Regards,

Roman
Vienna/Austria

P.S. The picture showes Dieter and me 2005-12-28 in his house.

Thanks alot Roman for the information and the picture of yourselves and this great gentleman. I had the pleasure of owning/racing three Schulze's, one -71 SE class, one -71 ON class and the boat after the "parker" one.
Please all my regards to this gentleman and the best wishes for a happy new year. By the way, is Dieter still manufacturing boats ?

[stingray240cs]

Hi boys,
I had a long chat with Dieter on the 28-th. I took all the old pictures from his workshop for scanning, but give me some more days to od it.
Dieter is not more building boats, the market died more or less - its a shame.
The biggiest problem is - Dieter has in total cca. 25 pictures from his racing career. For a 17-time World and European Champ its not to much.
The worst for me is that there is no one about Dieter racing hydro with Crescent CS500 where he won the C Stock European Championship 1961/62.
Do you know somebody who could have some?

Sam,
the story 1966 was a bit different. Dieter was picked up by Dick o Dea from the Kennedy airport and driven to New Jersey.At Sid´s workshop he has built his boat and his friend Frank from Canada picked Dieter up in NJ. They drove to Lake Havasu. Dieter agreed with J. Culver to get two Mercury´s for the race. Jon brought the Mercs to LH and Dieter tested them there. He decided to use only one engine, as the double was too heavy incl. the extra fuel and the speed was only slightly higher with two engines. After he has won the race the boat stayed with J.Culver and Dieter went back to Austria.

That´s the story for today, I´m looking for your comments and hopefully pictures from Crescents and Schulze boats. Dieter was racing Nr. 111 and 114.
Best Regards from the snowy Austria
Roman

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

Hi boys,
I had a long chat with Dieter on the 28-th. I took all the old pictures from his workshop for scanning, but give me some more days to od it.
Dieter is not more building boats, the market died more or less - its a shame.
The biggiest problem is - Dieter has in total cca. 25 pictures from his racing career. For a 17-time World and European Champ its not to much.
The worst for me is that there is no one about Dieter racing hydro with Crescent CS500 where he won the C Stock European Championship 1961/62.
Do you know somebody who could have some?

Sam,
the story 1966 was a bit different. Dieter was picked up by Dick o Dea from the Kennedy airport and driven to New Jersey.At Sid´s workshop he has built his boat and his friend Frank from Canada picked Dieter up in NJ. They drove to Lake Havasu. Dieter agreed with J. Culver to get two Mercury´s for the race. Jon brought the Mercs to LH and Dieter tested them there. He decided to use only one engine, as the double was too heavy incl. the extra fuel and the speed was only slightly higher with two engines. After he has won the race the boat stayed with J.Culver and Dieter went back to Austria.

That´s the story for today, I´m looking for your comments and hopefully pictures from Crescents and Schulze boats. Dieter was racing Nr. 111 and 114.
Best Regards from the snowy Austria
Roman

Hi again Roman, sorry to hear that Dieter have so few pictures, I will contact friends in Sweden and Norway to investigate, may be Leif Ahlborg, Kent Rohm, Erik Braathen can help out.

Picture of my ON Schulze, year -73, unluckily I flipped it the first race (had to beat the Merc's) and was badly injured.

[stingray240cs]

Hi again Roman, sorry to hear that Dieter have so few pictures, I will contact friends in Sweden and Norway to investigate, may be Leif Ahlborg, Kent Rohm, Erik Braathen can help out.

Picture of my ON Schulze, year -73, unluckily I flipped it the first race (had to beat the Merc's) and was badly injured.

Hi,
I´ve just sent an email to Frode ( www.f2boat.com ) who is a very good friend of mine. I was racing with Frode F4 and he helped mi a lot after my accident in Le Havre 1997 when I ended in wheelchair. After that we did together F2 and F1. Frode will post my message on his website - I hope somebody will have pictures..
BTW Kent Rohm is working with Frode, I think this is a very good team!

Best Regards,
Roman

This is a picture of Dieter and his winning boat 1966 in Lake Havasu

[Tomtall]

From "Power Boat Magazine" May 1971. The article reads "OMC comes out smelling like a rose" with inbords and team Mercury trailing behind.

[Tomtall]

The begining to compete with the Merc's. ;)

[stingray240cs]

Hi guys,

interesting reading.
Look at Frode´s website ( www.f2boat.com ) under news/ 2006-Jan-9th.
Regards,

Roman

[Tomtall]

Team OMC. Go, Go Johnnie Go!

[Poco Loco 153]

I ordered a hull from Deiter after the 72 Havsu Race. he was there. I picked it up at Houston TX port in March of 73. I got a new T1 6 carb and put on it. It was fast down the straights , but would float starting into the turns , then hook badly. I found myself on the deck hanging to the wheel several times. I finally blew it over at the Seattle race in July of 73.
I have some pictures of it somewhere, at my cabin , I think. I'll try to dig them out.

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

I ordered a hull from Deiter after the 72 Havsu Race. he was there. I picked it up at Houston TX port in March of 73. I got a new T1 6 carb and put on it. It was fast down the straights , but would float starting into the turns , then hook badly. I found myself on the deck hanging to the wheel several times. I finally blew it over at the Seattle race in July of 73.
I have some pictures of it somewhere, at my cabin , I think. I'll try to dig them out.

Pictures would be great.
Was informed that Schulze made three identical of mine (and probably your boat). Funny I had exactly the same experience as you regarding the handling, my first engine on the boat was the Johnson Stinger with the big gearcase, very much side torque in the boat, however handled much better
with the Merc T1, still easy to hook in the turns. Wish I had kept the boat for
the TIIx the year later. (Switched to Miles Master)

[Poco Loco 153]

When I picked up my boat in Houston , there was another one there too. The same , different trim color. I never saw it at a race.
Was Deiter the first to build a Pickle Fork Tunnel hull ? It was the first one I'd seen , but I had only raced a couple years.

Dick Roberts

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

When I picked up my boat in Houston , there was another one there too. The same , different trim color. I never saw it at a race.
Was Deiter the first to build a Pickle Fork Tunnel hull ? It was the first one I'd seen , but I had only raced a couple years.

Dick Roberts

Hi again Dick, due to my knowledge (I'm not 100 percent )Dieter was the first who raced a picklefork, might be possible that Renato Molinari had build some at the same time, however kept in secret while testing. Dieter showed up in the Berlin 6 hour race September -72 with a picklefork in class OI(merc BP 1250), the rear extensions were loooong, guess approx 30-40 inches. Have som blurry pic's will scan and send.

brgrds
Lyder

[Mark75H]

Dick's pictures:

[Poco Loco 153]

Thanks Mark , for posting my Pics of my Schulze. Year 1973. THe second pic was taken after the first time it hooked badly , and I was puzzled what Id done wrong. I never did figure it out.

Dick Roberts

[J.Lyder von Tangen]

Dick's pictures:
Thanks alot Mark, great pictures, as far as I can see this is identical to
my SChulze -73 ! (I traced my boat order to get it back, it had only 10 hours on the water, however it was totaly crashed as the the last owner was reclessy driving with the car and the boat on the trailer).
WOuld hav ebeen great for classic racing in Norway and Sweden.

[Mark75H]

I'd have to look thru a lot of old pictures to see if Schulze made the first pickle tunnel, but here is a Jones from 1969:

[Skoontz]

Did'nt Scat Craft have a kneeler tunnel come on the scene about 1968 or 9????

Seems to me I had an old poster from Johnson with Geoff Briggs in a GW Invader E boat, Jeff Titus in a Scat Craft powered by a Golden Meteor 115, there was Johnny
Sanders in a Sport J and Jimbo at the bottom getting special recognition in class S and T from Johnson because he drove an Evinrude/Molinari. He autographed that poster for me when he appeared at the Fox River in St. Charles, Illinois, at Pottowatamee park. My dad showed the Goat where to buy Sunoco 260 for the day.

[OLEGATORXX]

Ran A Vee Bottom In '68. I Think The Tunnel Came In '69. He Started The '68 Season With A Gt115 Johnson On The Vee Bottom. He Changed To A Merc 1000bp After A Few Races.

[Ron Hill]

October 13, 1970...

Sanders and Posey win with 115 Johnson...

[Ron Hill]

Ernie Dawe and I drove this beauty...A 16 foot Glastron with twin Johnson V-4's....If you look at my face, you can tell she was driving me, I wasn't driving her!!!!!

Lucky for us the motors didn't last long...

[Ron Hill]

Skoontz and I were trying to remember who drop the Johnson powered boat that said, "Then came Johnson" (There was a TV show at the time called Then Came Bronson)...

It was Mike Osborn from Florida..

Powerboat magazine 1970...

[Skoontz]

I knew Titus was driving that Scat Craft too! At the bottom of the bunch was the great one, Jimbo given OMC recognition for wons in classes S and T. I always thought then came was Geoff Briggs though...Thanks for posting Ron!

[hydrocat]

I've been readingthis thread. Is Deiter still around. I've had a ot of fun with my Schulze/stinger Gp. Plan on having more.

[swamppanther]

Excellent Photos!!!!