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Topock, Arizona is Still Topock.
Back in the day (s) that Wayne was talking about Topock, it had been rename Golden Shores. The "Real Topock" was an old Bar, probably nice to call it a "Dive Bar". They did have great Chili Sizes and cold Coors.
The bar was on the Colorado River, back water and had a gas dock.
A man named Dolly Harcourt owned it. He was a hell of a nice guy.
Some guys from Phoenix saw what was happening in Havasu (People were buying land by the plane full, as McCullough flew potential customers in from Chicago.
These investors bought desert land for $100 an acre and called the area Golden Shores, even though their land was not on the water. The investors, John Mueller was one met with Dolly and they made a deal to change the name of the Bar to Golden Shores Marina.
Jimmy Dawe was always a pretty good drinker, he and Dolly were good friends. Jimmy suggested they put on a boat race. Dolly loved the idea.
Jimmy got a hold of me and I contacted the Golden Shores People. I came up with the name Winternationals from Pomona Car Drags. APBA wasn't very hot on the idea.
My brother was on the APBA Council and he argued that Clyde Winter and Fred Nationals had offered his little brother $10,000 to put on a boat race. The Council agreed to have a race, no extra points, no National titles.
The first Winternationals was 1969, I think.
The year Wayne came, I had raised Golden Shores ante, to $40,000 dollars.
There was a cool little race course inside the backwater of Topock, we paid $100, $75, $50, $40, $30 per heat. We had 435 entries. I won High Points and won my 3rd lot in 1971. When the Golden Shore people found out Clark Maloof only raced the gas classes, thy gave him a lot for the Stock Outboard High Point.
The Havasu McCullough had bought land in Colorado, Arkansas and Arizona (Fountain Hills). I was paid to go to Fountain Hills by Havasu Land Company to see if we could race in their man man lake.
At the same time Golden Shores bought a large piece of land with lakes on it in Michigan.
I envisioned me working with these two land companies to promote some great boat races. I was offered a job with Golden Shores to run their Michigan Development.
I had been on Wide World of Spot at Havasu, local TV reported on our Winternationals. We bought some ads in the LA Times and they gave us a full page ad for Golden Shores.
I was about to take the job when John Meuller called and said a new law put them out of business. The new law require developers for lots smaller than 5 acres to guarantee water for 20 years.
Havasu City, Golden Shore, Willow Valley, California Ciy, Lake Los Angeles....and a few more land developments went out of business over night.
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I Wore Baggie Surfer Trunks as Did My Brother When We Raced
Until 1964, I race bare foot as I liked standing on the transom and the bottom of my runabout on the Straight A Ways. At the 1963, Boston Nationals, I hit a wave at the finish line and almost did a hand spring out of the boat. All the officials were amazed I had no shoes.
The next year shoes were required, now closed toed shoes are required.
Being 6'5" tall weighing 235 pounds and having a 32 inch waist, I got the nick name "Elephant Boy" because I had baggie trunks. The name never bothered me as I was kind of an ELEPHANT when I was in a boat.
Ted My called me "MOOSE". No trick photography here!
When I raced for OMC they always worried about my weight, til the races were over and they got the statistics. In many an Endurance race my laps times were the most consistent and my speed for my power was always above the plan from OMC. I always got the slow and steady stuff. But frequently, I wasn't slow.
As I always said, "235 doesn't matter if it is all on the gas pedal".
First Outboard to ever lead the Parker 9 Hour Enduro, 1969!