CHALLENGES: 
Kevin Braun adds another boat to our Hallett hydro Challenge. “I saw an old 48 cu. in. Hallett hydro when I was back in Nashville for the Unlimited race. I don't remember its name or who owned it, but I was wondering if it was on your list of known hulls.”
No it’s not on our list, Kevin. Do any of our members know who the owner of this 48 is? I believe Rich built fewer 48’s than any other class hull.  
 

FAMOUS NAMES OF THE PAST:
Ron Hill asks: Are you all reading www.boatracingfacts.com? The Ron Hill and Ted March Boat Racing Facts website is a fun filled site and covers all forms of boat racing.  Check it out. 

EVENTS:
JAN 26-28      APBA Annual Meeting  Ft. Lauderdale Contact:  APBA HQ 586-773-9700
FEB 25           Annual APBA Winter Gathering  Detroit  MI. Contact: Tom and Jacq Bertolini  586-716-4490                                
 
REPORTS:
Bill John III report: 
Yup, it's true, we finally finished "My Precious", a Jersey Speed Skiff built for Gerri Prusko. This "high end" skiff has a wooden deck with a 4 inch deck crown, bench seats, a shaker hood, and looks like a 50's/60's era skiff.
Bill John III reports from New Hampshire: Yup, it's true; we finally finished "My Precious", a Jersey Speed Skiff built for Gerri Prusko. This "high end" skiff has a wooden deck with a 4 inch deck crown, bench seats, a shaker hood, and looks like a 50's/60's era skiff. Congratulations to Brian Small, elected last week as our new APBA Region 1 Chairman! Brian has been a major factor in the success of our local New Hampshire Vintage Race Boat Regatta, and it is nice to see Brian also recognized by his peers. Sharon Small also got elected as our Secretary, and the only problem was - I got elected as Vice Chairman of Region 1. This is very exciting for me, as Brian, Sharon, and I bring new ideas and new enthusiasm to our group - and will hopefully bring "inboard" racing back to APBA Region 1 (New England).

By Gerri Prusko
Back on Columbus Day weekend, 2003, Bill invited me for a sunset cruise on Lake Winnipesaukee. That was quite a treat. The only problem I had, besides hanging on for dear life, was that I couldn’t hear a word Bill said. Those wonderful Obsession sidepipes! Occasionally, Bill slowed down enough for me to ask a question about the boat or the lake. That fall and winter, all Bill could talk about was the APBA Vintage Race Boat Circuit. He especially mentioned the 100th Anniversary of the Detroit Gold Cup and the unique Antique and Classic Boat Museum at Clayton, NY. When I accompanied Bill to the Clayton event, I got my first ride on an APBA vintage race course. Would you believe that it all started with a boat ride in Bill John’s beloved Obsession? Yes, that’s how my love affair with vintage race boats first began. One of our local Lake Winnipesaukee skiff heads, Len Finithy, needed a rider for his event on Sunday morning. I had never been on a race course before and had some trepidation about taking off. Bill encouraged me to take the ride and even offered me his safety helmet and racing jacket. Len and I got on the race course on a beautiful sunny day. After the first turn, I was hooked!! Len is a very conscientious driver and was well aware of the other boats on the course. Even so, we hit some fast speeds and made some waves. What fun! All you have to do is see the smile on my face to recognize that I was having a great time. After that ride, I was convinced that I wanted to drive my own boat. At the next event, in Buffalo, NY, Judy Fisk and I walked around and looked at all the vintage boats. Bill and Judy Fisk own the Grand Prix hydroplane, The Irishman. During that walk, I began to conceive of the idea of owning my own vintage race boat. Judy asked me a lot of questions about the type of boat I wanted. That conversation really helped me form the image of driving a boat on the APBA Vintage Race Boat Circuit. During the fall of 2004, Bill John and I continued the conversation that I had started with Judy Fisk. We considered a hydroplane, but hydroplanes are usually single seaters, and I really wanted to share the fun and give boat rides. While having a vintage wooden boat was very attractive to me, it did seem like an awful lot of work for a boat I just wanted to have fun with. Besides, I kept coming back to the ride I had in Clayton in a Jersey Speed Skiff. When Bill told me that he knew someone, Dave Yeager, who was building skiffs, I got the bug. Arrangements were made and on February 10, 2005, my Jersey Speed Skiff, My Precious was born. The name was chosen from the J.R.R. Tolkien trilogy The Lord of the Rings. My Precious is the name that several of the characters give to the magic ring. Anyone who possessed the ring became obsessed with it, cannot think of anything else, and find it difficult to part with it. I think this boat may be like that for me. My next step will be to get experience and "seat time" driving the boat. So, I am looking forward to Spring and ice out. I may well be the first driver on the lake this year, so that I can be prepared for the APBA Vintage Race Boat Circuit. Look for me there!
 
ON A SAD NOTE: 
Kenneth W. DeRango Sr. passed away on October 18, 2005 from a heart attack. DeRango drove the 7-Litre WHIZSKI. In 1957, using an extension to WHIZSKI’S tailfin to increase the boat’s length, he attempted to qualify for the Seattle Gold Cup. The 7 Litre hull was later raced as REDSKIN and MISS HEIDELBERG.

Norm Majer pasted away November 2, 2005. Norm campaigned MAJOR’S FORD through-out Region 10 and competed in the Miami Orange Bowl Regatta in the mid-1960's. The Ed Johnston built 7-Litre cabover ran a 428 Single Overhead Cam Ford blueprinted by Ford's NASCAR team. The hull was also raced as QUICK DELIVERY running a 426 Chrysler Hemi, until 1975. Our condolences and sympathy go to their friends and families.