Old Waterski Racers

[BADAXE]

I was a teenager in the 70's in Lake Arrowhead. There were a bunch of fast guys and girls up there. Craig Wendt was pretty fast. I remember going to the Endo's Speed Ski Nationals at long Beach Marine Stadium and watching him go through the traps at 135mph which at the time broke Chuck Stearns long standing world record.

[whiteworks]

I was a teenager in the 70's in Lake Arrowhead. There were a bunch of fast guys and girls up there. Craig Wendt was pretty fast. I remember going to the Endo's Speed Ski Nationals at long Beach Marine Stadium and watching him go through the traps at 135mph which at the time broke Chuck Stearns long standing world record.
my buddies dad broke out the home movies one night 16mm that he shot, boat racing, areobatics, all kinds of crazy stuff he was involved in. he has film of chuck stearns setting the world record behind a drag boat at longbeach. we must have rolled through that footage 10 times. it still blows my mind to think about it.

[Riverkid]

... I would have stayed in ski racing longer if they had gone back to smaller boats for the Catalina, but I didn't want to buy a 42 foot Fountain and cut 8 inches off the beak...
You don't have to do that anymore...

[h2ospdskir]

riverkid how is your heart ?

[Riverkid]

back at home, doing good. I think they fixed me...

[Racey]

My old man and Butch Peterson were best friends, they used to come up to mead and boat the whole lake in Butch's 18' Long Deck Mandella that my dad built for him, Won Catalina in it the week before Butch had his accident. Still see Danny Churchill out here on Mead every summer, he taught me how to ski when i was about 5. That guy is unreal on a ski, Him and Danny Hensler used to have competitions as to who could do the most Helicopters back to back, they'd break 100 in a row. Crazy sums of bishes, great guys!!!

[MUDXPRT]

my buddies dad broke out the home movies one night 16mm that he shot, boat racing, areobatics, all kinds of crazy stuff he was involved in. he has film of chuck stearns setting the world record behind a drag boat at longbeach. we must have rolled through that footage 10 times. it still blows my mind to think about it.
My dad had the world record in top blown fuel hydro back in those days and I remember them saying they pulled chuck stearns, the boats name was
Citation and my dad was Rene' Andre' I wonder if this was it?

[H20skier]

Anybody on these boards remember any of the following? Chuck Stearns, Butch Peterson, Rick Fowler, Mike Dixon, Mike Harker, Rick Cowles, Mike Murphy, David Lester, Don & Vic Baum, Debbie "Brown" Nordblad,Richie & Janie Welch,
Don & Denny Scales, Skip Hawkins, Bruce Izzat Jr & Sr, Pete Peters, Gary Steele, Timmie Guckes,
Jan & Dion Vanhoose, Nancy Symons, Joe Symons, Ron & Marge Eckhoff, Bill Kent, Ronnie & Norm Wilson, Danny Churchill, Dick & Shirley Freek, Dick & Gigi Williams, Leslie & Dickie Williams,...............anybody I left out???
Gary McIntyre, the Martini family, and some others I can picture but can't come up with a name. I seem to be afflicted with CRS.

[skyskier]

Skyskier, going to answer you here as it seems more appropriate than the Steamboat thingie. I pulled Chuck Stearn three times with a 32 Spectra which was considered a very big boat back in '78, '79 and '81. Everyone else was using everything from 18' mini's to 24' Schiada's (which pulled Chuck a few times too). After that, I went back to using a 21 Schiada and pulled ex-world champ Jeff Wooton and then Gary Tomlin. Every boat I used for ski racing for 15 years was turboed except for my last one, an normally aspirated 32 Hallett with a pair of 555" engines. I would have stayed in ski racing longer if they had gone back to smaller boats for the Catalina, but I didn't want to buy a 42 foot Fountain and cut 8 inches off the beak...
I've herad about this guy " shortening" his boat length for the Catalina race? Now that's dedication!! The last year I skied was 1967, my Dad was running an 18 wickens whirlwind. Skip Volk sold him a bare hull, and Pop pretty much rigged the whole boat, running one of those big bad ass 427 DOHC fords. I've been to several of the ski races at Parker in recent years as I've got a place there. For me personaly, I think the guy's are missing out on something. Like lining up 12 boats around badenochs, with 180 foot ski lines, and blasting downriver at close to 100 mph with EVERYBODY knowing " I'm gonna be the 1st one out of that 1st turn!! and then running the relatively short course where the casino is now. I don't know how the hell our dad's got everybody thru that without anybody getting seriously hurt!? I can still (at 60 yrs old) VIVIDLY remember being close enough to reach out and literaly touch the boat's on either side. I can still "hear" those open headers and feel the heat off them, and feel the "sting" of the spray hitting my face off those "flying flatbottoms" Funnest dam thing I've EVER done, and I've done a lot of fun, crazy stuff!! As I look back on it, seems to me the "ski races" were just something we did to fill some of the time while we were at the river or San Diego, or Phoenix or wherever. These guy's today seem to be way more serious about it?

[skyskier]

Gary McIntyre, the Martini family, and some others I can picture but can't come up with a name. I seem to be afflicted with CRS.
Last I heard Gary is living near you? or Is this you? I feel your pain with CRS......I can't beleive I left these people & the Barton's out of my initial post?