PROPWASH
Even page #
Month/year
14
October 2013
The race site is laid out very nice with easy
access to hotels and sites in and around
Salt Lake City.
My wife, kids and I visited the state
buildings and were in awe of all the
beautiful marble buildings. It was amazing
to find out how many movies were actually
made in Utah as well. Independence Day,
Forest Gump, and Thelma and Louise, just
to name a few.
Something else I didn't know was that
the very first KFC started out in Salt Lake
City back in 1952 as the Harmon Café,
previously the Doo Drop In cafe.
There is a lot of history in Salt Lake City
The area is very clean area with very
few potholes in the roads unlike where I
am from in the Edmonton area where
wheel alignments are a yearly tradition.
As for the racing, Doug
Sick was able to win X Hydro
and second in a few other
classes with Greg Wannamaker
taking some seconds and
myself winning A Mod Tunnel
and a second place in A OPC
with a brand new boat and
engine never run before this
event. I also finished first in
Scale Unlimited Hydro with
the Pay'n Pak. A boat I had
never driven before this race
either. My son Shane also
raced for the first time in the
Kid’s R Boaters class and had
a lot of fun. He is hooked now.
He won a new Sport 40 hull and was also presented by Alan Hobbs a brand new
Aeromarine mono that he won at the banquet. Alan made Shane promise that he had
race against him next year.
These were all added bonuses in an otherwise great week of racing and mingling
with the people in the NAMBA community.
District 16 Report
By Rob Duckering
District 16 Director
Racing season in Canada is at the
half way point and the break falls right
around the NAMBA Nationals every
year. This year, three of us headed down
to Salt Lake City, Utah to compete at
the Nats. It was Greg Wannamaker’s
first time at a NAMBA Nationals with
Doug Sick and myself joining along
with Alan Hobbs from Great Falls,
Montana. Alan arrived early on
Wednesday and set up tent city and
graciously allowed us to pit under his
roof. Thanks Alan!!!
The altitude is right around 4200 feet
so being used to Calgary, Canada at
3200 feet we figured set ups on the
boats would not change too much. What
really got to everyone was the heat at
over 90 degrees every day which we
rarely ever see in Canada, eh? Jim
Wilson from District 9 would regularly
mention the density altitude. I heard him
mention 7800 feet and even once over
8000 feet which means a few changes to
pipe length, needle setting and prop. So,
out came the props and wrenches for the
much needed changes. This made things
a bit of a challenge for me as it was my
first race of the year and I wasn't in sync
with my boats like I should be.
However, with all the people around and
boaters from all over the United States,
it was great to mingle with people I
hadn't seen for a few years. Guys like
Jim Wilson, Jerry Dunlap, Joe Monohan
and Lenny Blake were always a hoot to
chat with. This made the challenges
easier to adapt to. Speaking of Lenny
Blake, a few of us spent a lot of time in
his trailer area and display of model
boating parts. Purchasing much needed
and not always readily available items
required for future boat building and
racing support equipment. We joked that
we would help lighten his trailer for an
easier trip back to Arizona.
The Decker Dunkers club who
hosted the NAMBA Nationals did an
awesome job for their first kick at a
national event. They are to be
congratulated on a job well done! The
weather was awesome, the water
conditions were perfect every day and
some great racing occurred at the event.
Rob Duckering (m), Greg Wannamaker (l), and Alan Hobbs (r)
Doug Sick (l), Lenny Blake (m), Greg Wannamaker (r)
Shane Duckering in Kids R Boaters Too