2021 NAMBA Nats Race Program

Justin wanted to race. They both thought he should start with a C Hydro. “WHAT, WHY?” that was my thinking. That class is too fast and he is only 11 years old, couldn’t stop them. Our garage turned into a boat building, engine tweaking, and paint room. They began to do almost everything themselves. SMB CLUB After going to many races, district meetings and banquets we inquired about how we could have a vote, have races closer to us, etc. Answer - create or join a club. So the Scottsdale Model Boaters was born. Initial club members were Bruce, Kevin, LeAnn, Greg, and Justin. Didn’t take long before Bob and Jim Osborne, Lenny, Al and Jake Malik, Russ and Mike Klipper, Brad and Mike Donovan, got on board to race and contribute. Some club members wanted to race with NAMBA, others just wanted to put on local races and go to Tucson’s club races. At one point we had over 30 members, money in the bank, and an official approved pond in Scottsdale to race on. LeAnn and I took charge and begin serving lunches and BBQ Steak dinners to allow more socialization and just relax. We were now going to every race, chasing points, and enjoying new friends and activities all along the way. This racing schedule became our vacations and life. Well worth it! FIRST NATIONAL EVENT That first National event for us was Wichita, KS and quite interesting. The Osbornes, Behans and us all went. The humidity about killed us, at least me. Testing the boats was a nightmare, everyone hogged the clips. Even our good friend Oxley came over to Justin and said he had the clip to long. Made him cry and yes, here comes a non-stopping bloody nose (P.S. Jack did come and apologize. LeAnn and I went every day to the store for drinks, snacks and more. We also got our sun tanning time in daily. My brother even came to watch. The Paddleboat Race was the best. There was an inside pool with a large cable running across to top. Next thing we knew, Greg was swinging from the cable doing flips and gymnastic stuff - Go Figure. I think Justin won the Paddleboat race. It was at this We were excited and felt honored when Al Hobbs asked us to write about how we got involved with the model boat hobby and some special times we have experienced over the many years of our membership. INTRO to NAMBA It was a Sunday morning and Justin told us he was going to be picked up by Jake and his Dad, Al Malik. They were going to a pond to run model boats. That turned into so much more. Greg went with them. Yes, they took beer and spent the afternoon. The boats were air boats and an old-time diesel ship. They continued to go the pond almost every Sunday for months. Then Al Malik told Greg about another pond on Indian School road where the guys were running race style boats, much faster. That got Greg’s attention. Greg met Kevin Behan and Bruce Munchauer. They shared information about NAMBA, racing and rules, what you needed, how everything worked, etc. Greg bought an A Hydro from Kevin, joined NAMBA, it was that easy. Got the boat running well and was ready to begin the journey. FIRST RACE We decided to make Bakersfield the first race. Kevin and Bruce were going to be there. Took off after work on Friday. Went to the pond early Saturday morning, got setup and ready. We noticed Kevin and Bruce helped each other a lot. I really wasn’t ready to help and not a NAMBA member, so Greg asked some guy to be his pitman and had a few other questions he hoped this guy could answer. That man turned out to be Jack Oxley. When everyone saw Greg and Oxley together, they asked Greg, do you know who that is? Greg replied NO, not really. We learned a lot about Jack that weekend, about his racing style, personality, wife, etc. We had fun. Greg probably finished one heat. Met some nice people such as, Sandy and Mark Dickens, Don Newberger, Pam and Wally Stewart, Dave Ghormley. We packed up Sunday night and drove home, knowing we would be doing this again. Greg moved out of the A class. He only wanted to run B, C, X hydros and monos and eventually twins. It was not long until The Hills and Model Boat Racing - By Sue and Greg Hill 2021 NAMBA Nationals Page 40