Outboard Racing

I got this picture from the pit just below the Eiffel tower at river Seine.
Interesting because the red #16 Molinari boat is using one of the first OMC 3 liter, looper V6 with fuel injection and Johnson RS cowling.
The drivers of the #16 is Johnny Sanders and Jimbo McConnell.
USA

Next blue #12 is a Molinari boat also using one of the first OMC 3 liter, looper V6 with fuel injection and Evinrude CCC cowling.
Drivers of the #12 is Renato Molinari and Tom Posey.
Italy/USA

The yellow/orange #15 Molinari/Bosch boat is powered with a Johnson RS 2.4 liter V6
The driver of the #15 boat is Erwin Zimmermann of Austria, I do not remember the second driver.

Next to Zimmermann is a boat you can only see the front and the bottom is covered up..
It is the #11 Molinari/Saffa boat powered by a Evinrude CCC 2.4 liter V6
Drivers are Angelo Vassena and Lars Strom.
Italy/Sweden.

This was for Vassena and me very interesting..Our first big race in the OZ class. We where very fast at testing but the OMC racing boss Jack Leek told us to use a way bigger pitch propeller to keep the RPM down. The reason was to make the race engine last six hours.
Well.. made the boat harder to drive but we made it to the end of the six hour race. Finished fourth overall..Second best OMC in the race.

Thanks again to Roberto Bigi

Angelo Vassena/Lars Strom in the #11 Molinari/Saffa/Evinrude V6.

The picture is from Tollare outside Stockholm, Sweden 1983.
This Burgess F1 boat built by David Burgess was brutal..
The boat it self was built from strong thin plywood, and the boat cowling was thin fiberglass. Empty boat before rigging was around 210 kg/463 lbs
Batteries, fuel tank, steering and seat around 50 kg/110 lbs
A total of 260 kg/573 lbs.
The Evinrude F1-V8 two stroke 3.5 liter 450 hp purpose built race engine including power trim/lift pump and prop. was around 250 kg / 551 lbs.
Complete ready to race without fuel 510 kg / 960 lbs.
There was none what so ever safety just a brutal race boat with a top speed over 140 MPH / 225 km/h.

Mercury’s top driver Bob Hering left Merc for OMC just before the race.
Bob Hering teamed up with Tom Posey and drove the #88 Johnson RS V6/ Molinari in the famous race.
Well..a hole in the boat ended the race early.
Again thanks to Roberto Bigi for this photo.