This page is dedicated to the outboard racing events of yesterday and today. O. F. Christner loved the sport and wanted to see outboard racing grow and continue to progress. So do we.

We've collected quite a few old racing photos from various racers that we grouped together on this page to share with everyone. The dates range from the 1940's to the 1980's. We try to give race locations and dates when possible. Many of the photos in this section are from the private collection of champion boat racer & photographer, Wayne Baldwin, of Texas. We deeply appreciate Wayne's contributions to the sport of outboard racing and the historical value of his photos. Please enjoy the photos here of races past. (This photo by Wayne Baldwin is from Alexandria, LA, in 1979.)

These photos from the 1974 Pro Nationals were taken by Wayne Baldwin, championship winning boat racer and photographer. Thanks again, Wayne, for your contributions to outboard racing history and the Quincy Looper web site.

Photos from the 1977 World Championships, courtesy of Wayne Baldwin.

Thanks to a long time racing fan's contribution to this site, we have several photos of various Quincy racing engines that he took back in 1980 at the PRO Nationals held in La Crosse, WI.

Thunder in the Hills Regatta - 2008 This United States Title Series Sanctioned Power Boat Racing event was again organized by the 5 Rotary Clubs in Citrus County. Both non-profit Community Organizations and some for-profit area businesses had displays to hand out information on their various missions and business services. The weather was sunny and beautiful, although it turned windy late Sunday afternoon, forcing the cancellation of final heats in some classes. This photo is by Jean Tennell.

Click on the link to see round 2 of the photos from the 2008 Inverness, FL races.

We were very fortunate to meet up with an old friend of the family at the races at Inverness, Paul Simison. Paul is the brother of the outboard race legend, Jerry Simison, and is a professional photographer that photographed many outboard racing events 25+ years ago. He now specializes in wildlife photography and showed us some incredible photographs he took recently of alligators and herons (birds). Paul very graciously sent us copies of his photos from Inverness in 2008 to post here on the Quincy Welding site. These photos are posted here with Paul Simison's permission and are not to be copied or posted to any other web site without his written permission. Thank you, Paul, for your contribution! (PS: Paul sent us a large collection of photos, so please keep checking back as we will be resizing and posting them here as time allows.)

LAKE WALES, FLORIDA Boat Races to Aid Special Playground The 2008 U. S. Title Series "Race For The Kids" was held Saturday and Sunday on Lake Wales. More than 80 race teams from across the country competed in the race sanction by the American Power Boat Racing Association. This was the conclusion of the U.S. Title Series Florida Speed Week, which began the weekend before at Lake Hernando near Inverness. The U.S. Title Series is a national racing series consisting of 10 different classes of the Professional Racing Outboard division of the American Powerboat Association. Hybrid two-stroke engines are raced on both hydroplane and runabout boat configurations. Speeds in many classes reach or exceed 100 mph in these lightning-quick boats. Designed solely for racing, the methanol-powered engines can generate in excess of 13,000 RPMs. The three-day race festival was sponsored by the Lake Wales Kiwanis. Proceeds from the weekend will be used to build Barney's Dream, an all-inclusive playground designed for special needs and able-bodied children at Kiwanis Park.

2008 is the 24th Annual Suncoast Offshore Grand Prix at Sarasota, FL. Over the past 23 years, the festival has given more than $14 million towards the construction of facilities that provide programs and services to physically and mentally challenged children and adults. Special guests for this year’s Festival include Captain Keith Colburn & Crew of the fishing vessel Wizard, featured on Discovery Channel’s “Deadliest Catch” presented by Caterpillar Marine Power. They will be making appearances at Powerboats By The Bay (July 4 & 5) and at “Meet and Greet Who’s In the Driver’s Seat” on July 5. Also in town will be Chef Marc who has appeared on the Food Network and currently airs a show called “The Best of Everything with Marc Cummings” on Wealth TV. The Festival begam on June 28th with a Golf Tournament and Kickoff Party. Later in the week the Festival Parade of Boats was held on Thursday, July 3, followed by something new called “Powerboats On Main Street” where spectators could view race boats up close on Main Street after the Parade. Powerboats By The Bay was held three days this year (July 4-6. The racing action takes place on Sunday, July 6, with two races off Lido Beach at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. presented by Super Boat International Productions.

Page 2 of Photos from the 2008 Sarasota Offshore Grand Prix event. This year’s Suncoast Offshore Grand Prix Race is scheduled to take place on Sunday, July 6, and will run from New Pass to Big Pass. This adjusted race course is approximately 6.5 miles long and the best viewing will be from the Lido Beach area. There are 2 scheduled heats beginning at 11:00 a.m. and the second heat starting at approximately 1:00 p.m. The re-configuration of the race course was guided by several factors. Super Boat International/APBA Productions Inc. has been allowing the Sarasota race site to exceed the maximum race course length for the last several years. Currently the rule requires that the race course be no less than 5 miles long and no longer than 10 miles long. In order to continue to have a sanctioned race, the Sarasota race site had to conform with the rule on the race course length. Currently to maintain the integrity of a 13-mile race course, it takes nearly 60 law enforcement, medical rescue and volunteer patrol vessels, as well as 2 dedicated helicopters for marine mammal watch. By shortening the race course, the amount of vessels needed will be reduced, and the medical response time will be shortened. In addition, it will enable us to leave both New Pass and Big Pass open during the event. It is now, and has always been, the goal of the Festival Steering Committee to put on the safest, most exciting offshore power boat race possible, within the confines of the rules and regulations of the sanctioning body, governmental agencies, and still working within the natural restraints of our coastline.

The 2008 APBA - UIM (Union Internationale Motonautique) World Championships were held at Lake Alfred, Florida, on October 23rd and 24th. Drivers participated from the USA, Italy, Germany, Finland, Sweeden, Great Britian and Slovakia. (Photo courtesy of Wayne Baldwin)

The 72-year-old Orange Cup Regatta was held in Lakeland, Florida, at Lake Hollingsworth March 6th - 8th of 2009. The Regatta featured at least 125 professional drivers in 19 different speed boat classes, pushing speeds of more than 100 mph in the American Power Boat Association sanctioned contest. Classes included PRO (KProH, OSY-400), OPC (SST45, SST60, SST120, Mod U, Super Sport), Inboard (Jersey Speed Skiffs, 2.5L stock, 2.5L Mod, 5 liter), Junior Class (JH)and Super Light Tunnels. The weather was beautiful and crowds were estimated at 10,000 for the 3 day event. (Photo courtesy of John Howe.)

We had so many great photos from the 2009 Orange Cup Regatta from Lakeland, Florida, that we had to continue the coverage of the event on a 2nd page. (Photo courtesy of John Howe.)

These photos were sent to us by long time race fan, Dale Hoffert. Dale sent us the following information along with the photos: Just a few notes about the race. Due to the extremely wet spring the lake was really high. In some of the pit shots you can see it was up to the shelter were the Mens Club has the food stand during the Nationals and all the trailers were parked on the street. There was a lot of debris that had to be cleared from the lake and on occasion the races were held up to pick up floating branches. There are also a couple pictures where you can see piles of branches.

July brings the annual Speed Week, starting with a stop in Constantine, MI for the American Legion/Thirlby Automotive event. This historic site has been hosting PRO racing for over 50 years and continues to be a favorite stop on the US Title Series tour. A special thanks to Dale Hoffert for contributing these great race photos that he took at the Constantine event.

The 25th annual Depue Mens Club - APBA PRO National Championships were held in Depue, IL, July 29th thru August 2nd of 2009. It was a full week of testing, tuning, and racing action and at the end of the week - the 2009 National Championships. This photo shows 250 Hydro racing action from Sunday. A special thanks to Dale Hoffert for sharing his action packed racing photos from DePue with us here.

Dale Hoffert sent us so many great photos from the PRO Nationals held at DePue, Illinois, that we created a 2nd page.

Sarasota, Florida, hosted the 26th annual Suncoast Super Boat Grand Prix, previously known as the Suncoast Offshore Grand Prix. Offshore boat racing returned to Sarasota June 27 - July 5 to participate in a series of events to benefit the Florida Center for Child & Family Services. The week's events included golf and fishing tournaments, a car show, parade of boats in downtown Sarasota, parties, kilo runs and bay front activities, including the popular bikini contest. The super boat races took place on July 4th.

The US Title Series returned to Constantine, Michigan, to race on the St. Joe River. A special thanks to Dale Hoffert for sending us the fabulous race photos he took at Constantine. This photo is of Ralph Donald in F-22 competing in a heat of 175cc Hydro. Ralph was the winner of that heat. Congratulations Ralph!

The US Title Series returned to Depue, Illinois, July 30th through August 1st, 2010, for the APBA PRO National Championships. A special thanks to Dale Hoffert for taking and contributing the photos you see here from the Depue races.

The "Annual High Point Chase Showdown" was held in Jesup, Georgia, at the end of October. This was an APBA sanctioned event. 32 heats were raced on Saturday, with 4 flips (no injuries). Sunday had 34 heats. Several High Ponit races were decided. 175cc Hydro had Diane Murray some 236 point behind Ralph Donald before the weekend began. Diane won overall both days securing the US-2 title. The AXR class was also decided. Aaron Salmon from Washington was leading the points prior to the weekend, Becky Nichols needed 400 points to take the lead and Max Acierno (2010 National Champion) needed 464 to beat out Becky for the 2-US title. Becky did what she needed to winning both heats on Sat with Max taking second. Full racing results are posted on the linked page. Photo courtesy of Bob Dunlap.

Click on the link to see photos from the event held at Jesup, Georgia.

The 27th Annual Suncoast Super Boat Grand Prix Festival and races were held June 30th through July 3rd in Sarasota, FL, with the actual boat races taking place July 3rd. This is a huge gathering of super boat racers and fans. Crowd estimates for the week of events are upwards of 100,000 people, including visitors from all over the United States and some from as far away as Europe. The Suncoast Super Boat Grand Prix Festival benefits the Suncoast Charities for Children. “Sarasota is one of the longest continuously running race sites in the country and a premier race site on the 2011 National Series points schedule”, says John Carbonell President of Super Boat International. This year there were plenty of events for the entire family to enjoy. Events included a golf tournament, classic car show, fishing tournament, popular boat parade through downtown Sarasota, followed by a huge downtown block party with live bands, vendors, food and dancing. On Friday and Saturday the super boats and teams were set up in Centennial Park at the bay front from 10 am until 9 pm for fans to visit the race teams for autographs and photos. Other events at the Park included a motorcycle run/show Saturday morning, a bikini contest Saturday afternoon, and live bands, food and vendors. The actual super boat races took place on Sunday, off the shores of Lido Beach.

DePue, IL, was the site for the July 25th through July 28th APBA Pro National Championships for the US Title Series AND also for the a Boat Racers Reunion. The event was almost canceled due to low water levels caused by drought, but volunteers rallied just days before the event to place sandbags on Lake Depue for a temporary dam so water from the Illinois River could be pumped into the lake to raise the water level to a required 5 foot depth. The plan was successful and boat racers and fans gathered in DePue to create new champions in the present time as well as celebrate the accomplishments of champions of years past. A special thanks to former Quincy Welding employee Gene East for providing photos of this event for posting on our web site. Gene was an integral part of the Quincy Welding team for many years.