1939 Boat Racing Trophy

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  • November 12, 2015 at 12:16 pm #2954
    bdbill
    Participant

      I bought a boat racing trophy a fews years back at a flea market. It’s from 1939, has A,B,C in two anchors, McKay’s Cafe, S.V.C. Runabouts, 16HP and Under, 1st Place Kirk Meyer. Kirk Meyer was the district Evinrude dealer in Milwaukee and was involved in boat racing. His son, Bob Meyer was a champion in the late 1940s early 1950s in outboard races. What does S.V.C. stand for and the A,B,C? Thank you for any help.

      November 12, 2015 at 2:31 pm #26964
      kevinrude
      Participant

        I’m going to guess the A/B/C reference the racing classes. I don’t have a definition of each class, but I know there were classes. Someone with more racing knowledge will fill in the details shortly I am sure.

        November 12, 2015 at 7:20 pm #26973
        PugetSoundBoater
        Participant

          I found PDF copy of Boat Sport magazine from Feb 1953 listing the American Powerboat Racing Association and NOA (National Outboard Assoc?) Weight limits for the A,B and C classes hydro
          APBA : hull weight overall wt (boat and Driver)
          A class 100 lb. 250 Lb
          B class. 100. 265
          C class. 150. 315

          NOA : total weight (Boat and Driver)
          A class. 260 lb
          B class. 260
          C class. 315

          As for the SVC, don’t know. Mckays Cafe could have been the sponsor of the race

          "Some people want to know how a watch works, others just want to know what time it is"
          Robbie Robertson

          November 12, 2015 at 8:10 pm #26977
          PugetSoundBoater
          Participant

            You can access the Boat Sport magazine archives from the 1950’s
            At boatsport.org
            Lots of great articles and photos. Great boat and motor advertisements !

            "Some people want to know how a watch works, others just want to know what time it is"
            Robbie Robertson

            November 12, 2015 at 9:09 pm #26981
            chris-p
            Participant

              The classes were first introduced I believe in 1924. Due to the rapid acceleration of interest in the US for outboard racing, the APBA raced to set the rules.

              Class A : Under 12 cubic inches (200cc)
              Class B : 12 to 17 cubic inches (200cc to 280 cc)
              Class C : 17 to 30 cubic inches (280 cc to 500 cc)
              Class D : 30 and over (500 cc to …….)

              Now, fast forward to 1927. The latest Johnson P-35 Big Twin was stepped up to 8hp, and new speed records were being broken weekly. The records were in the 32 mph range at this time.

              The Big Twins were so hot, and selling so well, this is when the brand new factory at Waukegan, Illinois was opened.

              Evinrude tried to keep up, by taking the powerhead of his Light Twin, and fitting it to the leg and lower unit that was more advanced, creating the 7hp Elto Speedster. It couldn’t keep up with the Johnson Big Twin though.

              So, for 1928, Ole and Ralph created Americas first four cylinder, 2 cycle outboard by mounting one powerhead on top of another, and called her the Quad. The Quad had 40 cubic inches, and was about 18hp. This new monster allowed boats to reach the 40mph mark!

              So then, the APBA decided to refine the racing rules, engine class limits, divisions for amateurs and free for all classes, stock motor definition, approved course lengths, and methods for starting and timing.

              The new classes were as follows:

              Class A: <14 cu/in=<250 cc = 6-10hp
              Class B: <20 cu/in=<350cc = 12-15hp
              Class C: <30 cu/in = <500cc = 18-22hp
              Class D: <40 cu/in = <650cc = 25-30hp
              Class E: <50 cu/in = <850cc = 30-35hp
              Class F: <60 cu/in = <1000cc = 36-40hp

              Under these rules, better, organized races and mile trials took place.

              For those interested in this era of racing, I highly recommend "A Century of Outboard Racing", by Kevin Desmond.

              November 13, 2015 at 6:08 am #27003
              PugetSoundBoater
              Participant

                I apologize for posting the data for the 1953 rules,which didn’t evidently apply to 1937 I should have checked more indepth with my old outboard racer friends for the 1937 time period racing classes before posting. Rules get revised and changed as time passes.

                "Some people want to know how a watch works, others just want to know what time it is"
                Robbie Robertson

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