Team AMSOIL #77 POPRA Cat Lite Champion/ OSS Podium Finish
Team AMSOIL traveled to Missouri to compete in the POPRA and OSS National Championships held at Lake of the Ozarks on September 29th and 30th , respectively. The race course was set in front of the famous Horny Toad entertainment complex. Event festivities included race team meet and greets during the week before the races and headliner concerts on Sunday. An estimated 40,000 spectators on land and another 2,000 boats lining the perimeter of the race course had a ring side seat for the fierce offshore competition. OSS officials counted a total of 40 race teams present between the two racing organizations.
During the Saturday POPRA Championship race, Team AMSOIL drew the outside lane and had to fight their way through the fleet after being held wide on the first turn by another boat in the number two lane. While in the process of attempting an inside pass on Team All Jacked Up to take over first place, Bob Teague (throttleman) and Paul Whittier (driver) were forced into an extremely tight line at turn one. With three laps to go, the Team AMSOIL boat was carving the turn when it lost its grip on the water and spun into a 100 yard side slide, ripping the skegs off of both drives. Whittier attempted to catch the boat while Teague kept throttling which kept the boat from flipping in the mishap. Once the boat came to a rest, the engines were restarted and Team AMSOIL continued racing as the third place Cat Lite boat, Reliable Carriers, drove past. Team AMSOIL was able to catch and overtake the Reliable Carriers boat and regain second place. This was an especially remarkable accomplishment considering that the boat was being raced with virtually no steering due to the lack of skegs. Team AMSOIL finished the race in second place, which secured their Pacific Offshore Series titles as both the 2007 Cat Lite Western Champion and 2007 High Points Champion.
With the damage to the drives and other components caused in the racing mishap on Saturday, the Team AMSOIL crew spent the night going over the boat and replacing the damaged drives. The damaged drives had the preferred gear ratio for the course and the only other drives available were the next best gear ratio which were installed with a prop pitch adjustment.
Sunday’s Super Cat Lite Race featured eight of the best teams competing on the tight 4.55 mile course. Team AMSOIL was running close to the front of the pack in fourth place when the All Jacked Up boat flipped right in front of them, at the same place Team AMSOIL had its mishap the day before. Whittier and Teague were required to take evasive actions which left the door open for the fifth place boat, Popeye’s, to get by on the inside. Team AMSOIL battled back and passed Popeye’s a few laps later. At this point, Team AMSOIL was reeling in the second place Reliable Carriers. Feeing the pressure, Reliable hooked in turn two and ran over the turn buoy. Reliable’s mishap resulted in a 1 minute penalty. Ultimately, Motley Crew finished first, Team AMSOIL second, and Popeye’s Famous Fried Chicken third.
The AMSOIL Offshore Racing team is both a new race boat and a new team this season, proud to announce their podium finishes in both the POPRA and OSS championship races! Nine out of the ten races completed this season were podium finishes, and Team AMSOIL took the checkered flag in five of those races. Team AMSOIL attributes its successes to the superior quality of the AMSOIL Racing lubricants that are used in the outdrives, engines and other systems of the boat. The team’s circuit includes events sanctioned by OSS, SBI, OPA, and POPRA. Up next, Team AMSOIL heads to Chattanooga, TN for offshore races hosted by the STARS Powerboat Rescue Team.
The team thanks AMSOIL for its great sponsorship package and the superior lubricants it offers. Thanks also go to AMF Offshore Racing for race support and their efforts to further the entire sport of offshore powerboat racing. United We Race!
About the Company: AMSOIL has been the recognized leader in synthetic lubrication and filtration since 1972. For more information about AMSOIL synthetic motor oils contact your nearest AMSOIL distributor, or call AMSOIL at (715) 392-7101 or 1-800-777-8491. AMSOIL INC., AMSOIL Building, Superior, WI 54880, or go to www.amsoil.com.
News Contact:
AMSOIL Race Program Manager
AMSOIL Building
Superior, WI 54880
(715) 392-7101
racing@amsoil.com
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