A commitment fulfilled -- and it's on to the race course

At the end of his first quarter of school, Chris came to me with a report card and a bank book.

He had earned 5 A's and 2 B's in school and had $600 in the bank. Needless to say, we immediately went boat shopping. We found a good boat with a Mercury "60-J" motor and a couple of props (Note: This engine is no longer legal). We had a great winter and spring working together in the garage taking off all of the old paint, painting the boat in our racing colors, replacing worn hardware and generally getting ready for the racing season.

Although we didn't win any regular races during that year, we accomplished what we wanted. Chris learned sportsmanship, racing safety and rules and became an expert at making starts. Late in the year, we bought an OMC "A" motor and made some minor changes to the boat to accommodate it. We had to borrow a propeller for the new engine. At the Lawrence Lake Record Regatta, Chris took the lead with an excellent start on a 5 mile / 4 lap course. He never looked back and went on to set a National record that stood for four years in the class.