AMSOIL Inboard Endurance Team Wins Division V at the Grueling Parker 300 Enduro

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 2011
Contact: Cherilyn Teague
661.295.7000 ph
661.295.7007 fax

AMSOIL Inboard Endurance Team Wins Division V at the Grueling Parker 300 Enduro

On October 22, 2011, 35 race teams descended on the small town of Parker, AZ for the annual Blue Water Resort and Casino Parker 300 mile Enduro. Race boats of varying size, power, and hull configurations battle it out for 50 laps around the 6 mile course on the south end of the famous Parker Strip.

The Parker Enduro has a rich history stretching back into the 1960’s. At the modern Enduro, every boat has a chance to win overall, as faster boats are handicapped by delayed start times. Teague Custom Marine and AMSOIL brought out the venerable GN77 Endurance Inboard to compete in Division V for the 3rd consecutive year, striving for redemption following the disappointment of a DNF in 2010 due to a broken propeller. Division V was scheduled to start at 32 minutes after the slower Division I and II boats. The first boat to complete 50 laps from any of the 7 Divisions wins the race overall.

The Parker Enduro is notorious for testing the will of both man and machine. Over 300 miles of hard racing in rough water will emphasize even the smallest weaknesses in your equipment. The drama started early in Division V.

As the boats were lined up pointed outwards from the shore for the Modified Lemans start, the #10 “Outside the Box” catamaran took a wave over the side and started to sink. Crew members were not able to hold it afloat, and the driver was forced to start early to save the race boat, incurring a 1 lap penalty. Bob Teague drove the GN77 to a clean start with the #550 “Tub of Fools” Raysoncraft hot on his heels.

After 5 laps of hard racing, the water pump belt was thrown off the engine. Bob saw the engine start to heat up, but had to run another 4 miles to make it back to pit lane. By the time he shut the engine down at the “out” ramp, the engine water and oil temperature gauges were pegged at over 300 degrees F.

The team fixed the problem, topped off the fuel, and headed for the “in” ramp with John Teague at the wheel. Due to this issue, the GN77 would have to take three 10-minute pit stops total instead of the required two, effectively penalizing them 10 minutes, or two and a half laps.

John began cautiously, letting the engine cool down to a safe temperature. The TCM 1200 Quad was still making power and running stable under boost, so John kicked it up to full racing speed. With about two laps to make up on #550, he was on a mission. John turned in 16 sub-4 minute laps before taking the second pit stop and handing the boat back over to Bob.

Bob then did his part, turning another 16 consistently fast laps. On the third and final pit stop, the AMSOIL crew quickly worked on the boat, changing the battery and adding oil to the V-drive before sending John out to run the remaining laps. The Team AMSOIL GN77 finished 43 laps and achieved 1st place in Division V and 7th place overall.

Two components contributed to the success of the GN77 after a severe overheating: The build quality and components of the Teague Custom Marine engine, and the benchmark-setting performance of AMSOIL 15w-50 Dominator engine oil. No other combination would survive 300 degrees plus temperatures at boost and high RPM.

In the first half of the race, the #555 Division VI catamaran flipped north of Badenoch’s and driver Joe Abellera was injured. Team AMSOIL and Teague Custom Marine would like to extend our support to Joe and his family, and wish him a speedy recovery. We hope to see him back at the races next year. We would also like to congratulate Greg Gluck and the GN113 “Nightmare” for their flawless race and 1st place overall finish.

Television coverage of the AMSOIL Offshore Powerboat Series and the AMSOIL Offshore Racing Team is set to air on the Versus Network this November.

See you at the races!

Next Stop: Salton Sea Kilo Speed Record Runs – January 2012

Official Amsoil Site: http://www.amsoil.com/racing.aspx

Official Teague Custom Marine Site: www.teaguecustommarine.com

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