Re: Flugwerk AP-51 Palomino for Unlimited?
They never \'raced\' them. But during the 1981 season, as the Griffon Bud was soundly thrashing both the Atlas Van Lines and Circus Circus teams, Bill Bennett (who was part owner of the Circus Circus Hotel/Casino, and the hydro guy of the partnership)got together with Bill Muncey and made the decision that both of them were going to \'go Griffon\' for 1982. Bennett had been running the experimental 4-point boat--which, incidentally, tried running a turbocharged Merlin--and Muncey was toying with Allison-rod Merlins...both of which met with disasterous results.
They were going to partner together and pool engine resources. In late September 1981, Bennett located a large stash of Griffon engines and (according to Fran)notified Bill Muncey that \"he had just procured them\". That part of the story is backed up by talking with Jeff Neff, who was the head engine wrench for the Bud team at that time. At the Acapulco race, literally minutes before Muncey was killed, they were getting the boats in the water and Muncey turned to Neff and said \"Your driver\'s getting soft...tell him this is the last race he\'s gonna have this advantage!\"
But after Muncey was killed, Bennett started taking heat from the Circus Circus board about wasting money on boat racing (the team had only qualified for two races that year and managed to finish only one heat--in last place--despite one of the biggest budgets). So Circus Circus pulled out of racing for several years. And at the same time Fran and Atlas were deciding if they were going to continue racing after Bill\'s death. They ended up building a new boat and staying with Merlins...so the Griffons just sort of fell by the wayside.
Where did they go? I don\'t know. Did Circus ever actually have them in their possession? I don\'t know that either. I know that in the mid/late 1980\'s, Circus Circus got rid of their racing inventory. The two 4-point hulls and several of the Merlins got donated to Bob Williams (the first incarnation of the Hydroplane Museum), and all of the engines were sold to raise money. I do know that no Griffons were involved in that transaction.
So was it merely a paper-ownership as opposed to possession? Not sure. There was talk of a warehouse full of Griffons, but nobody I know in the sport ever saw them. Perhaps Bernie ended up buying them from Bennett to add to his inventory, since he ended up running the Griffons for another 5 years.
Originally posted by Randy Haskin
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They were going to partner together and pool engine resources. In late September 1981, Bennett located a large stash of Griffon engines and (according to Fran)notified Bill Muncey that \"he had just procured them\". That part of the story is backed up by talking with Jeff Neff, who was the head engine wrench for the Bud team at that time. At the Acapulco race, literally minutes before Muncey was killed, they were getting the boats in the water and Muncey turned to Neff and said \"Your driver\'s getting soft...tell him this is the last race he\'s gonna have this advantage!\"
But after Muncey was killed, Bennett started taking heat from the Circus Circus board about wasting money on boat racing (the team had only qualified for two races that year and managed to finish only one heat--in last place--despite one of the biggest budgets). So Circus Circus pulled out of racing for several years. And at the same time Fran and Atlas were deciding if they were going to continue racing after Bill\'s death. They ended up building a new boat and staying with Merlins...so the Griffons just sort of fell by the wayside.
Where did they go? I don\'t know. Did Circus ever actually have them in their possession? I don\'t know that either. I know that in the mid/late 1980\'s, Circus Circus got rid of their racing inventory. The two 4-point hulls and several of the Merlins got donated to Bob Williams (the first incarnation of the Hydroplane Museum), and all of the engines were sold to raise money. I do know that no Griffons were involved in that transaction.
So was it merely a paper-ownership as opposed to possession? Not sure. There was talk of a warehouse full of Griffons, but nobody I know in the sport ever saw them. Perhaps Bernie ended up buying them from Bennett to add to his inventory, since he ended up running the Griffons for another 5 years.
DBD
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