The summer of 2004 - that’s how long it’s been since my V-King has seen any water. I used the boat to shoot photos of Andy Frost’s STV for a feature article, and it could barely idle since the injectors were so fouled from long term storage and lack of use. That was the third and last time it was used, and after that it was carefully detailed and returned to its spot in my garage, where it has been ever since. I doubt it would even start now, so the injectors will be removed next week and sent to Brucato Machine and Tool for cleaning and flow testing. I’ll run the boat for the injector test, then the powerhead will come off and likely be put to use on the STV for further testing, which will then be Helmut’s department.

:: X-Stream V-King at Alva - click on image to enlarge ::

Below is the powerhead that’s currently on the boat - a virgin Mercury Racing 2.4 liter EFI Bridgeport. It’s one of my all-time favorite racing engines, and also one of the best sounding. It’s currently equipped with a Jay Smith Racing Engines drag flywheel, Simon Motorsports alternator, and assembled using stainless-steel hardware. Slated for testing is a Brucato Pro Control Unit, which is a fully-adjustable fuel management system, and JSRE and SST intake spacer plates. After the engine is dialed in with these components, a Brucato Stackable Velocity System will be added for further performance analysis.

:: Mercury Racing Bridgeport EFI V6 - click on image to enlarge ::

Admittedly, I’m a little nervous about running the V-King. It’s been years since I’ve driven one of these over 100 MPH, and my current boat should be capable of running over speed that fairly easily. It’s extremely light, lacking a core and any foam flotation, and not fully set up for top speed runs yet. Finally, not an ideal test platform either, so these are the reasons we’ll likely perform top speed runs on the STV.

Still, I think I need to get away from the day-to-day Scream And Fly tasks and get myself in the cockpit again.

Since I can’t ride, I thought it would be fun to shoot some photos during practice tonight. Practice and race days have been canceled repeatedly due to thunderstorms, but we had pretty good weather today. I used my Nikon D200 and Nikkor 70-200 2.8 AF-S VR lens, which performed well, although there was really no good lighting at all. It’s getting dark much earlier now, and with rain clouds always in on the horizon, the setting sun is mostly obscured. I had to shoot mostly wide-open at ISO 800 to freeze the action to the degree I wanted. I try to freeze not only the rider in action, but the bike spokes, which really adds to the capture, in my opinion.

:: BMX racers Chuck Carroll and Mike Powers - click on image to enlarge ::

It was fun hanging out with everyone, and the photos came out decent, but not as good as I would have liked. For the shutter speeds I require, I really need more available light, and shooting at high ISO is a sure way to lose fine details in any image.

On a similar note, I’ll be adding a photo gallery section to this site for uploading my Cape Coral BMX photos. I’ll post more details soon. Also remember that the Cape Coral BMX website has a photo gallery, so check that out from time to time too.

:: BMX racer Charlie Cassaro - click on image to enlarge ::

I’ve been playing the guitar for half of my life, literally. It’s a big part of who I am, and I always have it near me on a stand in my office. I am all about the Marshall full-stack sound, but putting the wear and tear on the tubes just for basic practice and jamming is something I really don’t care to do. Also, I wanted something very small that I could move around and take with me on the road to boating events.

I know I can’t expect too much from a very small amp, but I wanted something that would at least sound decent, and some reverb wouldn’t hurt either. I researched a lot of small amps, and came across the Crate GLX 15. This model had everything - 15 watts with full digital effects and an onboard tuner. That was good enough for me, and I gave it a try and picked one up for $100 new. Not bad at all.

:: Control panel lights up when amp is powered on - click on image to enlarge ::

I’ll say that this little amp doesn’t sound great, but it sounds incredible. Well, relatively speaking of course. The clean channel has plenty of headroom and the overdrive channel has a very good tone to it with more than enough available gain. The sound is so good that I don’t feel the need to plug any stomp boxes or effects processors into this amp, and that’s exactly what I wanted. The onboard effects sound very good and the tuner (located on the top of the unit) is very responsive and accurate.

A single rotary knob selects the effects, which range from variations and combinations of reverb, chorus, delay, flanger, and doubler. The control panel lights up when the amp is powered on, which not only looks great, but is actually useful. There’s also a speaker output, a headphone input, and a line-in for CD or MP3 players. My only complaint is the lack of a footswitch option, which really is a pity for such an otherwise well-equipped and fantastic sounding unit.

:: Simple one-dial control for all effects - click on image to enlarge ::

I bought this Haro F2 several months ago as a daily street ride to learn some tricks on and take to events. I already have a Felt Chronic, which is a much better bike, but I didn’t want that bike to take the knocks that I would rather see a less expensive bike deal with. Although my primary interest is BMX racing and not street riding, I couldn’t use my race bike for the kind of riding I wanted to do on the street. Also, I wanted something I could take with me to events for fun, and a BMX bike easily fits inside the truck.

:: 2007 Haro F2 - click on image to enlarge ::

The F2 is a good bike for the money, equipped with tubular 3-piece cranks, four pegs, front and rear brakes, and a decent gyro. The frame isn’t 100% 4130 chromoly like my Felt is, but that didn’t matter for what I needed this for and it had great geometry. I had a lot of fun on the F2, learned some things, and even brought it with me to the River Ranch event once. But, it turns out I never used it much after the River Ranch, and I thought it would be time to sell it. Today the new owner picked it up and off it went to make someone else happy.

With the F2 gone, I’ll use my Felt from now on and I’ll likely keep it for a while. I’ll still miss that cheap green Haro though.

:: 2006 Felt Chronic - click on image to enlarge ::

Many people on the Scream And Fly message forums know that I use Nikon D-SLR cameras when I’m covering events and shows. Although the D2xs remains in my field case, I always preferred the D200 due to its lighter weight, smaller size, and near identical image quality and performance. A few weeks ago Nikon announced two new models: the full-frame D3 and D300 - both models are major upgrades over their previous counterparts, the D2xs and D200 respectively.

The recently announced 12.3 megapixel Nikon D300 seems like a more compelling upgrade over the D3 since it offers the same CAM3500DX 51-point autofocus system, 922,000-pixel LCD, weather sealed magnesium-alloy body, and live preview with auto focus ability. For sports shooting, the autofocus system will matter most, and I won’t need the full frame benefits of the D3 most of the time. For full details on the new D300, check out Digital Photography Review’s preview article.

:: Nikon D300 - Click on images above to enlarge ::

How will the D300 perform? On paper it’s superior to Nikon’s former flagship D2xs, but the rest is the topic of heated debate. Simple physics dictate that the D3’s large full frame sensor will be a fantastic low-light camera and preliminary test images seem to support that assumption.

• Nikon D300 Brochure in PDF format

Now that Helmut has the engine on the STV Euroski back together, it looks like we’ll be gearing up for more testing. We have some really good projects in the pipeline too, and at the top of the list is Livorsi Marine’s high-tech Data Tach prop-slip multi-gauge. Functions of this instrument are as follows:

• Single or dual tachometer
• Propeller slip, calculated by tachometer and GPS
• GPS speed with recall
• Optional record and document

Our evaluation will include full installation steps as well as comprehensive testing of all aspects of the instrument. If I know Helmut, I won’t have to twist his arm to test this unit. Our Data Tach is on its way here for photographing, then off to New York for installation and testing aboard the STV.

Livorsi Marine is constantly expanding their incredible catalog of instruments and accessories for high performance boating, and the Data Tach should prove to be the next must-have piece of equipment for the go-fast boaters.

I didn’t think I would use this boat anymore, since it best serves Scream And Fly Magazine for instrument and component instillation articles rather than actual use. This X-Stream V-King has been used a total of three times, and has remained covered in my garage for its entire existence. Well, it appears that the boat will once again be put into service once more, maybe twice.

The Mercury EFI Bridgeport that powers it currently will be perfect for two upcoming tests. First, is to test the Brucato Pro Control Unit (PCU), which is a programmable fuel injection computer. For the second test, a Brucato Stackable Velocity System (SVS), which is basically an air intake system for fuel injected Mercury outboards.

I’ll pull her out of the garage and start preparations for the test in the coming weeks. First, the fuel injectors will be sent off to Brucato Machine and Tool for servicing and flow testing in preparation for firing up the dormant engine for the first time in several years.

:: Click on image to enlarge ::

My Haro Group 1 SX Pro is ready for the track again - everything is cleaned, lubricated, and adjusted. While I really like the BMX bikes of the 1980s, I can’t argue that this Haro is an awesome race bike. Of course, I’m not a BMX pro - far from it - but I really like frame geometry and handling of this bike. I was really starting to make progress on my manuals before I broke my ribs, and now I have to stay off the BMX bike for another month. That’s extremely frustrating, but the motivation to improve my riding skill remains very high.

Haro has been good to me, and I’m eager to see the 2008 Group 1, but I’m most interested in the forthcoming retro Freestyler Master. Redline seems to be the dominant force in BMX racing these days, but through my discussions with Haro, I’m certain they will attempt to gain ground in this segment of BMX.

:: 2006 Haro Group 1 SX Pro XL - click on image to enlarge ::

Back in the 1980s, Hutch was one of the best names in BMX. The “Hollywood Series”, named after Hutch sponsored racer Mike “Hollywood” Miranda, made pink a cool color. Who would have thought? Nowadays, all the new bikes seem to be either black or red — boring.

Hutch is long gone, so I thought I would build a Hollywood-inspired race bike, and I went to Kappa BMX for the frame, forks, and handlebars. Kappa custom builds old-school ‘looptail’ frames in the tradition of Hutch, but with new geometry and hardware mounts, making them perfect for this build. The frame takes about four weeks to complete, so I have some time to think about which components I’ll use.

What kind of a reaction will I get at the local race track? I think the old-school riders will like it, and the younger ones will think I borrowed my younger sister’s bike. : )

:: Click on image to enlarge ::

After fracturing three ribs in a Naples district race two weeks ago, I’ll have some mandatory down time to make some changes to my bike. Right now I’m running a 41-tooth chainwheel up from and a 15-tooth cog in the rear. I think I can spin the cranks faster on the straights, so I’m going to step my chainwheel down to a 40T. This should give me a little more power out of the gate - and I’ll need it after being off the bike for so long.

I think it’s also time to take the bike down to the frame for some cleaning and lubrication. This time I’ll be using synthetic lubricants from Aerospace Lubricants, which I’ve been very pleased with.

:: Click on image to enlarge ::