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2003
Logo Design Unveiled!
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2003 Logo
Design Unveiled!
On the left, we
are pleased to present the new 2003 Oh Boy! Oberto hydro logo
design. This will be the primary logo used to represent
the boat during the upcoming season. Along those lines,
a full line of merchandise will be available within the next
few weeks. The merchandise will be sold at all races and
the www.oberto.com
website. As soon as it's available, we'll post the
links!
Get ready...
The U-6 Oh Boy!
Oberto
will be center stage in 2003!! |
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Looking
back on a great story! Vignettes from the Pits: GM Cup
personalities
An Art Oberto segment reprinted from the
full Seattle Post-Intelligencer story. Excerpt by Holly
Cain!
 "It's never too difficult to pick Art Oberto out of the bustling Seafair crowd. He's just living his life motto: Have fun!
Of course, the bright red, white, and green top hat and jacket, awash in Oh Boy! Oberto-brand beef jerky buttons, stickers and company logos, are a dead giveaway. As is the broad grin that never leaves his face or the generous supply of stickers and product samples he lavishes on everyone who crosses his path -- particularly the children.
At 75, Oberto is the exclamation point in his company's famous name. He's the "good" in feel good -- with a motivational quip and a package of beef jerky for every situation.
"Some people get satisfaction out of buying a big boat, I get satisfaction out of seeing people happy and everything else takes care of itself," said Oberto, CEO of the company his father Constantino founded.
In 52 years, Oberto has missed only one Seafair celebration. He grew up on the shore of Lake Washington and still makes his home there. He, and his wife of 49 years, Dorothy, throw elaborate parties all weekend to celebrate their city's defining summer festival.
But that's never been enough. Until recently, Oberto would walk the mile and a half from his home to the Stan Sayres Pits in Lake Genesee Park, passing out stickers and pit passes to kids along his route.
"Everything you need to know about making a living, you'll learn in the grassroots, not in the office," Oberto said. "And if you're going to do something, make sure they remember you."
Oberto's company again sponsored an unlimited hydroplane in the General Motors Cup -- the U-2 Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison driven by Steve David. In 27 years of sponsorship with various hydro teams, Oberto has been a part of three wins.
He was given the Hydro-Prop Lifetime Achievement Award earlier this year for his contribution to the sport -- recognition for his unmatched enthusiasm as much for the crucial financial backing he contributed in the series' lean years.
Although Oberto-backed boats have never won at his beloved Seafair, he remains the eternal optimist. Winner's trophies aren't why he's involved.
"Some people do this to win, we're in it to make sure all the neighborhood kids are having fun," Oberto said."
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April
6, 2003 - Team Update
 Mike
and Larry Hanson are hard at work in the U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto team
shop helping crew member Eric Bell, Bill Fisk and others update the
hull for the 2003 season which gets underway, tentatively, June
19-22 in Detroit, Michigan. The Hanson brothers bring
tremendous engine and hull experience back to the U-6 shop.
Larry Hanson rebuilt and reviewed the team engines and, with the
addition of brother Mike, the two began the task of adding a new
front wing. This added hardware entails actually moving the
cockpit. It was a large task to undertake, but the change will
help the ride of the hull and was also necessitated by the needs of
the driver. U-6 pilot, Steve David, was having trouble seeing
out the window of the 6 in 2002. This adjustment should
help him as well. Add to that new gears and props (more on
that another time) and we've going to present a surprisingly new
Miss Madison / Oh Boy! Oberto in 2003!
It's clear that there will be changes in the U-6 team line-up this
year. As the hull is being rebuilt, so is the team. New
faces, old faces... it will be interesting to see how it all comes
together. Also new this year... keep an eye out for Steve
David's new racing helmet. It's been repainted for 2003.
Curves and stripes are the theme!
(Photo of Bill Fisk at work on the 6 provided by www.madisoncamerunning.com.)
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When
it comes to fan sites, we would like to share the best of the
best... Madisoncamerunning.com
 March
23, 2003 - Interested
in seeing some great photos of the U-6? How about a fun look
at the city of Madison, Indiana? We have a great fan site for
you... Roger Bean's "Madison Came Running" website found on the web
at www.madisoncamerunning.com.
We'll be checking in with the site from time to time linking to them
and featuring updates on the 6. Last year Madison Came Running ran
updates on the "Miss Madison/Oh Boy! Oberto" regularly throughout
the year and the heading of their page even carries a photo likeness of the
'71 hull.
Roger Bean, the man behind the scenes discusses his site...
"We promote the U-6 year 'round. One of my main web-page
thrusts is the U-6, along with Downtown, the Riverboats, etc. We also feature folks like Graham Heath, Bill Cantrell and Police Memorial items.
The "Best Miss Madison Page Period" link gets a lot of hits. I targeted this page to show several Miss
Madisons under power in a right-to-left racing mode. I plan to be at the Milton Street Shop in 2003 for a like series.
Thanks again." Roger's site is well worth a look!
We thank Roger for sharing the great photo of Mike and Larry Hanson
who are helping out at the U-6 shop as the winter shifts to
spring. These two are working hard to ensure a fast running,
front running Oh Boy! Oberto in 2003!
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Scenes
from the U-6's visit to Louisville Boat Show!
The U-6 Miss Madison display hull recently paid a visit to the
Louisville Boat Show in support of the 2003 Budweiser Madison
Regatta supported by Belterra Casino Resort. Following the
Louisville show, the display hull headed for Cincinnati and
Indianapolis. We are pleased to share photos from the event!
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Larry
Oberto marries in style
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10, 2003 - Oh Boy! Oberto's own
Larry Oberto tied the knot recently marrying his girlfriend
Lenette and, to say the least, he did it with style.
Speaking with dailysportscar.com
Larry describes his wedding... "The wedding was
fantastic. We both had a complete blast. Our idea was to have
a big party and give folks a chance to take a nice vacation
and, oh, by the way, we are getting married in the
mix!" Click
here for the full story!
Owen
Blauman reports that several hydro personalities were in
attendance at the wedding including Scott and Sue Pierce, Bill Wurster,
Mark Smith, Thayer Cueter, and of course, Owen Blauman
himself.
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Representatives
of the U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto team visit Vegas
At the end of February, representatives of the U-6 Oh Boy!
Oberto race team traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada to take part in the
2002 Hydro-Prop Awards Banquet. The event took place at the
Aladdin Hotel and Casino and was attended by series officials,
teams, race site representatives and fans. The dinner and
award presentation was a lot of fun and great chance for the series
to share a relaxed evening reflecting on the past race season and
the accomplishments of the year.
Steve Montgomery served as emcee for the event and kept smiles on
the face of those attending from start to finish. We here at
the U-6 shop also want to tip our hat to the outstanding race videos
shown during the event. Great hydro racing images set to music
and presented by Atlanta Teleproductions. Also worth noting;
there were some great comments regarding the achievements Ed
Cooper's U-3 Vacationville.com's piston powered masterpiece and the
speeds Mitch Evans achieved during the 2002 season (a new piston
powered world record for starters!). As the U-3 team is the
6's closest Hydro neighbor, we wanted to add our congratulations on
the achievements of their new hull and team.
The U-6 may not have taken home all the awards this year, but our
hometown race, the Madison Regatta, was named the 2002 Hydro-Prop
Race Site of the Year! Accepting the award on behalf of the
Madison Regatta committee was Tony Steinhardt, the outgoing Madison
Regatta President. "This award belongs to all the volunteers,
sponsors, and the city who have helped bring the Regatta to where it
is today. We look forward to many more years of success,"
commented Steinhardt. A great honor for an outstanding race site
(found on the web at www.madisonregatta.com).
Here are a few photos from the event...
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U-6
Owner
Representative
Bob Hughes
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U-6
pilot Steve
David poses with
crew member
Daryl Szymanski
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Tony
and Phyllis
Steinhardt with the
2002 Race Site of
the Year Award!
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Daryl
Szymanski is
joined by the U-6 web
team... Chuck and
Cindy Moore
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Hanging
out
at the banquet!
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Oh
Boy! Oberto goes Radio-Controlled racing!
 March
4, 2003 - Larry Oberto of Oberto Sausage Company and Chet Lepinski of R/C Unlimiteds jointly announced that the Oberto Sausage Company will take on the role as the new title sponsor of the R/C U Championship Series for model hydroplanes.
The announcement brings R/C U to it's first title sponsor in several years and will allow R/C U to more elaborately promote the sport of model hydroplane racing.
Oberto will be featured prominently on the R/C U website, it's newsletter and on the sides of the R/C U equipment trailer. There will also be a large amount of race site promotion of the company. Further, the funding will allow for the return of R/C U's monthly television show "This Month in R/C Hydros."
The association of the two entities will promote the 85th anniversary of the Oberto Company and the 30th season for R/C
Unlimiteds. Oberto's linkage to unlimited hydroplanes goes back almost as far as R/C Unlimiteds with the latter starting in 1973 and the former sponsoring their first unlimited in 1977.
The Oberto company has also been helping out the sport of model hydroplanes for several years, sponsoring the Bill Muncey Memorial race in San Diego for several years.
The sponsorship is the result of many hours of hard work by R/C Unlimiteds' Chet Lepinski, who has been pursuing a series sponsor for over two years and the Oberto Company in particular for almost six months. His work with Patty Alfonso of Oberto allowed them to put together a package that will benefit both organizations.
Harry M. Gatjens discusses the future, "R/C Unlimiteds is looking forward to
our relationship with the Oberto Company, their race team and long time R/C Unlimiteds supporter, Oberto driver, Steve David.
Also a long time supporter and friend of R/C Unlimiteds is Bob Hughes, the representative of the owners of the unlimited Oh Boy! Oberto, the citizens of Madison, Indiana."
Visit R/C Unlimiteds Website http://rcunlimiteds.org
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Updating
the galleries...
Tonight (February 8, 2003) we've begun the task of updating our
older photo galleries. We'll post links to each gallery as the
format changes and invite you to take a walk down memory lane as we
re-present photos from the last four seasons! Our latest
updates include...
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February
1, 2003 - Team Update
Checking in with the Oh Boy! Oberto (aka Miss Madison) team,
the team shop has been cleaned and organized (top to bottom) and
everyone is gearing up for some extensive preseason engine and hull
work. Pilot Steve David describes the upcoming work as ""the
de-construction and re-construction of an Unlimited Hydro turbine and
hull". Going further, "My team, in concert with Larry and Mike Hanson, are in the midst of tearing apart the U-6
turbines and disassembling the boat. We're adding a fully articulating canard up
front and making some other mods to make her more competitive."
When asked about the Hanson's role on the project, David offered the
following... "Mike Hanson was working with Don Kelson of Seattle in 1979 and 1980 when he built an 850 cc Hydro for a Jack Sellers of St. Pete, FL. The Seller's son flipped that hull in 1981 and I ended up with the boat (badly damaged) that fall. Mike was of great help as I repaired her and then in 1982 that same boat and I established a new world and APBA KIILO record of 102 MPH which stood for almost 20 years until the class rules were changed. Fast forward to 2003 and once again Mike Hanson is rebuilding a hull that I'll drive. Call it a reunion, serendipity, what have you.....we call it rebuilding the next Unlimited Gold Cup winner and history is on our side!"
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Filling
out our photo galleries... (Part 2) ... Looking back on a great
weekend in Madison!
With an average lap speed of 130.074 mph, Steve David and the
Miss Madison/Oh Boy! Oberto team took home a victory during the 2001
Madison Regatta bringing back memories for many of Jim McCormick's
win driving the Miss Madison at the 1971 Madison Gold Cup race (also
in Madison). 30 years later, history repeated! As we add
to our our galleries, we couldn't pick a better race to feature with
additional photos. Click
here to visit our new gallery presenting 18 photos from the 2001
Madison Regatta!
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Filling
out our photo galleries... (Part 1)
Over the last few years, we've collected a
few photos as we raced with the series. Along the way a
couple race galleries were missed. During the last two days
(1/28/03 to 1/29/03) we
dug back through our archives pulling photos from the 2000 and 2001
seasons to fill the gaps. We'll be adding new photos to our
existing galleries in the future, but our first goal was to make
sure each race we attended from 1999 to the present was
represented. Tonight we added 32 photos! The new
galleries include...
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San
Diego, California, 2001 - (6 photos) |
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Tri-Cities,
Washington, 2001 - (6 photos) |
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Evansville,
Indiana, 2001 - (6 photos) |
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Seattle,
Washington, 2000 - (6 photos) |
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Detroit,
Michigan, 2000 - (8 photos)
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A
complete new design for missmadison.com!
Out with the old and in with the new! Your Miss Madison web designer
woke up on Saturday (1/25/03) and decided it was time to give the
U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto (aka Miss Madison) website a new look for the new
year. Over the last 24 hours the site has been completely
rebuilt, start to finish. We still need to update a few of the older
photo galleries, but the rest of the site is up to speed and all
links (going back to the site's beginnings) have been checked and
reconfirmed. This change marks the first major redesign for the site
since it debuted on 5/11/99.
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Looking back on David Williams time
piloting the U-6
During the 2002 San Diego race, a
close friend of the Miss Madison team was able to live a dream. David
Williams of the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum completed three laps in
the U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto during the third round of Unlimited Time Trials.
Williams took the U-6 to 116.379, 135.122 and 125.088 mph. Click
here for part one of a two part look back on Williams' run thanks to the
Hydro-Prop website. Click
here for the second gallery.
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Photos, Photos, Photos!
Looking for new photos from the 2002
season? Hydro-Prop's series website, www.hydroprop.com,
is running twelve days of photo galleries looking back on the entire
2002 season. They're featuring two galleries from each race and
promise over 220 new photos! Pilot Steve David, the red, white and
green Oh Boy! Oberto (aka Miss Madison) and the entire team are sure to
turn up quite a bit. The full gallery series runs October 25th
through November 3rd and can be found in the
event gallery section of the Hydro-Prop website. Don't miss
it! |
News
from 2002 | News
from 2001 | News
from 2000 | News
from 1999
Copyright © 2003 Chuck Moore
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