Ladies and gentleman, we are BACK! The boys are back from spending the month of December training horses in southern Italy and are ready to keep producing the greatest racing content possible. In the first official blog of the 2020 year, we will be examining BSH and creating power rankings for one of the best classes stock outboard has to offer.
BSH quickly became one of the premier classes in all of stock outboard throughout the 2018 and 2019 seasons. With the addition of the Yamato 80 and the Mercury 25XS, BSH has 3 motors that are more than capable of winning every weekend, which I believe has added a new level of intrigue and has attracted many more drivers to the class. Going from a "fringe" class to one of the biggest in all of racing was a fantastic storyline of the past few years and should make our first power rankings of the new decade even more interesting. I am in particular looking forward to revisiting these rankings after a portion of the season has been completed because I expect with all of the teams involved, we will see a lot of jockeying as more and more drivers continue to dial in their rigs.
Fan Rankings:
The BSH fan rankings drew the largest number of responses to a fan rankings submission yet, which is a great sign that people are interested in not only the power rankings but in BSH. Per usual, every first place vote is worth 10 points, 2nd place is worth 9, all the way down to a 10th place vote scoring 1 point.
Congratulations to our top 10!
Mikey's Rankings:
1.Joel Kiddy: The 2018 national champion was never given a true chance to defend his title at the 2019 nationals with motor issues, so it is hard to say that anyone is better than our 2018 winner.
2.Donny Allen: The 2019 BSH national champion surprised everyone at the Wakefield nationals. Coming out from nowhere to take home the title was one of the more unexpected moments of the week.
3.Kyle Bahl: It is hard to underestimate the impact that a year full of second places will do for a driver. I expect Kyle to be driving and testing harder than ever for Springfield. If I was a BSH driver, I would certainly be wary of what Washington State's finest is bringing to the table.
4.John Wlodarski: Winning back to back high point titles in 2018 and 19 catapults John up to #4. Will 2020 be the year he brings home the elusive 1-US? Or will his summer job at an interpretive dance studio take too much attention from BSH?
5.Braxton Miller: A huge year for the Oklahoma native wrapped up with a competition record in BSH at the Dayton Record Runs. Braxton has shown that he has the speed and ability to win.
6.Ken Terry: A strong performance at the Midwest divisionals in Springfield, OH last July has left a lasting image in my head. Expect Ken to be fighting for the top spot on the podium all season long.
7.Tyler Graves:I have been known for hyperbole in my day, but Tyler's ascension from first time in a boat to becoming one of the best drivers on the circuit in just a few race weekends is truly astonishing.
8.Michael Shepard: An underrated end of the 2019 season showed Michael really beginning to dial in his Pavlick BSH. I also believe that the Springfield course will play in his favor, meaning it would be little surprise to me if we saw Michael having a strong performance.
9.Michael Sharphouse: Another driver who took little time to get the ropes of the stock outboard hydroplanes, Michael Sharphouse has put himself into the position to make 2020 his breakout year in BSH and 300SSH. I am expecting a lot out of the New Jersey native.
10.Robert Trolian: I don't even know where to begin with this character. A 3rd place in BSH high points and a strong showing at the Wakefield nationals means that Robert is primed for success in his 2020 campaign. His talks of focusing on other classes is the only reason that I have Robert so low on this list.
Honorable mentions:
JMK: Whenever you can potentially put J. Michael Kelly in a boat with an engine it's hard to count him out.
Cole Olson: One of Cassandra's 3 favorite brothers was one of the few to beat in 15SSH last season so a move to BSH could be imminent.
Mike Akerstrom: If I was more certain he was racing BSH in 2020 he would have been an easy top 6 or 7, but uncertainty keeps him out of the top 10 even though I believe he is still worth mentioning.
Make sure to tune in to the return of the Throttled podcast this Thursday at 8e!
-MP
Comments