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Thread: Donzi 16 Timeline - The Boats Built During 1964

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    Donzi 16 Timeline - The Boats Built During 1964

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    To draw people away from the AOTH thread I've created my own controversial timeline of the first 16's ever built. Take yourself back 50 years, before I was born, and read the Greg Guimond 16 timeline below.




    Keep in mind how many Donzi race boats were in action in late 1964 that would have required substantial factory focus. Example - In November there was major preparation underway for the big Miami-to-Key West Offshore Race. This race was critical as it was the last race in the 1964 World Powerboat Championship 6 race series (aka "The Sam Griffith Trophy") which Jim Wynne won that year with Dick Bertram taking second.
    The M-to-KW race was run on November 6, 1964 and had Wynne in a Donzi 28 (2nd), Jim Breuil (3rd) running his own 36' Breuil diesel, Walt Walters in a second Donzi 28 (4th), Allan Brown (8th) in the first Donzi 19 Hornet ever built named "Donzi Daddy", and Jake Trotter placing 16th in yet a 3rd Donzi 28 .

    What Allan Brown did indicate to me with 100% certainty was that the hull he brought to the Jax Boat Show the next week was the first Ski Sporter EVER with a Volvo 200. This was confused by many folks for 15 years.

    The timeline for 1964 Ski Sporter production could/would have looked like this ...........

    July 1, 1964 - After Don Aronow sells Formula to Dick Genth's Thunderbird Boats on May 5, 1964, he starts Donzi and literally builds the new factory right across the street from Formula. Drawings for the Donzi Ski Sporter 16 (underway) are printed by legendary designer and living marine icon Walt Walters who is now 84. The design effort is fast-tracked by the Walters/Aronow 1963 Formula Jr. hull and the 1962 race winning Wynn Mill II driven by Jim Wynne complete with 2 blade prop.

    To be specific, the Donzi 16 is linked only to the WYN-MILL II.

    September 1964 - Production starts on the 16 with Hull #1 built. Powerplant and drive was from Eaton Manufacturing, Dearborn Marine Engine Division. It was labeled the "Interceptor" and was a 260ci (Ford) V8 probably making 165hp? Boat was Wonder White with a Grumble Green deck stripe. Walt Walters could verify what power the first one got and if he had an apprentice helping with the design. Call him up. This hull seems to be the one piloted by Allan Brown who is running alongside Jim Wynne in the well known flat water photograph. It has no waterline boot stripe in the photo and notice that the decals show America in front of Great Britain.

    September 1964 - "Popular Boating"' magazine writes that Hull #2 (or #3) is demonstrated at longtime establishment Santana Marine in Coconut Grove Florida running on Dinner Key. The iconic "grab rail" is offered as a $48 option on the 1964s. No pictures survive of it at Santana Marine but this hull could be the one a bearded Jim Wynne is piloting alongside Brownie in the same photo referenced above. The hull is Volvo powered and rigged with an AQ drive after Wynne and Volvo President Harald Wiklund introduced the first drive to America in 1959. Which model is on that Santana demo boat, 100 or 200? It does not have a grab rail, and carries the Swedish decal (recognizing Volvo) first followed by America. These three items are identical to the press boat photo. It is white with a red deck stripe and red waterline boot stripe. Very possible that the "press boat" was also the "demo boat" that PB's Dick Borden wrote about in there June 1965 issue.

    October 1964 - Hull #3 (or 2) is built. Power was Volvo/AQ100. It is reviewed in the July 21, 1965 issue of the Swedish performance magazine "Teknikens varld." Many decades later Thomas Ronnberg in Sweden bought and fully restored this 16 and ran it for years. Boat is white with a red deck stripe, no waterline boot stripe and has the 3 gauge dash instrument panel. The 3 gauge panel though seems to be slightly different. Thomas believed it was 1964 hull #2 or #3. Lars on this board would/could contact Ronnberg in Sweden.

    November 15, 1964 - Living legend Allan Brown (now 81) as Sales Manager for the new Donzi Marine, brings Hull #4 (or 3) to the Jax boat show on 11/13/64 rigged with a Volvo/AQ200, the first 200 imported into the US market, but not the first Ski Sporter hull built as has been assumed by master blasters for decades. Boat is white with a blue deck stripe according to AB. No information on if it had a boot stripe or not. Mr. K's team at Mercury (Bill Steele and Joe Swift) tries to bribe Brownie with money and ho's for a closer look at the brand new sandcast Aquamatic 200 technology at Lake X. Brown tells them to piss off.

    December 10, 1964 - Fred Darwick (now 75) buys and takes delivery of hull #6 (or 5) with a 4 cyl Volvo power plant making 110hp and an AQ100 drive. The 110 engine itself had been proven thoroughly, winning 4 ocean races the prior year in a Formula 233. The cost is $3,500 with trailer while printed ads show a price of $3,995 for 16s to the public. Is the lower cost because of the leftover AQ100 drive instead of a newer 200 or is it because Darwick is both a friend and a supplier to Don Aronow? The boat is white with a green stripe and "Hot Volvo" is handwritten on the original Bill of Sale. The boat has just one option, an Aquameter Speedo and carries the American sticker first followed by Sweden below the scripted Donzi Marine. Wearing #11 on the deck and hulls sides, Fred and Judy go out and win the January 2, 1965 "Orange Bowl Regatta 9 Hour" Endurance Race "Class A" in this Ski Sporter. Archive that invoice at Mystic Seaport and then find Bob Cox and Ed Joyce (who ironically raced a Formula 233 in other earlier races) to see if they bought Ski Sporter hull #5. On April 8. 1965 two Donzi 19 Hornets would compete in the Miami-Nassau Ocean Race. One 19 was a converted I/O and ran dual Johnson 90hp motors and was piloted by the team of Bob Cox and Ed Joyce.

    January 15, 1965 - Two (not one) Ski Sporters are shown on the floor at the 55th Annual National Motor Boat Show at the old Coliseum on the UWS of NYC. Also in the booth that day are two 19 foot Donzi's. This is the exact same day that LBJ calls MLK to discuss the Voting Rights Act. The boat show runs from January 15th to January 24th and has 290 boats on the floor. These two 16 hulls (possibly hull #7 and #8) were probably built in December 1964 as they would have left Miami a full week earlier to allow for a snow storm cushion. No pictures exist of the booth with those boats but some very rough and unsubstantiated research indicated that the Ski Sporters were red and blue. There is, however, no magazine written account of there colors, power plants, deck stripes or boot stripes. Also unclear who from Donzi manned the booth at this show. There was also some comment that both these Ski Sporters were sold at the NYC show to a dealer in New Orleans.
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    Also ........ note that Frank Civitano remembers his Father (who was friends with Don A) buying a Ski Sporter 16 from Don in 1964. Frank was 14 and recalls it being green with a red stripe and the 4th or 5th 16 made. Find him and ask him to confirm the color combo (how could you forget green?) and did the boat have Volvo or Eaton in the back? This green Ski Sporter could possibly be the same green hull that Fred Darwick mentioned Don had put aside for his young son Michael. The hull color green would have been suspect though as there is no records of 1964 hulls being painted a solid color. I would assume that if Darwick and Civitano's recollections are correct the "bright green" was actually Grumble Green which would have been used on later 16s in 1965.

    Also, Also ........... at the time I believe that Mr. Darwick was living in Coconut Grove. Given Santana Marine was also in Coconut Grove, Fred might remember going over to see the Ski Sporter demo that was done there on Dinner Key.

    Third Also ............ do not forget that a very early 16 was given to Bill Muncey as a promo present by Don Aronow. This boat was last sold back in 2009 after a complete restoration. Edward Muncey, son of famed racer and Unlimited Hydroplane Champion Bill Muncey (who died in 1981) would know what the original history of this claimed 1964 hull was. Find him and ask.

    There you have it for the archives lol
    Attached Files Attached Files
    1972 16 OB - C16B-63 - "Surface Tension" Resto Project
    1974 16 OB - DMR16106017-B - "The Mule"

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