This boat supposedly started out at Callaway Gardens in Georgia as a prototype boat. Hydrodyne took there classic hull design and added a low slung top deck and then mounted twin 100's or 115's on the back. There were ten of these prototypes made and this boat as I am told was the fourth of the ten. Each one was said to be a little different. The boat was then bought by a show ski team just outside of Philadelphia, PA. In the early 70's a gentleman named Mike Thierfelder purchased the boat and meticulously cared for it for over 30 years. Mike put several motors on it and a even a large tree branch hit it once but the boat stayed strong. I bought the boat from Mike about two years ago. My friend Ted Tinsley and I put a 150 HP Yamaha motor on it with a 4 blade 17 pitch prop on it. It is a great boat for barefooting. I have skied with the Neptune Ski Club and the Carolina Show Ski Team, this has been one of the funnest boats I have ever been in. I purchased the boat in an effort to get back to the basics of water skiing. Sure, just like any skier, I drool over the new mega horsepower, custom gel-coat, sleek looking ski boats that are available, but really is all of that needed to enjoy water skiing? My wife and I love this boat and it truly is a ski boat, sure it may not have a CD player, custom interior, custom lights, fuel injection, a hot shower, a heater, speed control, but I am working on a flip on my trick ski and I have come closer behind this boat than even a brand new Malibu, Moomba, or Nautique. So its not always the boat or the ski but why you are doing it. Everything I am telling you about this boat I believe to be true and I have personal letters from Ab Crosby talking about this boat. The boat does not even have a serial number stamped in the hull or even a Hull ID plate. Hydrodyne sent Mike one that he gave me and he kept it in a zip lock bag. I really believe that this is the oldest Hydrodyne Tournement Skiier in the world.
That is a pretty boat. I like the rear deck design a lot. It was changed later (I believe) to accomodate the tall straight six motors. I think you have concluded like many others that the wake is superior to anything out there. The 18 is light, easy to handle and beach, and is a hard core ski boat. Most of the new ones are luxury liners, weigh a lot and are difficult to handle around the dock and to beach. It's definitley a keeper. Let's see, how many active boats are ther out there that are 43 years old and still going strong? jim
