20' center console and 90hp evinrude. What will cruising speed be?

[Bushwacker]

Fr. Frank,

Thanks for providing additional details/date on the participants in the government's "Biscayne Bay Shootout"! Steve D's article indicated there were only 2 other participants, but there were so many competitors on Miami's "Thunderboat Row" back in those days, I figured there were probably more than two! Do you know what I/O setup they used? I heard they used a big block Ford? Denny

[Fr. Frank]

All Carl said was that they were BB Fords with the TRS drive behind a BW tranny.

The larger TRS drive was still pretty new, having been just introduced in '62. It was called the "Mercruiser II" when it was introduced.

I imagine that in 1964 the motors probably were actually medium block motors. i.e., the FE series engines, (332/352/360/361/390/406/410/427/428) which many called "big blocks", made from 1958–1976. The later 370/429/Boss 429/460/514 motors are also medium block motors, being developments from the FE series.

Fords true big blocks in that day were the MEL series (383/410/430/462) block, and the "SuperDuty" series (401/477/534) big blocks. Ford actually made a 601 c.i. version of the MEL block for one year only, in 1963, for use as a passenger bus motor.