Mercury Racing congratulates Adam Leland, winner of our Brand Passion Essay contest. We received several quality stories, and Adam’s winning essay is presented below. We will also share others in future blog posts.
Adam and his dad Fred are lifelong boaters and Mercury owners. You can sense by reading Adam’s essay that he and his dad Fred bleed black.
Adam’s Story
My love for fast boats and Mercury engines came from my dad. I have fond memories of his 115hp short shaft “tower of power” he bought new and ran for many years on a little Glaspar G3. When I was a small child he gave me a little 10-foot hydro with an old Merc. We called the boat “hiccup” because of the sound that old little motor made.
As I grew so did my love for fast boats. Around the age of 12 I got a 1969 10’ GW Invader with a 1984 Merc 25.
I loved that little boat but I needed to make it go faster. My friend and I decided one day to “borrow” my uncle’s 50hp Merc and throw it on the back. Boy, that was a fun run.
As I got older so did the size and power of my boats. When I was in high school my dad handed down our family 16-foot Checkmate Predictor to me and my brothers. We swapped the 115 Merc for a nice healthy V-6 Merc with a jack plate and a 26-inch pitch prop. That was the boat that truly taught me how to drive.
My dad stepped up and got himself a 19-foot Eliminator Daytona with a potent V-6 Merc. It was highly modified and had a nitrous oxide system installed. That engine was built for raw power – nothing else. We eventually upgraded to our dream motor; a 1997 Mercury Racing 260hp 2.5 EFI outboard. In my opinion, that was the best motor of all time.
We continued to run fast boats every summer up and down the small lake in Maine where we have a cottage. Now a father myself, I look forward to passing down our boating passion to the next generation of Mercury Racing junkies.
Well done, Adam. Enjoy your time on the water with your family.
