The Palm Beach Post

09-14-1995

 Offshore Racing Team Knows How To Build A Champion

By: Chris Dummit - Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Mac Seelig may be in the gaming business. And his boat may carry the name, Harrah's, after the well-known casino. But when it comes to decisions on the water, Seelig doesn't gamble.

Seelig and his three sons have spent nine years perfecting their brand of offshore racing. They know their boat like a card shark knows his aces.

And they expect to take home the pot Saturday in the Sportsman C class of the Palm Beach County Offshore Grand Prix. Even if they place second or third, they will win an unprecedented third-in-a-row national championship.

``The life expectancy in the sport is about three years,'' said Seelig, an Atlantic City businessman who owns the Harrah's boat with former star quarterback Joe Theismann. ``People come in and do a little bit, then leave. . . . We raced for five years and never won a race just to learn to do this.''

Theismann, who occasionally serves as the boat's navigator, will not come to Palm Beach. Seelig said he has known the former Washington Redskins star for many years. And when the two went for a boat ride five years ago, Theismann was hooked.

``It's exciting. I love this,'' Theisman said. ``Outside of putting my helmet on to playing football, I've found nothing that excites me as much as getting into that boat and going out at 100 miles an hour on water. There's something special about it.

It's like walking on the edge. It's something that's filled a very big void in my life.''

Said Seelig: ``It's the nearest thing to being in the Super Bowl for him.''

This weekend, Seelig will be in the driver's seat; son Jason, 24, will act as throttleman, and son Jerry, 27, will be the navigator.

``All the boys are college graduates. (Jason was also Throttleman of the Year.) We're extremely close as a family. We make decisions togther,'' said Seelig, who owns A.C. Coin & Slot, a supplier of gaming equipment.

Seelig's competitive family doesn't end with his three sons. Seelig's father, Eric, was a welterweight, middleweight and light heavyweight boxing champion in Europe. His mother, Greta, was an Olympic hurdler for Germany in 1936.

Greta Seelig makes her son swear he will not go too fast. And in truth, Seelig has not always been comfortable having his own children next to him in a boat traveling close to 100 mph. That's one of the reasons for such dedication.

``I've been overly cautious of being reckless with this thing. It's dangerous,'' he said. ``At first, when we were going around 70-80 mph, we were afraid of it. Now, even though we go over 100, we're comfortable with it. We understand what the boat's limits are. We know how to do it and not get hurt.''

The Harrah's 777 boat is 34 feet long and weighs about 7,700 pounds. Its dual Chevrolet engines put out 750 hp each. Its V-hull makes it a good choppy water boat, so Seelig hopes for some wind Saturday.

He will need it to beat Mobil One, which he said is a faster vessel. That takes good planning and coordination on the water. The right props must be chosen and the communication between driver, throttleman and navigator must be precise.

Seelig has raced against as many as 12 competitors in the C class. That's a lot compared with the field for some of the larger boats. But he likes the competition. And he just plain likes the sport.

``I've been a motorhead all my life,'' he said. ``It's in your blood. Most guys concur. It's like driving fast cars.''