I had a Minimax, too. I built it myself when I was about 14 or 15 or so. They didn’t have electric screw guns back then, either…. Lots of blisters. Anyway, 8.5 is GREAT!!! My first was a 7.5. Like others have said, a dead man throttle would be ideal but if not that, at LEAST have a safety lanyard that shuts off the engine if you happen to “leave the boat.” The Minimax is fun but somewhat dangerous. It has a tendency to catch a chine in hard turns and roll over unexpectedly. I never did it with the 7.5 but did it at least twice with an 18, which was probably too much. Also, anything more than a 6″ high wave and the boat will slice right THROUGH it, rather than go over it. Operate in a very calm area and have your head on straight; and you’ll be fine and have a lot of fun.
Long live American manufacturing!
