If a name is remembered in death for deeds in life, “Bob Morgan” shall eternally echo in the world of powerboating. “He was the Shootout ambassador,” his wife Sue Morgan says with soul-filled pride.
“Bob was an integral part of the Shootout from the very beginning of the race. He helped grow the Shootout and he was the one that brought in so many of the top racers through his relationships with them,” Shootout organizer Ron Duggan said. “He will be deeply missed by all of the Shootout family.”
In the summer of 2011, the big announcement was made. The Morgans would team up with developer Jeffrey “JT” Tillman to revive “Big Thunder” – the property, the marina and the race team.
They made a huge splash at the Shootout, reviving Big Thunder Motorsports after a five-year absence. Punctuating the return was the reclaiming of the team’s 46-foot, 4,400-horse-power Skater; Bad Moon Rising once again became Big Thunder.
The team enjoyed revelry and rivalry at the Shootout, while eagerly anticipating a win at Key West only weeks away.
With JT driving and Bob on the throttles, it seemed inevitable that Big Thunder would win another world championship.
Then came the unthinkable.
It took only minutes on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, for the news to reach Lake of the Ozarks from the Superboat International World Championships in Key West.
Bob Morgan and JT Tillman were gone.
“They had one lap to go at the end of the race on Wednesday, when a rush of air caught the boat and flipped them over,” Sue Morgan said. “He was just in the wrong place, at the wrong time, on the wrong day. Anyone that races competitively is always living on the edge. They don’t think it will happen to them… Anything can happen…in our case, it did.”
The shock of the deathly crash was followed by a sense of sadness and loss. There was a collective feeling that the waters of Lake of the Ozarks would never be the same.
“They were true gentlemen and legends in the offshore fraternity,” OSS Chairman Michael E. Mares said in a formal statement after the accident.
Bob’s passion was racing and he was in it to win. “He would rather race than eat,” Sue said.
Bob raced in every Shootout, absent only one. He took pride in supporting the local firefighters and non-profit organizations benefiting from the race. His competitive spirit kept him constantly after Top Gun bragging rights, which became a coveted prize among powerboat racers. Morgan etched the Big Thunder name in boat racing history two decades ago, winning Top Gun honors in 1991 and 1995.
Bob and Brazilian Guido Verme won the Superboat Unlimited 1998 National Championship in the Bahamas, reaching speeds of 124.82 mph in the Big Thunder Marine Skater. Bob also won the 1998 Superboat World Championship in Key West, Fla.; he took the title again in 2001 with Canadian Driver Lorne Liebel. “Bob really enjoyed racing in Key West,” Sue said. “It was his second favorite.”
The highlight of his career was winning at the top international venue Madre Plata in Argentina with very good friend, and first-rate driver, Jim Lee from Wichita, Kan. “That was our favorite race,” Sue said. “It was an international race and we loved meeting and competing against racers from all over the world in that exotic location. We shipped the boat 3,000 miles by ship from Miami to the race site. It was a rough race, with 12-foot seas, but Jimmy Lee and Bob kicked all their butts big time in Argentina.”
Bob was more than a great racer: he was a likeable guy. His easy grin and approachable manner turned strangers into friends. He adored fans and wanted to entertain them. He was, indeed, the Shootout Ambassador of Lake of the Ozarks.
The drive to excite race fans led him to spearhead the Shootout Grudge Drag Race.
“This will give the fans an exciting show and something to cheer about,” Bob said in an interview in 2010. “It is a blast cheering for your choice of two massive powerboats thundering down the lake side-by-side in a drag race. You get double the action.”
After Bob convinced the Water Patrol to let it happen, local media ran with the headline, “Grudge Match Drag Race Hits Shootout.” Fans loved it. A two-mile-long flotilla of boaters cheered and the bets were on. Everyone saw for themselves who was fastest.
Bob raced the CMS Cat in 2010 and returned in 2011 to race his son Rob Morgan.
“Robby has done well as a racer in his own right. It was something they did together as a father and son,” Sue said. “I am not sure if Robbie will ever race again after Key West.”
Bob raced in more than 100 races in his career - 50 were offshore powerboat races.
Bob’s love for racing began in the 1960’s on the California coast. Back in the day, he raced 80 mph in a 16-foot Biesemeyer with the National Drag Boat Association. In 1969, he bought a gasser Hondo flat bottom, which reached speeds of 115 mph. He upgraded again, this time to a blown-fuel boat that moved him 152.9 mph.
Being from Kansas, and continuously dominating Californians, he earned the nickname the “Kansas Bad Man.”
His last year in a drag boat was 1981. “He decided to start making money,” Sue said.
Bob moved to Lake of the Ozarks in 1987, where he purchased Dabbs Marina, renaming it “Big Thunder Marina.” This was the time when the Lake was transitioning from a small-vessel oriented family lake to a roaring powerboat destination. Miami Vice was the hottest show on television, and Cigarette boats were all the rage. Boaters with a need for speed were looking for high-octane airplane fuel and performance boat service. Big Thunder Marina delivered both. The marina became the No. 1 Baja dealer in the nation.
“We made sure our customers received excellent care,” Sue said. She was the business manager, top saleswoman and race team manager. Known as the negotiator, she had a tight grip on finances.
Bob and Sue sold Big Thunder Marina in 2006 - at the perfect time, considering the looming economic downturn - once again showing their business prowess.
Then, in 2008, Bob met JT Tillman and found they shared a passion for competitive racing. Joining forces, they raced together for the first time in the Offshore Super Series at Lake of the Ozarks. “They really hit it off. They both loved speed. They raced together about half a dozen times,” Sue said.
In 2011, Bob and Sue partnered with JT and bought the marina back. Three weeks before the 2011 Shootout, Tillman claimed, “Big Thunder Motorsports and Marina is coming back in a big way. For starters, we will be the Lake’s exclusive Donzi dealer. There will be a lot of exciting changes going forward. There will be investment opportunities for the Lake community as well.”
JT was an ex-Indy car driver who competed in the Indy Lights, Grand AM and Daytona 24 Hours.
He originally hailed from the St. Louis area, but relocated to the Lake of the Ozarks where he started his own company.
JT’s passion for life and competitive nature did not end in the pits. One never knew whether he would be sitting in a duck blind with one of his beloved dogs, climbing into a deer stand, bear hunting in the Ukraine, scuba diving in the Caribbean, boating with friends, piloting a plane, running a marathon, driving an Indy car, taking in the United States on a Harley or racing a powerboat.
Remembering JT, his family thinks of a man who in all aspects of life took risks, had fun, and pushed himself to the limit.
This year, the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout will set aside time to remember the loved and lost.
With sobering reminders of the past alongside the eternal drive for glory, racers will hit the throttles to chase Top Gun immortality – just like Bob and JT.
![Waterfront Dining At Its Finest! Take A Look Inside 1932 Reserve At The Lake [FLYTHROUGH]](https://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/lakeexpo.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/46/e4626dcf-f52a-421a-ae0a-df7ec2374365/6aada39fabf69.preview.jpg?crop=1119%2C1119%2C240%2C0)
