BOAT RACING

When it comes to motor sports, with big V-8 engines, count me in! In this case, I guess the classification would be "water sports", since the action took place on the Colorado River. Yesterday, Patty and I drove 35 miles down to the "Parker Strip", where the Bluewater Casino was the sponsor of some boat racing action. The approx. 1 mile circle course was on the river, in front of the Casino, and there was a variety of boats, ranging from blown engine, to outboard powered classes. The main event of the day was the 25 lap, grand national class, that featured boats such as the Rusher Air boat from Lake Havasu, pictured above. This boat was running away from the field, when on about lap 13, a steering cable broke, and that's all she wrote, as the driver sat on the river, and was a spectator for the rest of the race. Some of the best action was in the "Nostalgia Flat" class. These boats can be just about any combination of motor and hull, but they cannot exceed 80 mph. They have a GPS device which is checked after the checkered flag, and if the GPS shows that they went over 80, then they are disqualified. I talked to one of the drivers before the race, and even though most all types of racing can become expensive, this class looks like it might be somewhat affordable. Hey Marc, are you reading this? On the way home, we stopped at La Paz County Park, and had a picnic lunch on the river, as we watched the boats cruising up and down the Colorado. It was an enjoyable day on the river, with a cloudless sky, and temps in the low 90's.