Long Beach to give Sprint Nationals speedboat race permit another look

The Long Beach ARP Sprint Nationals speedboat race — which the Southern California Speedboat Club first hosted at the city’s Marine Stadium in 1946 — annually entertains fans with several classes of speedboat racing, some which top speeds up to 150 mph.

But in recent years, safety concerns have thrown the event’s future into question. Long Beach has denied SCSC’s permit applications in the past, inclduing for the 2022 event. But this week, the City Council voted to have the matter go before a hearing officer.

There have been two driver deaths during the Sprint Nationals since 2018. Last year, driver Jay Hart died when he was ejected from his open-cockpit speedboat during a race in Long Beach on Aug. 8. Gregory Paul Duff died a week and a half after being hit by a boat while racing in the 2018 event.

(The 2020 races took place in Bakersfield and Parker, Arizona, before returning to Long Beach last year.)

The city initially denied SCSC’s permit application in 2019, following Duff’s death — but eventually allowed the event to go forward with a number of safety enhancements.

The SCSC secured a $10 million liability policy — up from $1 million the year before — to meet city requirements and get the event permit two weeks before the event was scheduled to take place.

Long Beach again denied the Sprint Nationals permit application this year after an interdepartmental city investigation — including personnel from the Long Beach Fire and Police departments, and the offices of Marine Safety and Risk Management — found that the size of Marine Stadium, coupled with the speed of the boats, created a dangerous situation for drivers and onlookers alike.

The 2022 Long Beach races were initially set for Aug. 6 and 7.

The 2021 death was attributed to unstable water, which appeared to push a boat into Hart’s — each traveling at about 110 mph. They collided, which caused Hart’s boat to overturn and eject him, according to an April 11 City Council memo from Long Beach City Manager Thomas Modica.

If the boat had not overturned, the letter said, it would have continued into the crowd of spectators — with no physical barrier to prevent impact.

“A similar accident occurred during the Sprint Nationals Boat Racing event in 2018, also held in Marine Stadium, which also resulted in the death of one of the boat racers,” the letter added. “ There were similar patterns to the cause of the 2021 accident.”

SCSC and its promoter, Ross Wallach, have since filed an appeal to the city’s April 5 permit denial — and the City Council has voted to allow the matter to be determined by a hearing officer.

“We are here with open eyes and open minds,” Ernie Algorri, an attorney representing SCSC, said during public comment at the council’s Tuesday, May 24, meeting. “I looked at their safety protocol, their safety committee, their rule book and all of their procedures — we have a good faith basis to go forward with this appeal.”

Councilwoman Suzie Price stressed the importance of a fair process for both parties — with SCSC able to present its side of the story and remediate its safety procedures where possible.

“I’ve had an opportunity to meet with the appellants,” Price said. “We haven’t had any substantive conversations, but (I’ve been) ensuring them and promising and committing to them that they would have a fair process.”

The City Clerk’s office will randomly select the hearing office from a pool of qualified applicacants, according to city officials. The hearing officer will make a final judgment on the application.

“I want to reaffirm that we are here to welcome the opportunity for the hearing,” Algorri said. “We think that’s an appropriate venue — and it’s certainly a good use of resources to iron out the questions and issues that have arisen.”

The hearing and its testimony — though a date has yet to be determined — is anticipated to last several hours, and possibly multiple days, Price said.

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