2019 Outboard Nationals held in Wakefield

WAKEFIELD, Mich. (WLUC) - Tuesday was the first day of the Wakefield Outboard Nationals. The races run through Thursday, July 25.

Various classes and divisions of outboard race boats, sanctioned by the American Power Boat Association, will be racing on Sunday Lake.

"They’re held every year annually in a different location and they try to move it around the country. Every four years we come here to Wakefield, Michigan,” said the 2019 Wakefield Outboard Nationals Announcer, Scott Glassner.

The 2019 Wakefield Outboard Nationals attracts athletes from all over the world. This is the 17th time the races have been held in Wakefield, dating back to 1980.

"The community is very excited. This brings in a lot of money for gas stations, restaurants, the stores, a lot of people are coming out to watch,” said Race Committee Co-Chair, John Siira.

It's not just the community that is excited about this week's races, 18-year-old Jared Pavlick is one of the 220 racers excited, and nervous, about the results of this week. Pavlick started racing with his family when he was just 9 years old.

"My favorite part about racing is probably working with my family as a team to try to get the fastest stuff and to win as a family,” said Pavlick.

Pavlick's dad and brother are also competing in this week's races. The winner of each race gets a trophy and bragging rights.

"The races are broken down into what they call flights. And then there are several classes in each flight. The total number of heats for the week is about 80,” explained Glassner. “So you will see all different kinds of boats. You'll see runabouts, which are the pointed nose boats, you'll see the hydroplanes, which has the pickle forks, all various types of classes motorizes and that stuff.”

Organizers of the event say it costs about $10,000 to hold the races, but they say it’s worth it.

https://www.uppermichiganssource.com...513105741.html

220 Racers!!!!:eek:

2019 national boat races run qualifying events

Qualifying races on Tuesday served as an opener for the 2019 Stock and Junior National Championships taking place this week on Sunday Lake in Wakefield.

During the event, Eddy Park has taken on a new culture, with rows of small, colorful tents and resting boats that feature nicknames such as "Dadeo the Mad Polock" or "Brother Thunder."

A running commentary on each race division blared from a loudspeaker as race participants, crew, family and friends wandered freely, accompanied by mellow dogs in all sizes and types.

"It's kind of a family thing," said Don Nielson, better known as "Red Dog," who was there as a crew man for Lee Sutter of Seattle, Washington.

Nielson, of Phoenix, Arizona, was in the hot pit area on the lake's north side, where a steady stream of crew members helped to push participants' boats away from the shore.

According to him, drivers must accelerate immediately, so that they can fly "full blast" past a huge digital clock facing the lake. Nielson said they must pass the clock precisely when it reads zero, to coincide with the start of each race.

Color-coded buoys are placed strategically around the designated race field so that participants can gauge distance and avoid wrongful lane changes.

In addition, a stationary boat in the middle of the lake acts as a police station. "Those are the turn judges to make sure nobody cuts anyone off illegally," said Del Snyder of Waupon, Wisconsin, who was cheering on his daughter, Michelle Snyder, in more than one division.

Snyder said drivers must maintain the space of one boat length when they want to change lanes.

It's a dangerous sport, with Snyder admitting he broke his neck while competing in a 2002 race. "The boat went over," he said. "It just got away from me."

Nielson and Sutter also used to race together. "I've raced for 60 years," noted Sutter, adding that he won multiple championships during that time.

Now, he sponsors Sean Byrne and Kyle Lewis, also of the Seattle area. Byrne won two eliminations on Tuesday, and Lewis is a defending championship in the C-Stock Hydro, the C-Stock Runabout and the 20 Super-Stock Hydro.

"That's like going to the moon," said Sutter of Lewis' accomplishments.

Because of his status, Lewis said, "I don't need to do the qualifiers."

Lewis was surprisingly chill about facing his competition or the danger in general. "Because this is something I do all the time, I'm used to it," he said. "It's all about perspective."

Although he's only 29, he said he began racing 20 years ago. "In the junior classes, you can start at nine," he said with an easy grin.

Lewis said his dad, Carl Lewis, also used to race. "Since I was a child, we went to races, so I was always infatuated."

His father now stays on the sidelines, but that doesn't make his position simple. "My dad paces back and forth and chain smokes," said Lewis. "He gets a little wound up."

While watching various crew members hustle, Lewis concluded, "The easiest job is riding the boat because the only person you have to listen to is yourself."

Nielson said people in non-racing roles have various responsibilities.

"Every boat has to be weighed with the driver in it," he said, explaining that the weight must fall within the guidelines of the given division.

He added that drivers use 87 octane gas with no ethanol, and he warned, "they will actually check your fluid to see if you've put any additives in the gas."

Although everyone agreed this year's weather is perfect, racing is a sensitive sport, with Nielson claiming that competition stops if a breeze goes beyond 20 miles per hour. At that level, he said, the wind could blow a boat over.

When accidents do occur, a stationary medic boat also lies in wait on the lake. Nielson said it is customized to lower its access to potentially injured drivers, to make it easy to whisk them away for more intensive help.

This week's event is authorized by the American Power Boat Association, which is the governing body for national outboard motor races.

The Badger State Outboard Association in Wisconsin submitted the bid for the local races, and the Wakefield-Bessemer Rotary Club is providing local support.

https://www.yourdailyglobe.com/story...nts/12496.html

Kids take on the 2019 Wakefield Outboard Nationals

WAKEFIELD, Mich. (WLUC) – Wednesday was day two of the 2019 Wakefield Outboard Nationals. The last day of the race is Thursday.

Various classes and divisions of outboard race boats, sanctioned by the American Power Boat Association, will be racing on Sunday Lake.

The family-friendly event includes races for all ages. One of the 220 racers, 13-year-old Catolina Cole, traveled all the way from Renton, Washington. She got her start just last year, but says her grandpa participated in the sport in the 70s.

Cole races in the AX and J-Hydro classes.

"It's scary sometimes, but most of the time it's always fun. And nationals is super fun all the time,” said Cole, sporting a Kevlar bodysuit, life jacket, and cut proof socks.

Cole finished 11th in the country and hopes more people join in on the sport’s fun.

https://www.uppermichiganssource.com...513161101.html