With Labor Day now behind us, where do we go next. Lock Haven proved to be another great weekend, with nearly 430 entries over the three day weekend. We were graced with the presence of drivers such as Brandon Sutton, Dylan Murray and Rob Dixon from north of the border and well as Bonnie and Kierra Marquard making the trip from Washington State. All in all I think the nearly twenty states were represented in the various classes.
Friday was an early day, as WNEP 16 News hosted their morning show live from the pits starting at 4:30am and ran till about 7am. Along with a few members of the Lock Haven Jaycees, several racers made their early morning news debut to promote the race and our sport of Stock Outboard Racing. Later in the day, Delaware Valley Outboard Association hosted a drivers school where new drivers were taught the ins and outs of boat racing before hitting the water to experience it for themselves. It seemed to work, as a few of the students stuck around the whole weekend and raced in their first races and are actively looking for equipment to buy now. During the drivers school, another reporter from WNEP 16 arrived to cover the race and get some footage of boats on the water. It was only fitting, to make sure she got the full experience. So we outfitted her in kevlar and a lifejacket and elected Jerry Davids to take her for a spin in his 750MR. When the ride came to a stop, she was smiling ear to ear and her hands were shaking. She said she had recently covered a story and went sky diving and this was much more of an adrenaline rush! The rest of Friday saw drivers shake off the cobwebs and spin some laps on the Susquehanna.
Saturday showed some great racing. With so many boats in the pits, it means a long day of racing. we kicked off racing around 10am and finished at 7pm. Dominick Trolian continues to show he means business with a win all three days in JSR and Karissa Mitchell proved to be dominate winning AXR and AXH all three days. Mike Young had a strong showing in 25SSR on Saturday, proving to be the fastest one out there but bad luck struck Sunday, when he lost his fin heading into turn two and found himself up on shore. Back out of retirement, Max Acierno showed he still as what it takes. Winning ASH by two seconds on Sunday, after jumping the gun and hitting a buoy on Saturday. It is rumored he plans on coming back, watch out all you ASH and ASR drivers. Adam Allen meant business in CSR, by going out and winning the North American Championship on Saturday. All of the results can be found out APBA's website or at the link below.
The Dash for the Cash provided some great entertainment for those on shore. Two elimination heats with a two heat final. After his performance Saturday, Brandon Sutton proved he had what it takes.Fielding a 12 boat final, the first heat saw some great action, but it was Tim Sidor who would take the first heat win. In the second heat, Matt D'Agostino would suffer engine troubles and not make it on to the course. Leaving eleven boats in heat two, when they all hit the first turn it was Brandon Sutton who would come out in first. Tim Sidor driving as hard as he could to get back in to the winners circle would end up finishing third on the course. With a first and a third, Tim Sidor would be the 2019 Dash for the Cash winner, taking home $1,500 and bragging rights.
Another attraction at Lock Haven is Cooler Bobbing. Once a sanctioned sport under the ACBA or American Cooler Bobbing Association, it has a rich history in the town of Lock Haven. This year we were very honored to be in the presence of the man who started it all Teddy O'Neil. The sport originated one late night at Dayton, Teddy asked Shanon and Craig Bowman for a beer. The pair agreed to give Teddy a beer, but when he went to reach for it they told him not like that. They told him he would have to stick his head in the cooler to get the bottle. Teddy wanted a beer and wasn't going to let a small task like this stand in his way. He dove into the cooler and out he came with the pony bottle of rolling rock in his mouth and the sport of cooler bobbing was invented. This year we had a strong field of rookies as well as veterans. Dustin Pearson, Mac Pfalzer and Michelle Snyder were some of the rookies who wanted to put their name in the history books. Max Acierno, Joel Kiddy, Dylan Murrary were some of the veterans who came back to revenge after losing in past years. Dave Campbell last years winner, came up short in the eliminations and didn't find his way into the finals. For myself, I was close a few times but the last time I came up for air, I no longer had balance and excused myself and have officially retired from cooler bobbing. The Finals went quick, and rookie Dustin Pearson sponsored by Wlodarski Racing and Throttled Stock Outboard would come out victorious with a time of 10.2 seconds and took home a cash pot of nearly $400.
Mondays Racing was spoiled due to the rain and sent many trailers home early. The race committee decided to go to a one heat four lap format and racing was concluded by 2pm and just like that another Lock Haven is in the books. Plans are already forming for 2020 as it will be the 50th running of Lock Haven. Mark your calendars as it will be a special one, bigger and better than ever before.
-JW
