The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
ROAR OFF THE SHORE RETURNS TO LAKE ERIE
Second annual Super Boat Grand Prix draws crowds to Headlands Beach
Mentor Headlands Beach Park filled with spectators both on the beach and on the water to watch boats racing at speeds of approximately 150 mph.
Mentor Super Boat Grand Prix Roar off the Shore sponsored by Cleveland Construction returned to the waters of Lake Erie for the second year in a row.
The three day event, which ran July 21-23, featured six classes of powerboats and brought race teams to compete in the Super Boat International Circuit from all over the country.
The event kicked off on July 21 at the dry pits located at Great Lakes Mall, where people had the opportunity to meet the race teams, view the boats and learn about high speed racing. A beer tent, entertainment and food trucks were also available at the Race Village at Great Lakes Mall.
The second day of the event, July 22, had the boats on display again at the dry pits, but
also allowed people the opportunity to view the inspection and testing at the wet pits located at Mentor Lagoons.
At the wet pits the boats were lifted by crane, weighed and put into the water, where teams could do test runs.
According to Bill Opalych, a Cleveland Construction team member who ran the wet pits, the water conditions determine the types of propellers racers use on the boats; and testing the water allows them to figure what propellers are needed.
“It’s all a science,” he said. “Typically the one who gets the science right is the one who wins the race.”
The official day, July 23, featured two high speed races with 23 entries, according to the entry list found on superboat.com.
Some of the teams included race sponsor Cleveland Construction, Stihl, Jimmie Johns and 03 Wake Effects, who is the current reigning world champion for the Super Boat International Super Boat Unlimited Class.
“We are here to defend our title — Extreme Class, the fastest class,” said Wake Effects owner and driver Rusty Rahm.
Shawn Zbasnik, event director for the Super Boat Grand Prix was pleased with the turnout of the event this year.
“I think we made some really good improvements from last year, which being the first year we had some hiccups,” he said. “We got back to the drawing board and said we need an announcer filling in the race fans. And that was a real big improvement.
Zbasnik was unable to provide an estimate of the number of spectators in attendance this year, explaining that the Lake County sheriff’s office used a drone to calculate the amount of people on the beach and cars in the parking lot, while the U.S. Coast would figure the amount of boats in the water, and it takes about 24 hours to analyze the footage.
He notes though that the crowd seemed a little lighter than last year and figured it was due to water conditions and competing against a boating event at Put-in-Bay happening at the same time.
“I think there was still a lot of excitement for it,” he said. “It’s a small community of boaters out here, and it’s a short season. I think there were more people on the beach, and I’m pleased with the turnout. This venue is fantastic to host this event.”
Christine Hall of Green found the race while driving around and decided to attend.
“I think it was fabulous. It’s a beautiful beach and beautiful weather,” she said and indicated she would be back next year.
Bruce and Diann Borthwyck of Kirtland along with their 11-yearold daughter Norah were just looking for something to do on a nice day when they decided to attend.
“I was surprised to see a good crowd,” Bruce said. “It was cool and I learned a lot about it from the guy sitting behind us.” The Bruce also stated they would be back next year for the race.
At the time of publishing, race results had not yet been posted. Once posted, official race results can be found at www.superboat.com.