What a Lotawana Weekend. Friday night was fantastic with 16 floats entered and there were lots of well-wishers on docks and in boats cheering them on as they paraded around the pond back to the Marina. Jack even had live music going on most of the evening. Saturday morning was filled with many activities for both young and old. Of course, my favorite was the pancake breakfast at the Yacht Club. There were booths set up around the club selling shirts/visors and other items. Our local police department was on hand handing out information and official badges to the kids. The main event was the Ski Club Show. It ranks up there as one of the best. If you noticed, the club has a large crop of little ones ages 7-10. The future looks bright. I must comment, the crowd anchored at Goat Hill and down the line were exceptional this year. Only one “Ding Dong” had to set off an M-80. This is very stupid since the area had several anchored watercrafts and guess what goes into these watercrafts???? GAS!!!!!!! What seemed like being funny could have gone south quickly with a chain reaction. On a plus note, it was great to see a live band playing on the Poynter’s boathouse for the evening entertainment. Great two days!
I think we all can agree, what better place to live on earth than at Lake Lotawana.
On a personal note that I would like to add, I operate one of the safety boats for the Ski Club. The Monday after Lotawana Day, the evening was open to all the kids to experiment with their skiing and attempt new acts. Three little girls, Olivia Conrad, Elise Kelso, and Sydney Williams, all had that opportunity and took advantage. The challenge was to get up on one ski. They are all now officially slalom skiers. One of the girls fell on her first attempt making it about half-way through the course. When I went to pick her in the safety boat her response was, “Gee that was really fun!” The smile on her face was priceless and she was ready to try again.
I’m still receiving complaints of PWCs speeding and doing “donuts” in Big Rock Cove. A homeowner did snap a couple of pics of one of the complaints and I was able to talk to the parents about the kids’ behavior. As they say, “A picture is worth 1,000 words.”
The season is slowly coming to a close. The kids will head back to school in a couple of weeks and the lake will go into its “mellow mood.” The fall is one of my favorite times on the pond……cool breeze, low humidity, full moon nights and a great time to cruise the lake in the evening or during the weekend. Probably the best news is that the “gas bandits” haven’t hit anyone this season. We still see too many watercrafts floating around in the lake unoccupied. Many of our crafts are on lifts. For some reason they magically go down and the homeowner did NOT tie their vessel to the lift or the dock. Especially homeowners who are weekenders, this should be a must for you. Our toys cost too much money today and if they are damaged or your watercraft damages another’s, it’s on you.
Labor Day is our next big event and then the Wood Boat Show & Cruise along with some great boating cruises of our own in October and November.
See ya.