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After the wakes have settled and the waters of Lake Havasu are finally back to normal (if there is such a thing), Jim Nichols (event organizer/promoter of Desert Storm) has been able to break down the numbers and the winners of the 2010 Desert Storm Extravaganza.

Enjoy and see you next year!

Desert Storm raises $27700.00 for Charities!
Desert Storm 2010


The "Putin on the Wish" event on Wednesday with the Platinum Powerboat Club proved to be a touching experience for all involved. Rides were given to over 192 family members of the Make A Wish Foundation Clients and children from Havasu for Youth, one of our long time charities. One young man, Jack, who had his first ever Powerboat ride, asked to came back on Friday and participate in the Poker Run. Then he spoke to the crowd on Friday evening as the auctioneer fired up the crowd for the benefit auction. His brave acceptance and passionate embracing of his difficult life made a huge impression on all of us. A great big thank you to all who participated as $17,270.00 was raised to help grant more wishes in the future.

Thursday's street party was fantastic, even with the rain (real Desert Storm) on Thursday night, the enthusiasm for the event could not be dampened One hundred and three beautiful almost out of this world boats displayed the best in today's performance marine hardware and with them some of the most outrageous tow vehicles that could be found anywhere. The crowds loved it and partied until late hours! For many people, the display was beyond belief and very inspiring at our participant's innovation and enthusiasm!

Over 190 boats signed up for the poker run on Friday for one of the safest and fun runs we've had to date! The run was spectacular with spectator boats up and down the course. With five helicopters following the fleet and buzzing the course, they created lots of excitement themselves. Needless to say, we captured some great photos and video footage for our DVD. I know I can't wait to see it all! Thanks to our friend Karen Gill, we hosted three Marines who recently completed their tours of the Middle East. Not knowing what they were getting themselves into, they felt pleasantly surprised with the welcome and fantastic day on the lake they were treated to by our adopting teams. We hosted their hotel rooms and made sure they felt our gratitude for their service to our nation!

Friday evening's beach party at the Nautical was off the hook! With the band "Push" providing the music and plenty of great food and drinks, the evening was a hit. Some wild hands were opened and the excitement climbed high. Winners would be announced on Saturday night! The Make-A-Wish auction seemed to start a little slow, so I jumped out to get things started and bid a couple of hundred for a special shirt basket from MTI, ended up costing me a quick thousand, but we got things started J What a great turnout to raise over $17,000.00

The Shootout on Saturday opened up to a early morning wind once again causing a delayed start to the event, but once things settled down, over 62 runs were laid down by 45 boats. The course was setup with a 30 mph zone to get on plane and then a mile of high speed run. Though a GPS miscalculation the course was slightly short and the speeds were lower than anticipated. A few participants were granted the entire course for a exhibition run and there higher speeds were noted but not certified, notably JBS Racings 188 MPH pass compared to their 178 MPH pass following the 30 MPH restrictions. With the wind cooperating in the late morning and afternoon, the course made for some high speeds and a great spectacle for the over 2000 spectator boats lining the course.


That evening the local Aquatic Center was decorated to the nines with festive balloons and patriotic themes. The stage was set with a huge sound system and lighting systems. Dinner was served and the over 650 people in attendance were treated videos of the past few days events. Soon it was time for the event awards and door prizes and our staff along with our Bud Light Girls threw out a huge number of donated items into the crowd. Awards were announced, (see them posted below) prizes were given and when it was all over, the band played on into the night! Check out the band at www.tattooedsoul.com


Unfortunately after the long days in the sun and 95 degree heat, many people where too tired to stay and party. So the LakeRacer Staff had to take up the slack and partied till midnight J Of course that made it a little harder for several of the staff who was up very early the next morning to help setup the POPRA race course. We also helped out by manning a couple of rescue boats, but it was great fun to be in the center of the race course watching all the action. And unlike last year, we didn't have to actively rescue anyone, so all was good!!

I've just finished compiling the aerial boat photos and am sending them out this week, now I'll work on getting those photos up on the website. We're still a little while away from completing the event video due to some technical issues with the helicopter video. Check out the events photos and videos as I get them posted at http://www.lakeracerllc.com/


Sundays POPRA race was much better attended than last year with many East Coast teams coming out to run with their West Coast brethren. One notable team missing from the races with Team CRC who suffered a broken transmission early on in the weekend, but with Craig Fergusson of Team Renegade, Bob Teague's Team AMZOIL, and the JBS Racing Turbine Powered Mystic running hard the crowds were treated to a great day of racing. Other Racer information can be found at www.pacificoffshore.com


A huge thank you to everyone who volunteered, participated, sponsored, or supported this years event.

I hope we made it worth your while.


Sincerely,

Jim Nichols








2010 Desert Storm Winners!
2010 Desert Storm Winners and Awards--- and the winners are!!:




Best Boating Awards:

Best Interior: Ken Armstrong

Best Graphics: Albert Hainsworth

Best Power: Mike Brown

Best Vee: Jerry Gillbreath

Best Cat: Gino Gargiulo

Best Rig: Jeff Stevenson

Mayors Choice: Dave Marbella


Stereo Contest Awards:


1st Place -- Bob Teague -- Skater 44

2nd Place - Michael Hughes

3rd Place - Nick Stoltz

4th Place - Ryan Stacks

5th Place - Chris Winters

6th Place - Mark Deymonaz

7th Place - Gerardo Brambila

8th Place - Brian Sloop


Shootout Class Awards:


Vee Classes:


Single engine 18-20 ft Stock Power Steve Ross, Capistrano Beach CA 66 MPH Larson 20

Single engine 21-25 ft Modified Power Scott Gazda, Phoenix AZ 68 MPH Caliber 24

Single engine 21-25 ft Stock Power Brandon Takata Valencia CA 81 MPH IMC 25

Twin engine 31-24 ft Boost added Power Darrin Wise Colville WA 96 MPH Formula 32

Twin engine 35-39 ft Modified Power Fredrick Rezael, Phoenix AZ 76 MPH Scarab 38

Twin engine 40-43 ft Boost added Power Nic Buis St Pete FL 115 MPH Statement 42

Twin Engine Canopied 40-43 ft with

Boosted added power Daniel Davis Batavia IL 115 MPH Fountain 40


Deckboat Classes:


Twin Engine 26-30 ft Factory Power George Ogden Lake Havasu AZ 104 MPH E-Ticket 29

Single Engine 26-30 ft Modified Power John Carparell San Diego CA 110 MPH Howard 28

Twin Engine 26-30 ft Modified Power Criag Barney Salina UT 117 MPH DCB 30



Open Cat Classes:


Single Engine 21-25 ft Outboard Power Brian Burdick Bremerton WA 87 MPH Skater 21

Single Engine 26-30 ft Modified Power Greg Belda Los Angeles CA 111 MPH Nordic 27

Twin Engine 26-30 ft Modified Power Rick Fardig Lake Taps WA 113 MPH Eliminator 28

Single Engine 26-30 ft Boost added Power Jeff Ford Denham Springs LA 119 MPH Redline 26

Twin Engine 31-34 ft Alcohol cooled boost Greg Olson Alliance NE 136 MPH Eliminator 33

Twin Engine 31-34 ft Boost Power added Jeff Lamb / John Thomlinson 138 MPH DCB M-31

Twin Engine 31-34 ft Modified Power Anthony Lombardi Action CA 141 MPH DCB F-32

Twin Engine 40-43 ft Boost Power added Mike Bobbit Huntington B. CA 147 MPH Skater 40

Twin Engine 40-43 ft Alcohol cooled boost Gary Smith Tucson AZ 151 MPH Skater 43

Twin Engine 35-49 ft Boost Power added Bill Pyburn Jacksonvile FL 154 MPH Skater 38



Canopied Cat Classes:


Twin Engine 35-39 ft Modified Power Randy Wild Ofallon MO 94 MPH MTI 40

Twin Engine 38-51 ft Turbine Power Jeff Stevenson Winneconne WI 178 MPH Mystic 50

Jeff Stevenson in the 50 ft Mystic was crowned "King of the Desert" for this pass.



Poker Run Winners:


Fourth Place -- Chris Winter Yucaipa CA -- 27 Eliminator Daytona

Third Place -- Tim Pivonka Loveland CO -- 34 Eliminator Daytona

Second Place -- Winner donated all winnings to Soldiers Angels

First Place -- Robert Spurlock Norco CA -- 27 Laveycraft



Charity Donations Collected:


Make A Wish Foundation $17270.00

Soldiers Angels $7500.00

Havasu for Youth -- $5300.00