The Poker Run Village
at Salty Sam¡¯s Marina began to take shape early Friday morning
as Mercury Racing presented the Poker Runs America annual
Fort Myers Poker Run. The first exhibit, belonging to Nor-Tech,
pulled into the parking lot a little after 6 a.m. It was followed
up by more displays from Chopper Nation, Apache Powerboats,
Doller Offshore Marine, Challenger Boats, South Seas Island
Resort, Sunsation Powerboats and other displays. It was beginning
to look more like a boat show than a poker run.
The village was a first for the Fort Myers event as Poker
Runs America continues to raise the bar in terms of promotion
and convenience for participants and fans. Salty Sam¡¯s was
a perfect headquarters for the weekend, providing a large
open area for the village, plenty of slips for the poker runners,
a store where the boaters can stock up and a the Parrot Key
bar and restaurant to quench thirst and satisfy hunger. We
would like to thank Matt Hanson, owner of Salty Sam¡¯s, and
all of his staff for the help and hard work they provided
for this annual Ft.Myers Poker Run.
Chopper Nation had an amazing array of motorcycles on display,
including a new one for poker runner George Boyd, from Canada.
He took delivery of the new machine that he had ordered at
the Sarasota Poker Run, five weeks before. Chopper Nation,
which is based Miami, creates custom one-off motorcycles that
have become popular additions to the toy chests of many poker
runners.
Also in attendance was Jan Barnes representing ¡°Voices For
Kids,¡± the charity of this weekend¡¯s run. Voices For Kids
is an organization that was developed to watch over abused
and neglected children to ensure that they maintain their
dignity. For more than 20 years, Voices for Kids has worked
in partnership with the Guardian Ad Litem program of the 20th
Judicial Circuit helping children in dependency. This event
was called the ¡°Rolling Backpack Drive for kids in dependency¡±
and over the weekend supplied rolling backpacks to help over
300 Kids.
As the temperature rose, the registration office became a
hive of activity as poker runners from as far away as Texas
and Canada began to arrive at the event. Event organizers
and participants alike were grateful to Steve Page of Page
Racing for supplying a portable, air-conditioned registration
office for the weekend. Page was not the only racer that helped
out at this event; Former Super Vee world champion Bob Oliver
brought his magnificent, rebuilt 47¡¯ Apache to put on display.
His boat, Fire and Ice, is a credit to Mark McManus who carried
out the refurbishing.
Another eye-catching exhibit was Gino Gargiulo¡¯s 39¡¯ MTI catamaran,
Lube Jobs. A great example of Marine Technologies attention
to detail, this boat is now for sale, as Gino has taken delivery
of the Sterling-Performance-powered 40¡¯ MTI, Annihilator,
which was showcased, in 2006, at the Miami International Boat
Show.
The staff from Felix Marine was on hand, offering to program
the course of the poker run into the GPS of each boat free
of charge. This was a first at any poker run and was appreciated
by all who took advantage of the service.
Much of the organizational and public relations legwork for
this event was done by Joy Gray and we thank her for her tireless
efforts on our behalf.
By early evening, the docks were filled with an awesome selection
of high-performance boats and it was time for the owners and
their crews to kick back and relax at the cocktail party on
the rooftop bar of Salty Sam¡¯s Marina. As people arrived for
the soiree, all the ladies where presented with a fragrant
rose from Rio Roses, the corporate sponsor for the weekend.
Not only did ladies who participate in the run receive a rose,
every lady in the Parrot Key restaurant got one as well.
As last year, the host hotel for the event was the Pink Shell
Resort and Spa, located on Ft. Myers Beach. This five star
resort was a big hit with last year¡¯s poker runners and it
was decided then that we would return for 2007. If you have
never been to the Pink Shell it is well worth a visit if you
are in the Ft. Myers area.
The mandatory driver¡¯s meeting and breakfast were the first
order of business on Saturday morning. In the ballroom of
the Pink Shell, the drivers and navigators were given all
the safety information and a full description of the day¡¯s
route by Dave Kirkland, before heading back to the marina
to start the engines. To help some of the boaters travel between
the marina and the resort, Keith and Terri Felder owners of
Searocket U.S.A, kindly put on a free ferry service for the
poker runners on Friday and Saturday.
Early morning patrons at the Parrot Key Restaurant, adjacent
to Salty Sam¡¯s, most certainly got a wake up call as thousands
of horsepower roared to life on the docks as, their normally
serene, Saturday morning breakfast was served.
The fleet left the marina for the nine minute idle up the
Intercoastal Waterway and out into the ocean where the pace
boats waited to lead them south past the Pink Shell and them
out on to the poker run route which would take them to the
first card stop at Gasparilla Marina. Helping out Bill Taylor
in the Poker Runs America 47¡¯ Fountain, with back-up pace
boats were David Gronke aboard his 40¡¯ Baja and Gene Weeks
from Donzi Marine in the 38ZR. We thank these regulars for
the continued help at many of our events across North America,
as well as Jason Huff who brought out his 35¡¯ Scarab Center
Console to act as Safety/Paramedic boat.
For the second run in a row, there were two starts separated
into two groups. Drivers who wanted to run above 80 mph left
in the first wave, while those who wanted to take a more relaxed
approach to card play waited until the second start. This
policy was developed to spread out the fleet, increasing the
safety of the event. Additionally, all participants are required
to wear lifejackets and no alcohol is allowed.
With cloudless skies and flat water, the green flags waved
and throttles were pushed to the limit, rooster tails appeared
on the scene as some of the more powerful boats pulled out
from the pack. The first leg took them out into the Gulf of
Mexico and northwards to Boca Grande pass. Felix Marine seemed
to have done a great job inputting the waypoints into the
boats navigation systems but as the first of the fleet cleared
Boca Grande it appeared that instructions should have been
given on how to switch on the GPS. Boats went in all directions,
some north, some east and boats were even seen turning south.
Eventually most of the fleet made it to Gasparilla where they
were greeted by the ¡°Pirate of Charlotte Harbor¡±, who took
a break from his dastardly routine and was passing out the
cards.
With none of the participants being made to walk the plank,
it was hammers down for the next card pick-up located just
outside the entrance to Burnt Store. When viewed from the
air, the boat looked like ¡®party central¡¯, and must hold the
record for the number of people aboard one card boat. With
card Number Three in hand, it was a 12-mile sprint across
Charlotte Harbor trip down the Intercoastal Waterway to South
Seas Island Resort where Harbor Master Craig Houser greeted
the crews. The resort also provided lunch, which was served
on the perfectly manicured lawns around the marina. Many of
the poker runners also took time out to explore the resort
and take advantage of the very inviting swimming pool.
As with several of the Poker Runs America events, there was
no official re-start after lunch. This allowed people to spend
whatever time they wished at the lunch stop and then return
to homeport for the last card at their leisure. This works
very well and is definitely appreciated when lunch is served
at a resort such as South Seas.
With boats put back in their slips or on their trailers it
was time for the poolside reception and banquet at the Pink
Shell Resort. This is an idyllic setting for an affair of
this caliber and every eye was on the sun as it slowing dipped
below the horizon. The food was served buffet style and as
the poker runners sated themselves with exotic taste and aromas,
Dave Kirkland began to reveal the cards. As the first card
hands were exposed the skies changed to angry looking clouds.
Half way through the reveal, the rains came, as hotel employees
quickly moved the tables into drier areas and as if some other
force was involved there was an enormous crack of thunder
as the winning hand was announced. By the end of the day,
it was clear, this was a performance-boating event. |
