One of the things we love about cruising is the variety of visual stimuli, and different life styles that come our way, in particular those with a marine flavor. In Europe we were in Cascais for an Open 60 regatta, and in Puerto Calero for the RC44 championships. Both were interesting technically, the people watching wonderful, and old world competitors do know how to throw a party.
Now, from Portsmouth, Virginia, we bring you a “Poker Run.” This is an event more in keeping with NASCAR than yachting, and these folks really know how to celebrate!
Before you think we’ve gone daft from too much cohabitation with unsailing, check out the photos which follow, the slide show (although it is R rated), and short v ideo. We promise you won’t be disappointed
A Poker Run in the muscle boat context is both a visual and auditory experience.
When you hear the barely muffled rumble of a few thousand horses at idle in close quarters, it sets the heart a pounding.
Bare skin, tattoos, fancy paint jobs and lots of dials are part of the package.
These guys are long, skinny, deeply V’d, and they will pass anything except a fuel dock.
Putting those horses to work calls for surfacing props, half in and half out of the water,
The press is out in force, shooting stills and video,
of the action centered off our starboard beam.
The expressions, clothing, or lack lack thereof, provided a look at the avant guard, and what will probably become next season’s must wear.
In the midst of the party there are always a few who need the pacifier next to their ear
Swim suits are in the majority, and decorum dictates they be correctly placed. There is a lot of positioning going on.
And then we have the wet t-shirt contest. We are saddened to report finalists broke the attire rule and competed sans appropriate accouterment.
By 2000 hours the party had moved to a local hotel.
A more explicit slide show, R rated in part, is here. And brief video can be seen by clicking here.
Posted by Steve Dashew (July 11, 2011)
July 11th, 2011 at 12:13 pm
This is the most unexpected post ive seen on this blog! Your comentry on the event is brilliant!
July 11th, 2011 at 9:30 pm
Thanks Matt:
Not sure I would call it brilliant, but we did have a good time, and Linda even commented on the rush that comes from all that power.
July 11th, 2011 at 8:45 pm
“…and they will pass anything except a fuel dock.”
So true. This same crowd comes to my town (Kingston, ON) late each summer for a similar event. One crew I was chatting with after the last run made a comment along the lines of “hey, we only used $800 of gas today!”
Every year, there’s a bit of talk of “this isn’t in character for the city” or “so wasteful”. But what it boils down to in the end is money; the poker boat crowd have a lot of it and they’re more than happy to drop a handful of C-notes at a nice local restaurant before spending another hefty sum at the hotels and bars. And so the local business love it, and the tourism promoters love it, and it keeps coming back year after year.
July 12th, 2011 at 7:29 am
Brilliant! We have one here in Jacksonville and it appears all who participate are having some good clean (?) fun.
Thanks
July 12th, 2011 at 7:45 am
Well my day is not wasted because I learned something. I didn’t even know such a sport existed. Good to see they have found something to do with their toys.
July 15th, 2011 at 6:37 pm
Ugly Americans……in every way.
July 16th, 2011 at 10:15 am
Howdy John:
Beauty and the reverse is very much in the eye of the beholder. While we might agree if you specified some characteristic, say belt size, but broad generalizations are rarely accurate. We wonder if the same comments apply to the Old World populace we saw indulging themselves in the Balearic Islands?