Going For the Record!
The team of Paul Rigney and John S. Noel are ready to go.  When conditions on the U.S. Great Lakes are right, these gentlemen will embark on a high-speed quest to topple both an existing record and establish a new one that presently does not exist.

In the following article, Rigney will bring you up to date on their adventure and, I'm sure, pique your interest in it.                                           Chris Perry
Realistic Dreamin' is the theme
for this event. The summer of 1983 Mike Reagan was given a 39' ChrisCraft Stinger with
triple V8 Evintudes and proceeded to set a world record from Chicago to Detroit in 14.5 hours.  He used the event as a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society in the process.  Since then Don Johnson/Kurt Russell, Chuck Norris/Walter Peyton teams, and as of late, a fellow named Mark Nemschoff lays claim to the Detroit run; each in his own right, nibbling the time down to its present  8hrs 10 mins 45 seconds in a 42' diesel powered inflatable.  However, nobody ha gone any further until now!  One left turn just south of Detroit, and we are on our way to another 500+ miles of open water with our destination set at Alexandria Bay NY.  I always dreamed of making the attempt after I saw Reagan do it, although, the time frame now is, at the very least, challenging!  In the early stages of interest in the event, I wanted it for me.  Later on, after a series of events that turned my life in a different direction, I chose to donduct this race and use the oportunity to raise dollars for a large ministry here in Michigan.  All the people, including Nemschoff, had six to seven digit support money  behind them, so it was easier for them to accomplish their goal than it will be for us.  We are doing our run on a "wing and a prayer" literally.  Instead of the 630 mile run to Detroit from Chicago, we intend to go approx. 1200 miles to the mouth of the St. Lawrence River to a small resort town of Alexandria Bay, New York.  This has never been attempted by a competition type powerboat, let a alone a jetboat!   Why jet?  Because most everybody says it can't be done and "you should just  keep your jetdrive on sheltered waters where it belongs."
   My co-pilot, John S. Noel, is a former offshore racing champion and is well versed in the sport of boat racing.  He had a 28' 4-Winns Liberator he was rigging for an attempt, but never got to go.  John helps run a family business (Grand Valley Marine) in Grand Rapids Michigan and has been helping prep the boat for this run.  The other key player in this team I've organized is Kevin Burkhardt.  Kevin is the designated crewchief and assumes his position with authority.
    Kevin, the head mechanic at Pier 33, a premier marine facility in St. Joeseph, Michigan, simply states, "figuritivelyt speaking, this is 'my' boat and it will not leave the pier unless I give it my seal of approval . . . I'm not going to have somebody die in this race if I can help it."
     Kevin has set to the task of going over everything that I and John Noel have done or put into place to double check to make sure it is A-OK.  I designed and built the boat.  I started building the boat January of 2000 and changed a 20 year dream to a reality.  The boat is now ready to go and we are simply waiting for the ice to melt and the weather patterns to stabilize. 
  The boat is 27' long, 5'9" wide, weighs, 1900 lbs with a 750+ hp engine, but the most dramatic design concept is the 16' aircraft style wing on top (above and slightly forward the enclosed cockpit) for lift (flight).  We will carry over a ton of fuel when loaded and felt the wing was needed to attempt to enhance speed.  Somebody will likely challenge this record someday and we don't want it to be a 'cakewalk.'  Although by just finishing the race will constitute a world record, we want to claim the Detroit record enroute.  Actually, by even reaching Detroit in less than the 'Nemschoff' mark (pardon the pun), we will lay claim to the world's fastest 'endurance' jet to that location and overall record status at the St. Lawrence River location. We have as many safeguards in place as posssible, now the rest is up to God.
       Paul Rigney-owner/driver . . .  "Trippin" -- Contact Rigney . . .GO
                      
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