www.pokerrunsamerica.com RAISING RAISING THETHE ROOF ROOF POKER RUNNER JOEL LaPIERRE TM TESTED: CHECKMATE 2400 BRX LAKE NORMAN MAKE-A-WISH POKER RUN TOYS TOUR POKER RUN KEY WEST WORLDS & POKER RUN MEET MERCURY RACING’S NEW BOSS JEFF BROMAN MTI 340X Cover 26-4.indd 1Cover 26-4.indd 12024-01-04 4:01 PM2024-01-04 4:01 PMExperience the 500R MERCURYRACING.COM/500R PERFORMANCE ELEVATED WITH POWER AND PRESTIGE, THE MERCURY RACING 500R SETS THE NEW STANDARD FOR LUXURY HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE. LIVE WIDE OPEN. Mercury DPS.indd 2Mercury DPS.indd 22024-01-02 10:28 AM2024-01-02 10:28 AMExperience the 500R MERCURYRACING.COM/500R PERFORMANCE ELEVATED WITH POWER AND PRESTIGE, THE MERCURY RACING 500R SETS THE NEW STANDARD FOR LUXURY HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE. LIVE WIDE OPEN. Mercury DPS.indd 3Mercury DPS.indd 32024-01-02 10:29 AM2024-01-02 10:29 AMBill Taylor PUBLISHERS NOTE 4 WWW.POKERRUNSAMERICA.COMWWW.POKERRUNSAMERICA.COM VOLUME TWENTY SIX / NUMBER FOUR PUBLISHER William E. Taylor bill@pokerrunsamerica.com EDITOR Gregg Mansfield info@pokerrunsamerica.com TECHNICAL EDITOR Price Turner CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Tim Banse, Zenon Bilas, Bob Brown, Mike Burns Bill Jennings, Bobbye Kenyon, Chris Kourtakis, Mark Rothermal DESIGN ads@pokerrunsamerica.com Tamara Taylor, Giselle Bansal WEB DESIGN Moe Basha mbasha@taylorpublishinggroup.com PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Giselle Bansal giselle@pokerrunsamerica.com VP ADVERTISING & SALES Todd Taylor todd@pokerrunsamerica.com SALES Todd Taylor todd@pokerrunsamerica.com FLORIDA SALES Kevin Peterson klpetersonmarketing@gmail.com SPECIAL EVENTS COORDINATORS Nancy Mueller, Melanie Taylor coordinator@pokerrunsamerica.com ADMINISTRATION President William E. Taylor Group Publisher Melanie Taylor-Wallis VP/Special Projects Norm Rosen PHOTOGRAPH/VIDEO Tamara Taylor tmtaylor@taylorpublishinggroup.com Duane C. Adams, Pete Boden, Ken Denardo, Jeff Geradi - Freeze Framevideo.net, Lisa Mazzoni, Randy Nuzzo, Tim Sharkey- Sharkeys Images EXECUTIVE & EDITORIAL OFFICES NEW YORK 777 East Park Drive, Tonawanda, NY 14150 FLORIDA 131 Brandiwood Court, Debary, FL, 32713 Tel: 1-800-354-9145 TORONTO 268 - 44 Crawford Crescent, Campbellville, ON L0P 1B0 905/844-8218 EDITORIAL OFFICES 1-800-354-9145 Subscription inquires call: 1-800-354-9145 Website: www.pokerrunsamerica.com E-mail: info@pokerrunsamerica.com Cover and contents are copyright protected and may not be reproduced in any form without prior written consent from the publisher. Editorial contributions must be accompanied by return postage and will be handled with reasonable care. The publisher assumes no responsibility for return or safety of artwork, photographs, or manuscripts. Poker Runs America reserves the right to refuse any and all advertising and disclaims all responsibilities for claims or statement of facts made by its advertisers or independent columnists Regular subscription rates are 4 issues: $19 US. 8 issues: $32 US. Canadian subscribers add $10. Single copy price is $5.95 US and $8.50 Cdn. POSTMASTER Send all returns to Poker Runs America, 777 East Park Drive, Tonawanda, NY 14150 PRINTED IN USA POKER RUNS AMERICA | Volume 26 Number 4 IT’S FULL STEAM AHEAD FOR OFFSHORE RACING William E. Taylor, Publisher bill@pokerrunsamerica.com For those of us old enough to remember, the 1980s were a special time for offshore racing. Some of the era’s biggest names from Fabio Buzzi to actors Don Johnson and Kurt Russell raced the circuit, delivering star power and bringing offshore racing into the mainstream. With the sponsorship money flowing and large crowds attending offshore races, it was a show like no other. But, politics within the sport, several different race promoters, egos and the emergence of poker runs fragmented offshore racing at the time. The health of the sport was reflected by the offshore fleet at the world championships in Key West, Florida. The good news is offshore racing is healthy as you’ll read in this issue about Race World Offshore’s Key West Offshore World Championship and Florida Powerboat Club’s Key West Poker Run. Both events—with a combined 325 boats—had the Florida tourist destination feeling like old times. When RWO President Larry Bleil won the rights from the City of Key West to promote the World Championship race in 2019, he asked for patience to rebuild the November event. The pandemic delayed Bleil’s vision, but we got to see a clearer picture at the 2023 World Championship. Organizers had to add an extra offshore race for the higher boat count, which was the largest since 2011. Space to pit the boats was at a premium. The restaurants and bars were packed with tourists and the hotels were at capacity. It’s a good problem for a promoter to have. Catching up with Bleil after the World Championship, he was busy signing checks as the bills for the party were coming due. He’s not sure the World Championship will make money in 2023 but is hopeful it will break even. This is the fourth Key West World Championship that Race World Offshore has promoted. “Every year we’ve added more things in the venue, changed the direction of the boat (parade) on Friday night,” Bleil said. “There’s a lot of ideas I’ve had, and I’d say 90 percent of them have worked out. The next step is coming up with enough money to do it every year, because it’s just a really expensive venture. “The tourist development (grant money) and all this other stuff doesn’t really put a dent in it. It just takes sponsors and that’s a lot of work.” With Poker Runs America having staged hundreds of poker runs since the 90’s, we’ve seen firsthand the rising cost for promoters and participants. Staging a major event, especially the size of the Key West World Championship, is no simple undertaking. Bleil was already starting to work on the 2024 Key West Championship, even though it was more than 11 months away. “I just work on this thing pretty much all the time,” Bleil said. Now that is the kind of passion that will keep the sport of offshore racing thriving. PRA Pub Page 26-4.indd 4Pub Page 26-4.indd 42024-01-02 10:26 AM2024-01-02 10:26 AM1151 Page Road, Washington, NC 27889 252-369-7287 checkmatepowerboats.net Overall Length: 24’ Beam: 99” Degree of Deadrise: 22° Max HP: 500HP Approximate Weight: 2,200 lbs. Approximate Fuel Capacity: 60 Gal. PULSARE 2400 BRX Engine Options: • Mercury 250 Pro XS V-8 with DTS (includes hydraulic steering) • Mercury 300 XS V-8 with DTS (includes hydraulic steering) • Mercury Racing 300R V-8 with DTS (includes hydraulic steering) • Mercury Racing 400R V-10 with DTS (includes hydraulic steering) • Mercury Racing 500R V-8 with DTS (includes hydraulic steering) Checkmate ad - red.indd 1Checkmate ad - red.indd 12024-01-02 10:33 AM2024-01-02 10:33 AM6 POKER RUNS AMERICA | Volume 26 Number 4WWW.POKERRUNSAMERICA.COM FEATURES 16 16 RAISING THE ROOF How a love for boating spans generations for the LaPierre family. 22 CHECKMATE POWER BOATS 2400 BRX The relaunched 2400 BRX sport boat delivers a lot for the money. 26 TOP CHOICE Doug Wright Powerboats is launching a hardtop and open top version of its 38’ catamaran. 28 KEY WEST WORLDS Key West crowns a new class of world champions. 34 TIME OUT WITH JEFF BROMAN Mercury Racing’s New Director. 38 FORT LAUDERDALE BOAT SHOW It was a center console lovers’ dream at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show. 43 FROM THE VAULTS The Triple Header at Lake Norman resulted in a clean sweep for Poker Runs America and Make-A-Wish Foundation. 4 PUBLISHER’S MESSAGE Good times roll for offshore racing. 10 THE BIG TICKET Embraer Senna Cockpit, Bulgari watch 12 FAST FACTS Electric Boat Speed Record, H1 Unlimited Reorganizes, Shootout Makes Record Donation, Key West Bash Raises $200,000 54 POWER PLAY Toys Tour, Florida Powerboat Club’s Key West Poker Run 61 POKER RUN EVENT CALENDAR DEPARTMENTS COVER pra vol. 26-4 CONTENTS Joel LaPierre from Gouverneur, N.Y. wears a 1989 Poker Runs America “Drivers” jacket to commerate his decades of involvement in the sport. www.pokerrunsamerica.com RAISING RAISING THETHE ROOF ROOF POKER RUNNER JOEL LaPIERRE TM TESTED: CHECKMATE 2400 BRX LAKE NORMAN MAKE-A-WISH POKER RUN TOYS TOUR POKER RUN KEY WEST WORLDS & POKER RUN MEET MERCURY RACING’S NEW BOSS JEFF BROMAN DEC/JAN 2024 contents 26-4.indd 6contents 26-4.indd 62024-01-02 11:00 AM2024-01-02 11:00 AM7 Volume 26 Number 4 | POKER RUNS AMERICAWWW.POKERRUNSAMERICA.COM 28 34 22 Key West Worlds Photo by Jeff Gerardi /Freezeframevideo.net 38 contents 26-4.indd 7contents 26-4.indd 72024-01-02 10:50 AM2024-01-02 10:50 AMCUST OM PAINT, FIBERGLASS , INTERIORS & MECHANIC AL We know how you feel about your boat or vehicle... we feel the same way! Let us know what’s on your bucket list of upgrades, what you wish your boat looked like on the water, a dream custom restoration for your ride, need some mechanical updates? We will customize services just for you. No request is too outrageous. Krytiuk-motorsports-DPS.indd 2Krytiuk-motorsports-DPS.indd 22024-01-02 10:41 AM2024-01-02 10:41 AMFULL SER VICE MO T ORSPORTS SOLUTIONS 1650 7th Line, Innisfil, Ontario L9S 4H3, Canada 705-718-4200 www.krytiukmotorsports.com CHRISTOPHE KEREBELMy Twitter : @chriskereCHRISTOPHE KEREBELMy Twitter : @chriskere @krytiukmotorsports krytiukmotorsport@gmail.com info@krytiukmotorsports.com Krytiuk-motorsports-DPS.indd 3Krytiuk-motorsports-DPS.indd 32024-01-02 10:41 AM2024-01-02 10:41 AMNext >