By Shannon K. Jones
Staff Reporter
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SAULT STE. MARIE - The St. Mary's waterway entertained more traffic than usual as the 2nd annual River Rampage took to the waters June 10 to 12. The event, sponsored by the Sault Area Chamber of Commerce and Kewadin Casinos, is a series of Champ Boat races known to bring hundreds of tourists to the area that follow the growing Champ Boat circuit.
Champ Boats are considered to be at the top of outboard powerboat racing in the world. Boats are approximately 17 feet long and weigh about 1,100 pounds, including the driver. The machines operate on an electronically fuel-injected 375-horsepower, V-6 racing engine. They are known to reach speeds of 130 miles per hour.
To kick off the event, a downtown street dance was held on Portage Street on the evening of Friday, June 10, from 6:30 to 11 p.m., giving people the opportunity to mingle with racers and other fans while enjoying live music. Saturday morning the racing came to life as boat testing and time trials took over the St. Mary's River.
While the weather remained hot and humid throughout the weekend, Mother Nature found other ways to disrupt the racing schedule for a second year in a row. Thick fog interrupted the racing on Saturday, June 11, which led organizers to postpone qualifying runs for the SST-120 and Champ classes until Sunday morning. Organizers were already on a tight schedule as the racing times were subject to change due to freighter traffic on the waterways. Last year, the St. Mary's current remained too choppy for racing and all the racing action was held on the final day of the weekend.
When final heats were held on Sunday, June 12, the weather seemed to cooperate for the most part but drivers faced brisk winds whipping in off the river early in the afternoon. As fuel dwindled down in the machines, some drivers found it difficult to maintain their course as the machines lightened up.
And, while a number of mitigating factors figure into the success of each team, according to Shaun Torrente, #42 driver in the SST-120 class, success is attributed to how well the driver and team handle the stress of the race. Torrente apparently maintained his focus as he nailed first place in the SST-120 final, a 30-lap race.
Other drivers placing in the event were:
Steve Fox won first place in the SST 45 class and Terry Rinker won first place in the Champ Boat.
