One day, once a year! It goes tomorrow, 13 Aug. As of yesterday, 11 Aug., 23,000 folks had signed up! They will float this magnificent river from Davis Dam, north of Laughlin, NV about 1-1/2 miles, downstream to the hopping off points, several of their choice, the farthest requiring 4-1/2 hours in the water. They will use anything capable of keeping a person afloat! Temperatures will be on the order of 115` F., the river water, originating from the bottom of Lake Mohave, stays permanently fairly cold, although the lake's water temperature, published in this morning's paper, was listed at 84` F. That's taken at the surface, where sun warms it, I'd guess the river is about 70 to 75`. Along the way, stops include free lunch, various attractions which draw so many to a small-town area, Laughlin has 9800 population, Bullhead City (AZ), across the river, has 40,000. Here's a few images from last year's event, which I scanned from the newspaper and official event brochure. Not the best, but they portray it fairly well! Hope you enjoy them! Frank
Gee, that looks like a fun activity to join especially with the line that says "they will use anything capable of keeping a person afloat!" I wonder why we didn't think of that. We have lots of rivers here and nice beaches too. Let me share our own regatta in the city. As you may well know, I was born and raised in a city apartment. In my younger days, I would hear the boys loudly cheering. And when I go out of the house, I would see those boys, about 10 or so (that included some of my brothers) huddled in a canal, that's the open sewage, With the cheering and the movements of the boys, it is obvious that the race is ongoing. They use little wooden boats made of popsicle stick. And they bet on the race hence the noise of the excitement. And in fairness to them, they only do that racing during the rainy season when the water of the sewage is relatively clean.
Morning of Day After, 14 Aug. I was not going to comment at all, but feel compelled to. My wife pulled these up this morning, on the Laughlin Buzz. By then, literally hundreds of outraged and angry folks, many being return visitors living in foreign countries, posted their outrage at the scene showing the defiling of such a scenic place. Some of it washed ashore, some was brought ashore, but one can only imagine how much sank to the bottom of the river. It's so clean & clear that when the sun is overhead, the bottom can be seen clearly out in the middle. Perhaps photos will be taken. How I feel, I cannot describe. Does this show valid reason why certain kinds of people should be removed from this Earth? People TRULY are PIGS!
That is truly HORRIBLE , @Frank Sanoica ! ! Does this kind of thing happen every year when they have the regatta, or is this something new ? I can't believe all of the littering, and even the inflatable boats were left behind. Those are not cheap; so if kids cared that little about even the boats, they must have come from higher-income homes that do not consider those to be expensive. In Idaho, I worked at what was actually kind of a reform school for rich kids . It cost $5,000 each month to send the teenager there; so you know those parents had money. The kids would load their plates with food, and then throw things like apples and boiled eggs at each other. They not only wasted the good food, they would take a bite and then just toss it across the room, and not put it in the wastebaskets even. This is that same kind of mentality.
@Yvonne Smith This was the 10th. annual shindig. The participants pay a fee, are identified somehow, maybe by plastic bracelets, and must start out at Davis Camp, just below Davis Dam, then progress downstream only as far as Bullhead City's Rotary Park, a distance of 8 or 10 miles, I'm guessing, at which location they are herded out of the water and bussed back. They may spend the entire day in the process, until something like 4PM. The entire deal is fairly well orchestrated, there are Police Boats which are routinely operated on the river, which watch for particularly dangerous acts. Both municipalities, Laughlin & BHC, encourage and promote the event strongly, as this is a tourist destination having essentially no manufacturing base or other revenue-productive mechanism, and all those visitors book rooms, and spend a lot of money. Likely around 30,000 participating in the Regatta, and another 10,000 routine weekend visitors, so the area "population" nearly doubles for a couple of days. Quite difficult to adequately herd so many water-borne cattle. I'm guessing at least half the participants are families with kids. Few old fogeys like me. Now, the annual River Run, which is held in the Spring, brings in at least twice as many motorcyclists compared to the Regatta numbers, and those are largely old "bikers". Few problems develop with them, a couple of fights, arguments, but in general, they are not the gang-affiliated bikers as we picture such. When that event is going on, there are bikes to be found everywhere! Here's the Colorado Belle's front parking lot last April:
Oh, @Frank Sanoica those photos of trash on the river bank are revolting. I believe that humans is the greatest factor in destroying this planet. I guess those trash can be blamed to the organizer of an event or to the caretaker of the river. We have our own river which have given way to progress. Pasig River as it is called used to be a bathing place for people on excursions and picnics. But that's according to history books. I grew up seeing that filthy river with brownish water and sometimes blackish water due to the dirt and other pollutants coming from the sewage of factories by the river banks. That river is so dirty that it stinks... literally. There was a time that a ferry was plying the river but they couldn't get enough riders mainly due to that complaint about the foul odor of the river.
@Corie Henson There is a river emptying into our Lake Erie, which is one of the Great Lakes, maybe the Monongahela but don't remember for sure, which has had so much oily material floating on it's surface that it has been known to catch on FIRE!