Shootout’s Poly Lift Poker Run Provides Fun for Many

With nine stops on the list and more than 100 registered boats, today’s Poly Lift Poker Run—the pre-event festivities for tomorrow and Sunday’s Lake of the Ozarks Shootout in Central Missouri—went off smoothly.

Local performance boaters Mike and Christy Wright run their 29-foot Warlock in the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout poker run presented by Poly Lift Boat Lifts. All photos by Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix

“The run today has been really nice,” said Mike Maasen, who owns Poly Lift with his brother, Mark. “There are some great boats and great people participating today. We always have so much fun hanging out with everyone and making new friends. The best part is that everyone understands what this event is all about—raising money for charity.

“We are proud to be able to sponsor the poker run,” continued Maasen, who ran his Cigarette Racing Team 42X, which is powered by triple Mercury Racing 525EFI engines, in Friday’s event. “This is one of the premier boating events in the country, and to have our name associated with it is awesome. It’s even better when you know that you’re helping so many charities.”

Check out the slideshow above for more images from today’s poker run.

Maasen made sure to give credit to all of the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout volunteers who put their time and energy into the event for several months leading up to it.

“With everything that’s been going on over the past week, it’s hard to believe it’s only Friday and that the two biggest days of the event are yet to come,” said Maasen, who participated in yesterday’s Make-A-Wish rides (read the story). “The Shootout just keeps bigger and bigger—it’s incredible. All of us are so proud of this event and what it does for this community.

“We all kind of joke that the best part of this event is when it is over, but really that’s when we get together and come up with ideas to make it better,” he continued. “The bottom line is that we want people to participate, be happy and come back and visit us again.”

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