Loaded With First-Timers, Record-Setting Lake Of The Ozarks Shootout Fleet In Action

With a 161-mph blast by reigning V-bottom Top Guns Jim Schultz and Mike Faucher in the 51-foot Factory Billet Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats V-bottom, a strong 123-mph pass by reigning Shootout madman Tyler Crocket in his 26-foot Joker, a 106-mph pass in a Donzi 38 ZRC by event first-timers Jack Gladke and Joe Laquitara and more already in the books, the first day of the 2021 Lake of the Ozarks Shootout in Central Missouri is moving along at a brisk pace. And it needs to as this year’s fleet is the largest in the event’s 33-year history.

Captured here during the 2021 Kuttawa Cannonball Run in Kentucky, Lake of the Ozarks Shootout newcomer Jack Gladke of Upstate New York ran his Donzi 38 ZRC to 106 mph on his first pass this morning. Photo by Pete Boden copyright Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.

“I have 62 fully registered boats right now,” said Diana Dorhauer, who has handled registration since the event’s inception. “I had 50 competitors pre-register, which is twice as many as normal—and most of those participants said it was their first year.

“Of the pre-registered boats, I still have 12 left to arrive,” she added.

With the first hour of the event in the books, here are a couple of quick notes from the top-speed competition so far:

• On his strong first pass in a Fountain Powerboats 42 Lightning powered by Mercury Racing 1550/1350 engines and owned by one of his clients in Sweden, South Carolina’s Ben Robertson, Jr., reached 148 mph on the three-quarter-mile course, which puts him close to his 150-mph goal. And he’s not done.

• Tyler Crockett is changing props and will be back on the course in short order in his 26-foot Joker V-bottom powered by a 3,500-hp engine of his own creation. Said Crockett, “I had to get out of it right at the end of the course. I’m putting on my 128-mph prop.”

• Jack Gladke, who hauled his boat all the way from Upstate New York for Shootout week, wasn’t sure if he would even run his 38-footer dubbed Red Baron and powered by twin Mercury Racing 700SCi engines. Now, he’s hooked and he’ll be back on the course again today. “It felt great, man, solid,” he said.

Editor’s note: Look for updates from the 2021 Lake of the Ozarks Shootout throughout the day, as well as a complete recap of Saturday’s action this afternoon, on speedonthewater.com, and catch the action live here, lakeoftheozarksshootout.com.

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