Arkansas is One Step Closer to Unlimited Hydroplane Racing
In Boat Book Activity Calls for Top Posts, an attempt was made to bring more visibility to the conversation taking place in the Boat Book, to expand Unlimited Hydroplane Racing to more cities. That strategy still stands, but a recent development deserves to have a lot more visibility brought to it.
Our good friend Frantz from Arkansas has been working hard to identify an acceptable race venue for quite some time. At each turn, he’s been stymied, but here at Unlimited Hydroplane Racing, we are pleased to congratulate Frantz on making some significant progress.
Frantz, along with a Commissioner from the Corp of Engineers, the Arkansas State Parks Commissioner and others have begun to focus on Lake Dardanelle in the northwest part of the state.
You can read more from Frantz directly through his Boat Book comment in Selecting a Race Site.
There are still many steps for Frantz to take, but Unlimited Hydroplane Racing is here to assist in any way we can. Based on the progress he is making, there’s no doubt he will make it – it will simply be a long course to run.
Dave
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It’s been a very busy week. Filling out the Coast guard papers is a challenge in itself.
I went to the lake last weekend to address some concerns I’ve had about the room (pits) for the boats because that’s been bothering me all along. I also met with the Coast Guard. As we were walking the facilities, I was trying to picture in my mind: “OK, I can put four boats here, and four boats there.”
As we were walking to another location, there it was! The perfect spot! I had missed it all along. Everyone else agreed after I explained the requirements.
What a relief – that issue is taken care of.
I don’t want to discourage anyone but there are many, many hurdles to overcome. About the time you think you are done, ba-da bing, you are informed you have another agency to contact. There is some information I can not answer on the Coast guard form, that I have to get from the local authorities.
In general, all is going great. I have had no closed doors at this point. The excitement and enthusiasm is permeating out of everyone I am talking with. We’ll see how excited they stay when I start hitting them up for money. 🙂
I am still waiting on a template from certain parties to see what different entities I have to have in putting a team together. It has gotten to that point. There isn’t enough of me to do it all, at this point of this project. Trying to run a business, and make the necessary contacts with business calls coming in can be an embarrassment at times. I hate to have to put an important call on hold.
That’s it for now.
Frantz
Correction: The sanction is allowing me to run a two mile course and not changing from a 2.5 mile for next year.
I got the test results back from Dardanelle, and everything is OK!
The Corps gave me a list of contacts to get approvals from.
The Arkansas Waterways Commission has given me their blessings. Arkansas Nuclear One(Energy) who pulls their cooling water from the lake has given me their blessings also. Two big hurdles!
Now I have to get the Coast Guard’s OK. Their form is in my hand, and I’ll get it back to them this week.
Once these steps are done, the remaining thing to do is coordinate a meeting with state, federal, local government, rescue and safety to identify and resolve any outstanding issues. After this, my permit will be issued!
In the meanwhile I have been asking and setting people up for their opportunity to support this thing.
Frantz
Frantz,
Congratulations on another solid step to an Arkansas race. Your drive and determination is going to be known as “The Frantz Factor!”
Way to go!
Things are progressing right along. Today, a crew at Lake Dardanelle is going to lay out a race course to run sonar and depth to make sure everything is OK. We want to make sure there isn’t any obstructions, etc. that we don’t know about.
The sanction has reduced the course distance from two and a half miles to a two mile course. I think this will go into effect for next year. There were good reasons for the change but I won’t go into that. Once I get the results of this scan to the Corps of Engineers, the next step is to get the blessings from the Coast Guard, and the navigation system.
After that, I will get the permit from the Corps. Then it’s off to the races for the monies!
I am still shooting for September next year. Also, I am trying to get some numbers for say, the last ten years, on the weather conditions for April, compared to September. Might need to go for early season instead of late.
That’s all I have for now.
Frantz
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My formal request to the Corps of Engineers to use Lake Dardanelle is in for approval. H1 contacted me yesterday to see how things were progressing. I had no news for them other than what I am telling everyone now.
Due to the magnitude of my proposal, this is going to take time for a fair evaluation by local, state and federal agencies along with public and private stakeholders. I plan on driving back up to the lake this weekend to evaluate the property again for a feasible site to convert over for a boat pit facility.
I discussed with the State Parks this morning about trying to do this facility in a manner that can be used the rest of the year to facilitate other activities. They liked that idea. That’s all I have for now.
The waiting game is on.
Frantz
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I can’t believe it!
The city of Russellville has already called me to ask what I need from them and what they can do for me. I gave them a ballpark figure as far as the monies and they are going to work it into their next budget. We spoke a little about the local industries around them, and in the meanwhile, they will start speaking with them about sponsorships.
I will be sending them a packet about hosting a race, H1’s promo video, with other info I obtained from H1.
I can’t express to everyone how rewarding this adventure has become. To think that a person from a podunk city in the south of Arkansas could ever pull this off. That’s why I encourage others who want a race in their state to step out, get their feet wet, and start the process.
If I can do it, anyone can.
Thanks!
I am so excited to inform everyone we have a race site! Lake Dardanelle can handle this venue, and the State Park and the city of Russellville are all ecstatic about the possibilities. There are a couple of issues with this site but they can be worked around. Information has been sent to the the proper authorities for final approval.
I am going to The Gold Cup in Detroit next weekend to get a inside feel of the workings of a race. Thanks for all the prayers and wishes from everyone. There is still a ton of work to do, so there will be plenty more updates.
Frantz
Congratulations, Frantz! Your hard work and never-say-quit attitude has made this happen. All the good people of Arkansas need to give you a big high five!
Be sure to check out Frantz’s update at https://www.unlimitedhydroplaneracing.com/selecting-a-race-site/. More good news!