Team TRIPPIN'

Course	Focus	History	The Pilot
The Boat	Proceeds	Events	Calendar of Events
	Team Members	Contact Information

Course:
The selected course is from Chicago's Navy Pier to the St. Lawrence River via Lakes Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. This run has never been attempted by a competition powerboat and in doing so will constitute a world record. The approximate distance of this course is 1150 miles. Our pilots Paul Rigney and John S. Noel intend to complete this run in one day; two days at the most, daylight pending.

Focus:
While our main focus will be to set the new World's Record, we will also be attempting to break the World's Speed Record for powerboats from Chicago to Detroit.

History:
Mark Niemschoff last set this record in 1995 by a 42 foot inflatable with twin 750 hp SeaTech diesels, in a time of 8 hours 10 minutes and 47 seconds. The record was previously held by Chuck Norris and Walter Payton and set in 1988.  Prior to that Don Johnson and Kurt Russell set the mark in 1986. The first person to attempt the 625 mile voyage from Navy Pier in Chicago to the Renaissance Center dock in Detroit was Mike Reagan, son of President Ronald Reagan, in 1983. All of these voyages were made in boats 39 feet or longer.

The Pilot:
Paul Rigney, the boat pilot is a former machine shop owner and had in his possession a Cobra Jet boat. Paul was also acquainted with Mike Bowers, former owner of Challenger Boats, and currently also with B&B marine, who donated a 20’ Challenger.

The Boat:
We are not sure if it was a stroke of pure luck or absolute genius but Paul decided to cut the back 7 feet off of the Cobra Jet and cut the Challenger right at the transom and put the two together to form a new 27’ long 5’ 9” wide prototype that we call TRIPPIN’. The two boats fit like they were made for each other. Paul fiber glassed them together and installed a new set of bottom stringers to strengthen the boat. The next step was to finish the bottom of the hull and paint it. With the bottom complete, the boat was now fitted with a custom built trailer donated by Seven Seas Trailer Company, out of Cedar Springs, Michigan.

Now with the hull completed it was time to work on the innards of the boat. That included the fuel system, which consisted of two 150-gallon saddle tanks, donated by Piedmont of Michigan Trucking Co. The tanks are mounted towards the middle of the craft. Three hundred gallons of fuel is far too much weight for a vessel of this size to be hauling so Paul and his crew are installing a 16' controllable aircraft wing just behind the fuel tanks and ahead of the cockpit. This will supply the lift needed when the tanks are full and the drag when they are near empty to keep the boat skimming along the water with only about the last two feet of the hull in the water. The wing was supplied by Monarch Aviation out of Greenville, Michigan and was originially on an Aerostar twin engine.

The engine that Paul has acquired via donation from retired die designer Wayne Kennedy is a Turbo charged Chevy 466 capable of 1000+ horsepower.

Proceeds:
This World's Record run will be used as a fundraiser with one half of the proceeds going to Sunshine Community Church and the other half to Save a Child Foundation. The fundraising effort will be on a pledge form on a per mile basis or individual donations. At this time, a non-profit foundation is being established to receive charitable donations to benefit these two organizations. We welcome and appreciate both private and corporate response to this effort.

Events:
We will also be appearing at various businesses in the Western Michigan area to display the boat and to accept donations for these charities. A donation of $25 can be given to receive a t-shirt with the boat's logo, a picture of the boat and an opportunity to sign the finish line banner that will be hanging at our destination on the St. Lawrence River. We will also have other t-shirts and hats available for sale. All the money that we raise in pledges and from t-shirt sales will go to Sunshine Community Church and Save a Child Foundation.  Please feel free to contact us for more information or to make your tax-deductable donations.

Calendar of Events:

Saturday, July 14, 2001- 3:00 pm
Riverside Park Center Boat Ramp
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Trial Run of Boat at full speed (80 mph)
Final test and only opportunity to see the boat run in the West Michigan area.

Tuesday, July 17, 2001- 6:00 pm
Old Kent Park- White Caps Home Game
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Boat on Display- t-shirt on sale- donations accepted

Saturday, July 21, 2001 3:30 pm- 7:00 pm
D&W Food Centers-Rivertown Parkway/Wilson Ave.
Grandville, Michigan
Boat on Display- t-shirts on sale- donations accepted

August-September, 2001
Chicago's Navy Pier
Final Run-World Record Attempt
(Final Run of the Boat to-be-announced the boat will be run when
it has been thoroughly tested and when we are sure that the weather
conditions are safe to make the complete run. Please continue to
check this web site for updates on the progress.)

Please visit us again for an updated list of the boat's appearences in the Western Michigan Area.
 
 

For More Information Please Contact Us At:

Sunshine Community Church
3300 East Beltline
Grand Rapids, MI 49525
Attn: Great Lakes Challange
Email to: Team Trippin'
 
 

All Content Copyright © 2001 Marcia L. Dykstra
All Rights Reserved.