THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 18, 1996 TAG: 9608180058
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: 87 lines
With a virgin Bloody Mary in one hand and the wheel of his 45-foot sportfishing boat in the other, Mike Kirsch wasn't terribly worried about winning Saturday morning's power boat rally.
Then again, bragging rights would be nice.
More than 100 motor yachts, ranging in size from 24 feet to more than 60 feet, cruised into Crawford Bay off Olde Town this weekend for the first ever ``Rendezvous Mile Marker Zero,'' a three-day party on the Elizabeth River billed as the power boaters' answer to the city's annual Cock Island sailboat race.
Organizers said they want to promote Portsmouth's waterfront and its potential as a prime boating destination on the Intracoastal Waterway. Mile Marker Zero of the approximately 1,000-mile waterway bobs in the Elizabeth River just across from the Portsmouth Naval Hospital.
The city hosted the rally, and it was presented by Ports Events, the nonprofit organization that sponsors city entertainment events. Corporate sponsors pumped in about $30,000 to fund it.
``It's good for the city, good for the power boaters,'' Kirsch said, sipping his drink.
But LeAnn Amory, co-owner of Amory's Wharf Restaurant at Tidewater Yacht Marina, party central,goaded him on.
``So, are we going to get the trophy or not? Did I ride on the right boat?'' prodded Amory, who joined Kirsch's wife, Carolyn, his dad, Frank, and two friends aboard Kirsch's boat, ``The Done Deal.''
Kirsch, a Churchland resident, smiled and shook his head - and cranked up the throttle another notch. The two 692-horsepower Detroit diesel engines responded with a surge.
On this morning, however, a fast boat wasn't so important. Navigation skills counted more.
Boat captains, who paid up to $500 to participate, had to calculate how much time it would take to find and pass 13 locations along an 18-nautical-mile course on the Elizabeth River.
Only 14 boats entered the rally. For the first year at least, the Coast Guard limited the rally to 25 of the power boats to gauge the impact on river traffic, organizers said.
These yachts were packed with an array of expensive big boys' ``toys,'' computerized Lorans and satellite-fed navigation equipment. But they're a tad more complicated than a VCR to operate, and some captains were sweating in the hour they had to predict and hand in their time to rally officials.
Minutes before the rally started, Jay Nelms of Portsmouth huddled with Mike Michael of Suffolk around a small table on Michael's boat, ``Hard To Get,'' trying to plot their course.
``Now, when we get to Hampton Boulevard, we'll take a left,'' Nelms joked. Michael's boat finished about 6 1/2 minutes off their prediction; ``spotters'' along the course ensured boats maintained a constant speed.
Kirsch is going to have to wait until next year to claim his bragging rights. His crew placed second, behind Kevin Wilson, a Chesapeake physician. Wilson, owner of a 28-foot Bayliner yacht, finished 56 seconds off his predicted time. Kirsch was 4 minutes, 20 seconds off.
Besides the rally, Saturday activities included a crab feast with 30 bushels of crabs and a street dance with music by Bill Deal and Fat Ammon.
``We pay our money and come on down and have a good time,'' said Jay White of Chesapeake.
Organizers couldn't have asked for a better weekend to show off the waterfront. Saturday broke sunny and mild, and the Elizabeth River was nearly slick calm.
A school of porpoises that happened by thrilled some participants. Scenery along the route included Navy destroyers and carriers, tugs pushing barges and huge orange-and-black shipping container lifts, and other activity associated with the military and an international port.
Dan E. Griffin, a local architect, power boater and rally co-chairman, said power boating is an untapped resource that could boost tourism and economic development in Portsmouth and Norfolk.
``We want to try to publicize that we have some of the best cruising grounds and waterways that are just underused,'' Griffin said. ``We have between 4,000 and 6,000 transient boats passing by here (on the Intracoastal Waterway) each spring and fall, and many of these boats never stop here.''
Griffin and other local boaters are lobbying city officials to consider constructing a breakwater and mooring for boats on a section of the river called Hospital Point, off the Portsmouth Naval Hospital. Cities such as Newport, R.I., run water taxis and offer other amenities to attract boating business, Griffin said.
``We really haven't developed our waterfront for boaters like other areas of the country have,'' Griffin said.
Amory said her restaurant nearly doubled business on Friday, the first day of the rendezvous. Most power boaters come to town with money to spend.
``The power boaters are great customers,'' Amory said. `` Every time a boat pulls in here they've got to eat and they need fuel and the wife's got to shop. This does have great potential.'' by CNB