We would be remiss in closing
without thanking our class sponsors and
all of the companies and individuals who
donated raffle prizes to our race. Without
their generous support, we could not
have put on this NAMBA Nats.
No major event can be put on without
several hard working people making it a
success. Special thank you goes to Mike
Howard for months of super hard work
getting sponsors and raffle donations.
Ron Byrd for setting up the heats and
making up the heat sheet booklet with
each day’s class sponsors listed. Bill
Batara for sewing those amazing custom
buoys just for this Nats. No boat was
damaged hitting a buoy but those buoys
sure took a beating. Chris Wittrig for the
use of his trailer and generator for
scoring points. Bob Tuttle who built the
table for the country store and crafted 12
paddleboats.
Rene Piazza made her spaghetti sauce
for the spaghetti feed and Jim Piazza
cooked all of the noodles for the dinner.
Vicki Peterson cooked two industrial
sized trays of Lasagna. Daryl Peterson
who watched the coals and basted the
barbeque pig all day at the Pig Fest and
Alfred Lanza for the use of his custom
built rotisserie.
Bo Garidel was the hardest worker of
all. Working before sun up until after
sundown every day. Also, thanks to
everyone who worked on our driver’s
stand for the past year rebuilding it
several times. A big thank you goes to
the rest of the committee members and
the others who stepped forward. A very
special thanks to all who attended our
2015 NAMBA Nationals. We couldn’t
have done it without you!
I hope to see you at next years
NAMBA Nationals.
PROPWASH
October 2015
17
You can then go through and vote for all ballots that are relevant to you. You will not
see ballots that do not apply to your particular membership.
Attention District Directors!
If you so choose, you can use the Membership Portal
to do voting for your local district rule proposals! Just provide the ballot information
about the election or issue to the NAMBA Secretary along with the start and stop dates
for voting and we can put this online for the members of your district to vote on. Only
the members of your district will be able to see and vote on your district’s ballots!
We are looking forward to your feedback on this new tool so please do not hesitate
to contact us regarding your experiences with the portal.
If you have any problems or questions about the NAMBA Membership Portal
please contact Al Waters by e-mail at
or David Santistevan at
The 2015 NAMBA Nationals Report
By Dave Bestpitch
NAMBA Nationals Contest Director
The 2015 NAMBA Nationals is now
over and in the history books. This year
was a six day event rather than the usual
eight days with several events and dinners
packed into the “short” week. We hosted
contestants from four countries and several
states. The weather cooperated, and the
race site was groomed to perfection.
After two days of open water, Sunday evening started off the festivities with the
“Welcome Party” held for the first time at the race site and attended by over 70
people. We decided to have the “Welcome Party” at the race site instead of at the host
hotel as we wanted everyone to participate, relax and enjoy each other’s company. It
was a sit down spaghetti feast. The menu included salads and dressings, warm Italian
bread with olive oil and vinegar dipping sauce, Vermicelli with homemade sauce,
meatballs, homemade lasagna, and all the wine you could drink. We heard it was the
best welcome party ever. I think everyone agreed.
On Wednesday, the Aussies won Nitro Team Marathon. We had a BBQ Pig Roast
which was another first for the Nats and was another smashing success. The sixty
pound pig roasted all day wetting the appetites of everyone at the site. This sit down
dinner was held at the race site for the convenience of the racers. The menu included
all you could eat roast pig barbequed to perfection, several kinds of pasta salads, green
salad, rolls, and again, all the wine you could drink. Even after they were stuffed,
racers gathered around the pig to munch off the bones.
After the dinner, we had six heats of “Human Paddleboat Races” at the lake. It was
so much fun watching as the racers banged into each other and tried to outmaneuver
each other while the onlookers cheered them on. I am not going to say anyone cheated,
but I will just say they made up their own rules as they went along. Jennifer Picchi
was the clear winner even with multiple partners.
Friday night was the barbeque and paddleboat races at the host hotel. Contestants
were so excited to be there that some came an hour early which caused some minor
problems at the hotel. But in spite of that, everyone who attended had a great time
enjoying the pool and the paddleboat races. Jeffrey Harteau Jr. won the Stock
Paddleboat Class.
The Saturday night banquet brought the 2015 NAMBA Nationals to a close. The
banquet hall was located a few short blocks from the race site and was filled almost to
capacity. Sammy’s, a local company catered the dinner serving tri tip, garlic potatoes,
barbequed pig, salads, rolls, coffee and lemonade. I was the emcee of the event. The
winners were presented with beautiful rosewood scroll plaques. Lenny Blake won
Individual High Points, and District 19 took the team points. But the big winners of
the whole event were the contestants who came to our Nationals.
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