A whole lot of performance-boat owners—as in 130 of them—and their friends were looking forward to the seventh annual Rock The River Cincinnati Fun Run this weekend. Thanks to the dedication, persistence and patience of its organizing team, the Ohio River happening has become one of summer’s hottest happenings. And the scene was set for the best one yet.
But to bastardize a John Lennon lyric, weather is what happens when you’re busy making plans.
Despite that its go-fast powerboat fleet won’t hit the water this weekend, the seventh annual Rock The River Cincinnati Fun Run is still on. Photo by Pete Boden copyright Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.
And so it was yesterday for Rock The River organizers Pat Feldhaus, Mike Feldhaus and Michael Caliguri. They woke that morning to a news story touting the promise of their upcoming affair benefitting the Cecil Dye Foundation.
By early afternoon, they were making other plans. The tremendous rise in the Ohio River water-level from weeks of torrential rain to the north and a lake-release that morning ruled out anything related to pleasure-boating, including their event’s Friday and Saturday lunch runs.
The brothers Feldhaus and Caliguri wasted no time rethinking and adjusting. With 90 minutes of knowing the on-water portions of their event were a no-go, they had buses lined up for the Friday lunch and river-boat set up for its Saturday counterpart. It was a record-time pivot.
And it appears to have worked.
“We have about 335 people confirmed and we are still sorting through it all,” Pat Feldhaus said.
Organizer agility didn’t just the save the day. It saved the weekend.
It was the ultimate event pivot.