For good reason, Lake of the Ozarks Shootout teams such as reigning top-guns American Ethanol and Factory Billet command the headlines from the annual Central Missouri event. And why not? Year in and year out, both teams risk all to reach gaudy speeds on the three-quarter-mile course. The recognition they get is as appropriate as it is well-earned.
But there are plenty of other, lesser-known teams—at least beyond diehard Shootout-fan circles—that put on one hell of a show.
Take Tyler Crockett, for example. In 2021, the Ruby, Mich.-based, high-performance marine engine-builder laid down a scorching 132-mph pass in his 26-foot, open-cockpit V-bottom powered an engine making north of 3,000 hp. The Michigan madman, as he’s known to folks in his home-state and more than a few beyond, hasn’t been back since. But he’s planning big-time comeback this year in a canopied 32-footer with a 4,000-plus-hp engine.
Don’t kid yourself. Even in a boat with a roof over his head, Crockett is still a madman.
Another would-be Shootout hero not to be missed this year is rookie competitor is Ronnie Reynolds. The Maryland-based 31-foot open-cockpit Sonic owners hopes to reach 110 mph in his 30-year-old V-bottom. To get the job done, he’s equipped the boat with turbocharged twin engines producing 1,300 a side.
And then there is the team of Steve and John Rihacek, the Illinois-based brothers who recently ran their 27-foot Fountain Fever V-bottom to 103 mph on Fox Lake. They, too, are planning to complete in the August 23-24 event this year.
There are more competitors, of course, coming with dreams far bigger than their budgets. And they too, in the word of the late David Bowie, could be heroes.
At least just for one day.