By Suzanne Schmidt
Staff Writer
LAND O’ LAKES—In a town known for its many lakes, a local club is having a hard time finding one they can use.
Jim Slaughter, of Land O’ Lakes, said he is hoping to find a local place for members of the West Florida Model Boat Club to practice racing their model boats. He said the boats are all electric so they do not cause any harm to the lake or the wildlife.
“They are all electric so they don’t make noise like gas boats do,” Slaughter said. “The boats don’t pollute the water or the air and it doesn’t hurt the fish.”
There are boats of different scale and sizes and types. Some boats can go as fast as 60 miles per hour.
“We have races just like if the boats were full-scale,” Slaughter said. “We put buoys in the lake and we have rules like full-scale boat races have. We like to race them but we also do different events like we use the tugboat to pull a boat or do precision maneuvering.”
Slaughter said he enjoys racing the boats as well as putting them together.
“We can buy the fiberglass hull or make one from wood and then put all the equipment inside,” Slaughter said. “It is a challenge to put them together but then you have the pleasure of seeing something you made racing along the water.”
Just maneuvering the boat can be a challenge according to Slaughter.
“It is very technical,” Slaughter said. “You have to have the boat set up right and have things like the angle of the propeller just right. It is something that is a lot of fun for technical minded people.”
Mike Harvey, of Land O’ Lakes, said he likes the competitive side of the racing.
“It is your equipment and skill vs theirs,” Harvey said. “It is just as much fun as racing the full-scale boats, but without the danger.”
Slaughter said there are a few requirements for the lake they will use.
“We need a small lake like about five to eight acres,” Slaughter said. “We need to have the lake empty of people and boats and it needs to not have a bunch of weeds. Also we need to park our cars close to the shore because we charge our boats using our car batteries. It also needs to have a gentle slope to the water’s edge because we have to be able to put the boats in and take them out.”
Currently the club meets once a month in Sarasota.
“The lake bank in Sarasota is straight down and is hard for us to use since we are all a bunch of old guys,” Slaughter said. “The problem is we don’t get enough practice because we only meet once a month. You need to have more time to practice because it seems like the boat settings change every time. It would be nice to have a local lake so we could practice anytime.”
In addition to looking for a lake, the club is also seeking new members.
“We would like to find people who have tugboats, sailboats or any model of boat,” Slaughter said. “It is fun to just get together and race the boats or just practice.”
Eventually the club would also like to get more involved in schools. Slaughter said he would like to go into a school and give a demonstration.
“We could do a program to show the students how the boats work and what makes them go,” Slaughter said. “If the school could take a field trip we could take them to a lake and let them drive a boat.”
The club is a part of the North American Model Boat Association. It formed a few years ago with a few members from Land O’ Lakes and other areas like Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Bradenton and Punta Gorda.
In order to be a part of the national organization, the club members have to carry insurance. Slaughter said they have $2 million worth of liability insurance for the location where they meet and each individual member has $1 million.
For more information or if there is a lake available, contact Slaughter at (813) 966-7529 or .
