Boat races to return to the ‘Mecca’ of Lake DePue

EDITOR’S NOTE: Ray Rodda is the “voice” of the DePue Boat Races, providing updates and insights as the longtime public address announcer.

DEPUE – Steve Solorio, president of the DePue Men’s Club, has received word that the American Power Boat Association has awarded the 2022 Nationals for the Pro, Modified and Junior classes to Lake DePue, with racing from Tuesday, July 26, through Sunday, July 30.

This will be the largest racing event in many years at DePue with 400 to 500 entries. Drivers will come from all over the country, as well as Canada. There will be drivers from California, Washington, Florida, Texas, Oklahoma and the East Coast, and, of course, there will be drivers from the Midwest, including fan favorites from DePue and the Illinois Valley area.

As Gene East, a leader in the Quincy Welding engine design, said, DePue is the mecca of boat racing.

All over the world, DePue is synonymous with boat racing. Mention DePue and drivers’ eyes light up. Unlimited drivers such as J. Michael Kelly and J.W. Myers have been to DePue in the past, and DePue has hosted drivers from Germany, the Czech Republic and Japan over the years.

The U.S. Title Series will be led by DePue Boat Races President Pete Nydahl, chief scorer Susan Eldridge Sailer and pit boss Paul Bosnich. The Title Series will be the host club once again for the 37th year of the Nationals boat races being held in conjunction with the DePue Men’s Club.

Allow me to be nostalgic as I remember trailers along the lakeshore from one end to the other. This year will be different. With the large number of entries and the bigger enclosed trailers, which for many are a machine shop on wheels to take care of any issues that arise, we will be using the football field for pitting and smaller trailers will be along the lakeshore.

That means there will be no camping in the football field this year, but you can reserve a spot in what was the baseball field to the west of the lakefront. It is a short walk from the lakefront. You can reserve both a pit spot and a camping spot by going to Depue22.com to register.

The Pro classes that DePue fans are used to seeing will be run in the afternoons from Wednesday to Sunday. The Modified and Junior classes will be running each morning. The Modified division runs the same kinds of boats as the Pro division with speeds from 50 mph up to close to 100 mph for the 850CC hydro class. The difference is the Modified’s boats run on gas and oil while the Pro classes run on methanol with speeds well over 100 mph.

I would expect there will be several drivers who will run the Modified class as well as jump into the methanol boats.

For the first time, the Nationals will include Junior classes in both Runabouts and Hydros and an outstanding group of youngsters will be represented from all over the country as they race on Lake DePue in what probably will be the largest audience in their careers. These youngsters will be running a stock motor capable of about 50 mph, and I would expect a few to jump into a Pro division called K-Pro for younger racers in the Pro division.

Racing events are expected to begin on Tuesday afternoon and run through the traditional ending day on Sunday. Racing will start about 9 a.m. and go to about 5 or 6 p.m. each day.

A total of about 160 heats will be contested over the six days. So get there early each day, mark your viewing spots and enjoy great food at the DePue Men’s Club shelter and from vendors along the lakefront. There also will be a beer garden. And stick around for nightly entertainment and dancing each night of the event.