Fifth Waves And Wheels End Of Summer Fun Run Is Best One Yet

Thanks to an impressive fleet of high-performance hardware, the fifth annual End of Summer Waves and Wheels Fun Run that started at The Boardwalk at Waves and Wheels in Osage Beach, Mo., was arguably the best one yet. Although there were a few less boats from the 2020 event that saw close to 40 boats register for the casual fun run, Waves and Wheels owner Justin Wagner said he’s never seen so many head-turning boats at the gathering.

With his friend Alex Pratt along for the ride during the Waves and Wheels End of Summer Fun Run, Louisiana’s Nate Michel let it fly in Cloud IX, his 40-foot MTI powered by twin Mercury Racing 1350 engines. Photos by Jeff Helmkamp/Helmkamp Photos

One of those boats was his own new ride—Predator, the beautiful and well-known 40-foot Skater Powerboats catamaran. Another one was Texas performance boater Heath Kirkwood’s Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats SV 43 canopied V-bottom, which Kirkwood is leaving at Waves and Wheels for an interior conversion. And another one was Arizona go-fast-boat enthusiast Mark Schouten’s radical 52-foot MTI catamaran that was one of many MTI models on hand for the run.

Beyond running the Skater, which Wagner said was a blast to drive even though he took it fairly easy since he’s still getting used to the boat, Wagner was most excited to see the latest Waves and Wheels project to hit the water—Todd Crossley’s 41-foot Apache Powerboats V-bottom Scalp Hunter. The boat, which was completely redone in conjunction with Andy Imhof and company at Maryland Offshore Performance Marine Center, was dialed in earlier in the week and got a lot of attention during the run and at the event’s two stops.

Todd Crossley had a great time showing off his recently redone Apache Powerboats 41-footer dubbed Scalp Hunter.

Wagner also was blown away by the support from the MTI faithful. From California-based Waves and Wheels customer Brian Metcalf in his 40-foot cat Native Sun and Schouten in El Gato Patron to Nebraska performance boater Charlie Roll’s brand new MTI-V 50 luxury performance center console and Georgia’s John O’Neill and California’s Brett Spraggins in their 390X catamarans, the MTI contingent was sizable.

Also included in that list was Louisiana’s Nate Michel, who ran Cloud IX, his gorgeous 40-foot MTI, with his good friend, Alex Pratt, who owns Good Boy Vodka. The two of them were in town to do some boating and enjoy the Lake of the Ozarks BikeFest.

“Oh man, we had such a great day—I think everyone who came out for the fun run was super happy,” Wagner said. “We gave away a lot of cool raffle prizes and the two stops we did worked out perfect. The variety of boats this year was so impressive. I have to thank everyone for coming out and all of the sponsors that stepped up to help and donate prizes.

“The Skater was really comfortable to drive and everyone in the boat with me felt comfortable in it,” he added. “It was awesome to be able to run my own boat in the event. It’s been too long. It’s pretty crazy how well known that boat is.”

Check out the slideshow above for more images from the Waves and Wheels End of Summer Fun Run.

Several local participants joined the fun, including Mike and Christy Wright in their 30-foot Concept Boats center console and Chuck and Nikki Sorenson in their 38-foot Scarab V-bottom.

“We had a good time,” Mike Wright said. “It was a really nice group of friends who participated. The Waves and Wheels crew and customers are all great people.

“The way they organized the fun run was perfect because there were only two stops on the run so we had plenty of time to visit at each stop,” he continued. “Plus the stops were far enough apart that we were all able to have nice long runs to each location.”

From the start at The Boardwalk at Waves and Wheels, the boats ran to Neon Taco at the Bagnell Dam for lunch and then continued on to Coconuts Caribbean Beach Bar and Grill for a pool party and awards ceremony.

Wagner said Waves and Wheels gave away several prizes, including a $2,000 gift certificate for Bluave Marine Audio products, the audio company he founded in 2016.

And although the event just concluded, Wagner and company are already looking ahead to the 2022 fun run in mid-September with ideas on how to make it even better.

Jason Johnson