Monday, Jul. 30, 2007

Follies finale: Fans flock to Columbia shores for hydro races (w/slideshows)

By Michelle Dupler, Joe Chapman, Brian Everstine and Ingrid Stegemoeller, Herald staff writers

Like lemmings to the sea, boat racing enthusiasts camped along the shores and waded into the waters to get a closer look at the Columbia Cup competitors at Sunday's Water Follies.

"Time to migrate!" Martin Moore, 45, of Pasco, called out to his posse when it was time for the next racing heats.

As the hydroplanes rumbled onto the water, Moore collected his transistor radio and waded out of the water along with thousands of others on the Pasco side of the Columbia River.

Spectators who had jumped in to cool off on the Kennewick side were shooed back to shore by patrol boats there to make sure no one got dangerously close to the 140-mph racing machines.

A few swimmers stayed too long in the water and delayed the start of one of the earlier heats, but generally the crowd estimated at 25,000 lining both sides of the river was as calm as the near-perfect weather that reached about 93 degrees by late afternoon.

Attendance for all three days of Water Follies was about 60,000, said Follies Event Director Kathy Powell.

"It was a very positive turnout," she said.

Pasco police Sgt. Brent Cook said the day was relatively incident-free. Franklin County Sheriff's deputies and reserves, Pasco police and the police explorers manned the emergency management command center.

"They poured out some beer this morning, and there was a disturbance with a guy with some weapons," Cook said. "He wasn't doing anything with them, but he was making some people nervous."

The crowd was mostly well-behaved, he said. Over the years, the wild ones have mellowed out by becoming race fans and bringing their children, Cook said.

"They're keeping their clothes on. They're not drinking as much," he said.

Officers in Columbia Park spent most of their time in the shade or patrolling for alcohol and marijuana violations in the parking area, said Kennewick Sgt. Ken Lattin.

First aid volunteers and fire officials said they also saw little action, other than several bee stings and a small fire that ignited in the vending area.

Standing on the Pasco side in his sandals and khaki shorts, Joe Fleming, 57, of Vancouver, Wash., remembered the days when Water Follies wasn't so tame.

"What was fun is now a crime," he said.

He started coming to the races in 1966 when he and his friends used to sneak into the park without paying.

One of those friends, David Smith, 58, of Benton City, said that Water Follies today is better for families with kids.

"It's been a give and take," Smith said of the changing crowd.

Now, Fleming comes each year to see his friends - ones he sometimes sees only once a year - and to watch the boats.

While he said he would like to see the Unlimited Light hydroplanes return, Fleming said he did enjoy the vintage hydroplane exhibitions.

"That kind of gets me going," Fleming said.

Water Follies were part of Carly McFadden's life when she was growing up. Her father was one of the crane operators lifting hydroplanes in and out of the water.

She said her father used to make her stay close to the cranes in the pits because he was worried about boisterous behavior.

On Sunday, McFadden lounged in a patch of grass with her husband, Sean, also a crane operator, and their 1-year-old son Jaxson near the Lampson Pits, waiting for Sean to be called over for duty again.

As she spooned bright blue shaved ice into Jaxson's mouth, McFadden said she feels safe bringing her son to Columbia Park because she knows he won't be exposed to drunken misbehavior since alcohol is limited to a fenced beer garden on the west end.

"It makes me comfortable to know (alcohol) is contained safely," she said. "He doesn't have to see it unless you have to go by that part."

She hopes her son will follow in the family tradition and grow up to work the cranes.

"He'd be the third generation," she said.

Water Follies draws a committed fan base of parents who came when they were kids.

"I was basically born at the boat races," said Marisa Young, 28, of Kennewick. "I met my husband at the boat races."

The event is about a carefree spirit and having fun, she said while watching the races from the Pasco side. She starts looking forward to Water Follies in December and counts down the months.

"I think it's the best weekend in the Tri-Cities pretty much. If you live here, it's the best thing," Young said.

Her father, Joe Gonzalez of Pasco and his friend, Bryan Graham of Kennewick, bring their clans to Follies each year.

"Me personally, I like the races," said Graham, 48. "We like the boats coming around that first curve."

Although he doesn't wish for any of the boats to flip, when one starts to lift off the water, it gets the crowd's attention, he said.

Christina Rader, 35, and her sisters, Theresa Parisi, 40, and Liz Weyers, 43, said they have been coming to the races since they were "this big," holding their hands down near the ground.

The family has staked out the same spot on the Pasco side for 10 years, bringing with them canopies, blankets, coolers, water toys, food and friends. Their brother also came to see the boat races, while a fifth sibling was unable to make this year's gathering.

"We sit around and watch the boats, we eat, we talk," said Rader of Kennewick.

"We're exhausted at the end of (Saturday) and then we turn around and do it again the next day," added Weyers, of Kennewick.

"And we love every minute of it," Parisi finished.

The sisters remember the rowdier crowds when they their teenagers.

"It's a lot better now. I enjoy sharing it with the generations," said Parisi of Richland.

As the sisters talked, their kids splashed in the water.

"We bring all ages down here," she said, adding that this year they had family and friends ages 5 to 45.

Ensuring that Water Follies continues into the future is important to the family and for the community.

And the family said they plan to keep coming each year.

"My kids will have to bring me down here in a wheelchair if that's what it takes," Parisi said.

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