First I would like to tell you what Monster Bash is partially about, Like all of Jim Nichols / Lake Racer events it's about charity and having a good time doing it, this years charity was the Lake Havasu City Food Bank that got a whopping donation of over $12000, in part to the generous participants of the poker run that buy additional poker hands or donate back part or all of their winnings, but this year it was largely due to a record setting bid of $10k for a "Shot-Ski" by Win Farnsworth at the awards, charity auction and costume party.
Monster bash is a lot more than a charity event it's a feeling of camaraderie you will only find at Monster Bash, it all kicked off this year with a Friday Lunch run from the Nautical Resort down the Lake to Havasu Springs for lunch and this is where you get that first Idea that this is going to be a good weekend, we have all had that "How Cool Is This Feeling" when cruising your boat along side or following your buddies boat heading towards a destination, but multiply that feeling by 40 as you and 80 other boats take a nice "cruise/parade" not race down the lake towards a lunch fit for a king on a beautiful 80 degree desert day.
Friday nights welcome and registration party is something you don't want to miss, This years event was held at Barrett Custom Marine and was a buzz of the who's who in the boating industry, it was a great chance to rub shoulders with some of the big names in the industry, it also includes the things you will find at any LakeRacer event Food, Music and Fun, This years dinner was catered by Waldo's BBQ that turned out some great Brisket, Pulled Pork and Chicken to feed the masses.
Saturday is the meat and potatoes of the whole event as you ready yourself for the poker run at the drivers meeting and get your maps prior to taking off to find that perfect winning poker hand, Your run all up and down the lake looking for the orange and white checkered flags where you can find your bounty of cards waiting for you at each stop, the hunt for cards runs from 10am-12:30pm then it's back to the Nautical resort for lunch and special holiday photos in your boat in front of the famed London Bridge. Then back to the Nautical Resort for poker hand turn in where they open your envelopes and show your cards, recording them for the winners to be announced that night. Okay, there's barely enough time to get ready for the big finish to the weekend, the actual Monster Bash.
The Bash starts at 7pm and dinner is served, but it's not the food your there for, you best get ready to laugh and laugh hard at all the creative costumes these Monster Bashers come up with. From Fast food icons, Rock stars, TV show personalities, Naughty police women and all sorts of Monsters and Villains it's a show all in itself.
Soon after dinner the awards are given out for the top three poker hands as well as the worst poker hand and several costume categories. This year?s winners were, in 1st place Jamie Flanigan from Peoria AZ with a straight flush,
2nd place Lane Baryney from Salina Utah with another straight flush, in 3rd place was Kevin Ball all the way from Park Hill MO with a full house, 4th place was C Brett Kenley from Layton Utah with a flush and the worst hand went to Carl Richardson of Phoenix AZ with a lot of nothing!
Once the awards are complete it's time to check your raffle tickets as the prizes come out fast and furious for the adults and the kids yet to come as no child goes home empty handed from Monster Bash the children are sure to be surprised as they are showered in gifts!
The excitement builds in the room when "One Eyed Romeo" takes the stage and gets the crowd to their feet dancing the night away.
Which brings me to what Monster Bash is really all about, Monster Bash is about family and friends and spending quality time with each all surrounding common interests "Boating, Family and Charity", and not boating for the performance elite but for the average boating family that wants the thrill of participating in a real poker run event. Monster Bash is geared just towards that, it's an affordable event for the whole family with an atmosphere surrounding family fun that will leave you and your family with memories for a life time.
Written by SummitKarl
Photo's by Lake Racer LLC
