Record-Setting Fort Myers Offshore Burnt Store Fun Run Sizzles
Unlike pretty much everyone else involved in yesterday’s Fort Myers Offshore Burnt Store Fun to Cass Cay restaurant for lunch, Aaron Treppa doesn’t get to do much boating in Southwest Florida. But when Sunsation Powerboats signed on as the presenting sponsor for the event, Treppa, who works for the Algonac, Mich.-based performance-oriented center console builder, got the nod to represent. So Treppa hitched a ride and spent the weekend with Fort Myers Offshore members Frank and Cindy Mandalino, who own a Sunsation 34 CCX.
Representing the brand, Sunsation’s Aaron Treppa enjoyed the event with Frank and Cindy Mandalino on their 34 CCX center console. Photos by Pete Boden copyright Shoot 2 Thrill Pix
After his experience this weekend with the nonprofit scholarship fundraising boating club, there’s a good-to-excellent chance he’ll be back.
“The event was great,” Treppa said. “It started right on time with a good turnout and excellent helicopter coverage. The seas where good and the hosting marina was clean and organized and friendly.
“I was very busy talking and mingling with the all the Sunsation owners who participated, and there were a lot of familiar faces,” he continued. “All in all, it was a great fun run on a fine Saturday afternoon.”
The 65-boat fleet set a new record for the Burnt Store happening.
Treppa’s ride was one of seven Sunsation center consoles in the 65-boat mix, a record overall turnout for the annual Burnt Store happening. But unfortunately, neither Fort Myers Offshore president Tim Hill, the former owner of the first Sunsation 32 CCX, nor his board-member wife, Cyndee, was there to enjoy it. A last-minute electrical mechanical issue with their new-to-them 32-foot outboard engine-powered Skater Powerboats catamaran sidelined the couple.
Though Hill had worried about having adequate dockage for the record-setting fleet at Burnt Store Marina, which has been rebuilding since Hurricane Ian damaged several of its facilities in late 2022, it turned out to be non-issue. By all accounts, the entire event was seamless.
“Burnt Store Marina is a gated waterfront community with a large boating contingent,” Hill said. “All of the residents come out and line the seawalls and their balconies to watch the Fort Myers Offshore circus come to town. From the feedback I received, the staff at Cass Cay restaurant did a fantastic job of serving our members.
“When we plan these events, we have to ‘guestimate’ the number of attendees for the restaurant to prepare for staff and food,” he added, then chuckled. “Well, we did not anticipate 65 boats and the crew that comes with them. So hats off to Cass Cay, as well as all of our wonderful host locations. Without them we would just be aimlessly burning fuel.”
Burnt Store Marine accommodate the 65-boat fleet without a hitch.
More often than not, club members understandably opt for the protected Intracoastal Waterway rather than beating up themselves and their equipment in the often rough Gulf of Mexico. But the 2024 Burnt Store event, said former FMO president Eric Belisle, was different.
“The majority of the club opted to take a slightly bumpy offshore route,” Belisle said. “And as always, everyone did a great job getting docked in slips and rafting off once we arrived.”
There were plenty of smiling faces during yesterday’s For Myers Offshore event.
Added longtime club member Bill Forenski, the owner of Delaware-headquartered Avalon/Tahoe pontoon-boat dealer WMF Watercraft and Marine, “The ride back was amazing. Except for the first outside leg, it was probably one of our best runs this year.”
The success of yesterday’s event was excellent news for Ryan Wenk, the presenting sponsor’s national sales and marketing manager. Sunsation has developed a strong presence in Southwest Florida during the last few years, and a number of Sunsation owners from Michigan and other Northern Midwest who head to Florida each winter are FMO members.
“We want to build our community of owners in that area, and Fort Myers Offshore is a great organization to help support that goal,” Wenk said.
South Carolina’s Chuck Stark (lower left) kicked off his 2024 Crypto Outerlimits season yesterday with the Fort Myers Offshore group.
The next event of the 2023/2024 Fort Myers Offshore season, the Cayo Costa Beach Raft-Up and Cookout is set for April 13. According to Hill, the club also is planning an “end-of-season invitational” event for April 20 to coincide with the annual dealer meeting for Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats, a longtime FMO backer headquartered in organization’s namesake city.
Related stories
Crypto Outerlimits Going On Spring Break In Southwest Florida
Records Fall In Fort Myers Offshore Naples Hyatt House Run
New Venue A Hit With Fort Myers Offshore Members
Fort Myers Offshore Holiday Fun Run Made In The Shade With 92 Boats
Fort Myers Offshore Holiday Fun Run To Celebrate Late ‘No Agenda’ Owner
Catching Up With Tim Hill—Fort Myers Offshore And The Art Of Helping Others
Fort Myers Offshore Overcomes The Gray For Turkey Day Fun Run
Fort Myers Offshore Opens 2023/2024 Season With Boca Grande Lunch Run
.
