Point Beach Grand Prix Returns After Last Year's Tragic Crash

POINT PLEASANT, NJ - The 2018 Point Pleasant Beach Offshore Grand Prix will hopefully go off without hitch this year.

Last year's event turned tragic almost immediately, when a Lacey Township man aboard the powerboat "Repeat Offender" was killed and another man severely injured when their boat crossed in front of the "Smith Brothers" powerboat shortly after the race began.

David Raabe, 38, the owner of "Repeat Offender," husband and father of three, died in the crash.

Both Raabe and Byrne were stuck by the hull of the Smith Brothers boat as it passed over the top of them. Both men were wearing full helmets. Raabe suffered serious head injuries and was pronounced dead at 1:22 p.m. Byrne suffered serious injuries.

Mayor Stephen Reid said that several weeks after the accident, he asked other racers if they wanted to continue the Grand Prix in 2018. The answer was a resounding "yes."

"It was a sad memory in racing and a sad day in Point Beach," he said. "But they wanted to do it and that's why we're bringing it back," the mayor said on Thursday.

Between 35 to 40 boats are slated to race this year, starting at noon on Sunday, May 20.

Thursday, May 17: Charity Event to Benefit Nicholas Hudanish Foundation Jack Baker’s Wharfside Patio Bar

And Reid is hoping the ever-present rain over this past week might pause briefly on Friday evening so visitors can see the powerboats and meet their owners at a block party on Arnold and Bay avenues at 5 p.m. He will make a decision either late today or early tomorrow.

Reid has fond memories of watching the race as a child. One of his reasons for running for mayor was to bring the race back to the borough.

"I wanted to bring the memories I had as a kid," he said.

The event is sponsored by the host club - The New Jersey Powerboat Racing Association - which has been the host club since the race began more than 40 years ago in Point Pleasant Beach.

"There is probably no single race more famous than The Benihana Offshore Grand Prix," according to the Offshore Powerboat Association's website. "This race was known as the Indy 500 of Offshore Racing and was held in Point Pleasant Beach during the 1970s"

The race course has been shortened considerably since them, from more than 200 miles to four miles.
Roughly 35 powerboats took part in the newly-revived 2016 Grand Prix. The boat races once held a place in Jersey Shore history.

Reid has called the event a "shot in the arm" for Point Pleasant Beach businesses.

Restaurants, hotels and local shops all did a brisk business in 2016 with the boaters and spectators. Reid is hoping for more of the same this year.

The event kicks off Thursday night with a charity event to benefit the Nicholas Hudanish Foundation at Jak Baker's Wharfside Patio Bar.

The "pit area" where the boats are stored temporarily will be open to the public on Friday and Saturday. The boats will go into the water on Saturday for testing. That will be followed by the "Parade of Boats" from Arnold Avenue heading north on Ocean Avenue.

Sunday is the big day, rain or shine.

Photo: NJ Offshore Grand Prix photo