Visitor from Germany Wins Grand Championship at Longville Turtle Races
It was a perfect day for turtle racing and, after an afternoon of heated competition, a girl who made her way to Longville from across the Atlantic Ocean topped the field of more than 400 racers to take home top honors Wednesday, July 25.
July's final race day set the high-water mark for turtle racing so far this summer, as 404 turtles raced in the regular heats and another nine racers competed in the Chamber Resort Race, which was won by Tanner Dahnke, age 5, of Brookston, Indiana, representing Thielen’s Rainbow Bay Resort.
At the end of the afternoon, Livia Schneider, age 6, of Aachen, Germany, earned the title of Grand Champion and Jackson Volkert, age 5, of Northfield, Minnesota, was named Grand Slowpoke.
The Longville Chamber would like to thank the many volunteers who work at the turtle races each week. Judges were Cathy Stagnaro, Marisa Skajewski and Pat Boen of Gallery of Homes. Rose Franta and Dodee Colberg registered racers, while Sue Meyer and Jan Thielen of Thielen’s Rainbow Bay Resort sold tickets and souvenirs. Lisa Garbe of Northlakes Marine and Auto and Ed Lammers of Lakeland Promotions managed the busy prize table.
Game operators included Chuck Colberg, Gordy Atzen, Judy Blue, Sandy Shipp, Dennis Hagen, Ally Garbe of Common Grounds, Jim Garner of Birdies Mini-Golf and Water Wars, and several volunteers from Luther Dell Bible Camp.
Craig Riendeau of Thunder Lake Lodge registered racers for the Chamber Resort Race. Katie Daudt made and sold fresh popcorn, raising funds for World Vision, and Rachel McCall from Northland Area Family Service Center supervised the hand-washing station.
Setup and tear down were accomplished by Jake Woodworth and his team from Camp Olson YMCA, along with Tom Kutschied, Don and Mary Jo Shurtleff and Dennis Zaske of VFW Post 772, and street managers Dave Wodrich and Stan Johnson.
Kam Kammueller of Longville Inn entertained the crowd as Turtle Race Announcer, assisted in the announcing booth by Tom Lund of VFW Post 772.
The Longville Turtle Races will be held every Wednesday, rain or shine, through Aug. 22. Registration, games and contests begin at 1 p.m. The Chamber Resort Turtle Race is held at 2 p.m., followed by the regular racing heats. Bring your own turtle (the shell must measure at least 4 inches) or rent one at the races.
More photos are available on the Longville Chamber’s website, www.longville.com, and Facebook page. Proceeds from the turtle races benefit community activities sponsored by the Longville Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce. |
