Bill Text: MI SR0103 | 2011-2012 | 96th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: A resolution to declare the city of Algonac the Water Speed Capital of the state of Michigan.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 6-0)
Status: (Passed) 2011-12-13 - Adopted [SR0103 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2011-SR0103-Enrolled.html
SR-103, As Adopted by Senate, December 13, 2011
Senator Pavlov offered the following resolution:
Senate Resolution No. 103.
A resolution to declare the city of Algonac the Water Speed Capital of the state of Michigan.
Whereas, One cannot visit the greater Algonac area without hearing the great stories of the origins of power boating legends Chris Smith and Gar Wood; and
Whereas, One day in 1893, Chris Smith maneuvered a strange-looking rowboat out on the St. Clair River, complete with a gasoline engine, and reached an unheard-of speed of 9 miles per hour with it; and
Whereas, His boat was the first gasoline boat on the Great Lakes; and
Whereas, Chris Smith's boat-building expertise was such that his friends liked the way his boats were constructed and performed, and they frequently asked him to build one for them. Word spread quickly of the unparalleled quality of these boats, and the boat-building business grew; and
Whereas, Chris Smith joined with John "Baldy" Ryan in 1911 to build the Baby Reliance speedboat, which captured $8,505.00 in its first race; and
Whereas, The Miss Detroit, built by Smith, was given a trial run on the St. Clair River by William Metzger. Smith told Metzger, "Be careful, Billy, this is the fastest boat I ever built." On August 14, 1915, this firecracker was the only boat to finish the famous Gold Cup race, and thus, brought the Cup to the Midwest for the first time ever; and
Whereas, Legendary speedboat racer Gar Wood teamed up with Chris Smith and built boats and raced them between 1916 and 1922. Ultimately, Wood became the first person to exceed 100 miles per hour in a boat and topped that speed with a 124-mile-per-hour clip in Algonac itself. For years, many doubted that a 2-mile-per-minute pace could ever be reached on water; and
Whereas, The success of the Algonac boat-building and racing events served as the forerunner to power boating access and enjoyment that at first was limited to people of means, but eventually became universally accessible to the general population via installment plan financing, providing water-sport enjoyment to millions; and
Whereas, Algonac has been recognized as the Water Speed Capital with a state of Michigan historical marker designating it as such; and
Whereas, The waters of Algonac and the St. Clair River provide recreational and speedboat racing enjoyment to this very day; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate, That the members of this legislative body declare the city of Algonac the Water Speed Capital of the state of Michigan; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the city of Algonac and the Algonac-Clay Township Historical Society with our highest esteem.
