Back From Retreat

Sunday we returned from Men's Retreat. We had some great experiences. I helped with worship this year playing guitar. I learned several important things from the experience. Sunday morning Tony and I led worship at the retreat. I was able to meet John Palmer and learn a bit more about him which was a real blessing. He did an excellent job preaching the Word of God and there were several young men saved this year!

Finally, the retreat happened to be the same weekend as the boat races at the Lake of the Ozarks. Saturday they had time trials and Sunday the races. It was very interesting to watch. I will post some pictures or video of the races later today. The boats had up to 3,200 horse power and top speeds of 180 mph. Some of the boats that were sponsored had spotters assigned to the boats. The spotter is a helicopter with a dive team on board. The chopper literally follows the boat about 200 feet off the water. So, this boat blasts past you and then a few seconds latter a helicopter flies over head. It was loud and interesting. We were close enough that the mist from the rooster tail of the boat could be felt! At one point on Sunday we were watching 8 helicopters in the sky at one time. The race course was a loop, five miles long. So, looking across the lake to the other end of tho course was about a 2 to 2.5 mile view. We sat at the East end of the course where there was a very tight turnaround.

I heard from one of the residents of the lake that tickets to sit at the finish line on Sunday were going for $1,000! Well, we got to watch the races from a great location and it only cost a few extra hours at Men's Retreat, which by the way, was only $80 for three days of lodging, food and fun!