Musarra's To Enter Alice Springs Regatta

The Daily BillaTong
The Journal of Up North - Down Under Intercontinental Wet Rags

Sports Feature:

Musarra's To Enter Alice Springs Regatta

BROOME, Western Australia - The Musarra family, of Juneau, Alaska, announced today that they were beginning rigorous preparation to compete in the upcoming and prestigious Henley-on-Todd Regatta in Alice Springs. Fresh on the heels of their successful circumnavigation of Australia by ultralight, Larry Musarra, 45, said "we just needed to attempt something a little more impossible. Besides some of these Ozzies have never even seen real water. Where we come from, we live in it!"

The Henley-on Todd (see sidebar) is the most grueling challenge of the yachting world, pitting men and their vessels against one of the driest, grittiest deserts on the planet. "We came in second place in Juneau on the 4th of July, we oughta be able to clean up down here" Musarra said, when contacted by cell phone in his ultralight, about 4,000 feet over Darwin.

The Musarras expect their novel "chariot-style" approach to be a dark horse contender in the foot-powered race. "We've got some special attachments for those chariot wheels that should give us a leg up on the on the other contenders, or rather keep them a leg or two down" said Tim Musarra, age 9, who will pilot the chariot.

Apparently the Musarra's have been in training for some time, and look to be serious contenders. "We sought out a specially selected sunny location in Alaska for training" Musarra says, "and we had to constantly wear sunglasses until our eyes adapted to the harsh light. The hardest part was learning to run without rubber boots on, which was new to us. We didn't know they did it that way on the outside. We've got quite a tough group of foot-yachting competitors up there".

This enterprising new team has a special weapon that they've imported from the rainforests of Alaska: part of their fleet is designed to look like refreshing water waves. "When the competition gets really hot and thirsty, I think we can just drive them to distraction" Musarra said.

Can this motley group of Alaskan upstarts come down under and actually walk away with the cup? We'll find out on October 7, when the heat is on in Alice Springs!

For BillaTong readers who would like more information about the Henley-on-Todd Regatta: