Bonaire Landsailing Adventures shares its track with a World Speed Record Holder!
Dave Lussier, co-holder of the Blokart World Speed Record, is visiting Bonaire this week for some relaxation and, of course, some landsailing with Bonaire Landsailing Adventures! With our trade winds, Bonaire offers the perfect conditions for landsailing.
Who is Dave Lussier?
Dave has always been a bit of an adrenaline junkie. Over the years, he had seen landsailing videos but had not experienced it until 2018. He came across an opportunity to give it a try during a vacation in Arizona with his wife. While there wasn’t much wind at the time, they still loved it, and within a month, they bought two blokarts of their own. As he started researching to find more people to practice with, he started to join a few racing events around the US for fun.
How did Dave set a World Speed Record as a newbie?
As he researched and connected with others, he found out about the 2018 Blokart North American Championships in a California desert and decided to join. Little did he know that his first Regatta would be spoken about for years to come!
Leading up to the competition were a few days of practice. During one of his practices, Dave ended up hitting 56 miles per hour, which was shocking to him! He was astonished that he could go that fast in a small blokart! It was the fastest he had ever gone, and he thought he would never beat 56mph. Well, he was definitely wrong about that!
Let the competition begin!
Once the practice days were finished, the real competition began! As the days went on, he continued to improve his skills. During the final race of the Regatta, a freak wind storm, a Haboob, came out of nowhere with winds gusting more than 40 knots! With poor visibility due to the sand storm, he couldn’t tell what was going on other than the fact that he was side by side with the current World Speed Holder, Scott Young. Soon, they sensed that they were sailing to the leeward race mark, so they fought to stop by sliding sideways violently together. At this point, they realized the race had been canceled mid-race due to the Haboob.
But what about the World Speed Record?
After Dave’s adrenaline calmed down, he pulled out his racing app and saw that he went about 76 mph! He walked over to Scott and found out from Scott’s GPS that they went a shocking 77.7 mph, which is 125 kilometers per hour! Since they were side by side the entire time and the GPS was more accurate, they became co-holders of the Blokart World Speed Record!
They were at the wrong place at the right time. With the Haboob in the sandy desert, it made it quite scary for everyone involved. Thankfully, everyone made it out with no injuries. The race would have been immediately canceled if the wind had been that high at the start of the race.
What are Dave’s plans on Bonaire?
Since it’s Dave’s first time on Bonaire, he plans to enjoy all that Bonaire has to offer, which includes some landsailing! He also hosted a mini-workshop for the Jong Bonaire kids yesterday. Sharing his passion with others may inspire someone to follow their dreams. While he won’t be breaking any speed records this week, he will surely have a great time on Bonaire!
About Bonaire Landsailing Adventures.
Bonaire Landsailing Adventures loves to take advantage of the trade winds and share landsailing with others. Reserve your spot, step into a blokart, and take it for a windy ride on the track on Bonaire’s east coast.
Blokarts are basically small compact land yachts that are used in landsailing. Did you know blokarts can go 2-3x faster than the speed of the wind? Since blokarts can go fast, protective gear, such as helmets and gloves, is always worn.
Bonaire is lucky to have Bonaire Landsailing Adventures as one of the fun activities to experience! It is safe and fun for the whole family. And don’t worry, we don’t have Haboobs on Bonaire!
(Source: Bonaire Insider, Dave Lussier, and Bonaire Landsailing Adventures)
