River rats revel in return of Yuma floatdown

Despite temperatures hovering around 115 degrees, or maybe because of that, nearly 600 river rats participated in Saturday's Caballeros de Yuma Territorial River Regatta.

“That is why we came and did it,” said Karen Hall, who lives in Imperial Valley and came to Yuma with her family and friends to participate in the floatdown.

“It was supposed to be 116 degrees, and we wanted to get away from the heat and go in the water. Actually it was nice and cool, and wasn't a problem at all. Everybody had sunscreen, and we had lots of water and snacks.”

And when they got hot, the members of the group took turns getting off their tubes and swimming in the river.

Hall's groups had such a good time, they are already planning to be back in 2012.

“There was a lot of friendly people out there,” she said. “Everyone had a fun time. We are already thinking about what we are going to do next year. We are going to get more people involved and come down here and do it again bigger and better.”

The regatta is actually an old Yuma tradition dating back to 1969. It became a hugely popular event, and by the end of the 1970s at least 10,000 people came to Yuma every year to participate.

But then in the 1980s, the cost of insurance became to much for the Caballeros de Yuma to afford, and the event was canceled indefinitely. Nearly 30 years later, it is back, complete with the tradition of building themed river floats.

This year, the best float design award went to a group led by Lonie Ross-Misenhiner and Patti Bourelle.

They and a group of friends built a float based on the 1970s TV show “Love, American Style.”

“I am super excited,” Bourelle said about winning first place.

While on the river, Ross-Misenhiner's group sang patriotic songs in anticipation of Independence Day. Ross-Misenhiner even wore an American flag bikini.

“We all have red, white and blue on in honor of the Fourth of July. We were out here to have fun.”

The event was a great way to kick off the Fourth of July weekend, said Jonathan Lines, Caballeros de Yuma event chairman.

“Yes, and it is a very inexpensive way of doing it. People brought their own tubes, or, for those who wanted to participate but didn't have tubes of their own, they rented them from Yuma River Tubing.”

The event went smoothly, Lines added, thanks in large part to the city of Yuma and all the law enforcement agencies who provided a safety net and security for the tubers.

“They gave us a tremendous amount of support for the entire event. Everybody was more than willing to step in and help. That made it a big success. It made it a great reinauguration.”

While the participants were there to have fun, they also took responsibility for taking all the trash the event created out of the river with them.

Cierra Boyles, Hall's daughter, even came up with a unique way of keeping track of all the used beer and soda cans her family and friends drank.

“Every time they would finish a can, they would pass it to me, and I would pop off the top and string it on the string and drown it in water so it would trail behind us,” she said, proudly showing off her clever device.

“It helps with our water. The ocean is already polluted so I was trying to stop it.”

Lines was grateful to everybody who made the floatdown possible and promises an even better regatta in 2012.

Chris McDaniel can be reached at cmcdaniel@yumasun.com or 539-6849.