Power Boat Regatta at Put-in-Bay

In one of the oldest traditions on the Great Lakes. 95 power boats will converge on tiny South Bass Island on Lake Erie for the second of three events in the Inter-Lake Yachting Association's (I-LYA) Bay Week Regattas. Presented by Progressive and sponsored by GMC, the I-lYA Bay Week Power Boat Regatta,has been taking place since 1908 when the Class C speed boat Rainmaker won the main event at an average speed of 22.04 knots. It has be come one of the most festive and fun family events on Lake Erie.

Winning the Commodore's Trophy will be the best performer in four contests of seamanship, boat handling and overall knowledge. The contests are 1) predicted log races, 2) docking, 3) chicane (maneuvering a sequence of tight serpentine curves) and 4) weather prediction. The action continues with a Flying Mile Contest (timed by radar gun in a 500’ area), Junior Navigation Contest, Canoe and Inflatable Raft Races, Miniature Golf Outing, Kids Fishing Derby, Softball Game and Golf Scrambles.

More to Come at Bay Week

The Bay Week Powerboat Regatta is followed by the 115-year-old Bay Week Sailing Regatta (August 4-6), which has been held annually for 115 years. Feeder races from Sandusky, Port Clinton and Toledo offer sailors an exciting and fun way to get to Put-in-Bay for this final Bay Week event.

The I-LYA is not only the oldest yacht racing associations in the country but also one of the largest, with 146 member yacht clubs located in the states that surround Lake Erie: Indiana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and the Canadian province of Ontario. In addition to Progressive and GMC, supporting sponsors for the 2008 Bay Week Regattas are West Marine, La-Z-Boy and Lakeland Boating. more

Senate to hold hearing on Great Lakes compact

Associated Press

The Senate Judiciary Committee this week takes up a compact to prevent the diversion of water from the Great Lakes, one of the world's largest sources of fresh water.

Lawmakers from Michigan, Minnesota and other Great Lakes states unveiled legislation last week that would provide congressional approval for the compact. Minnesota Democrat Jim Oberstar is leading efforts in the House.

Under the agreement, negotiated among eight states, remote states or countries are prohibited from tapping into the lakes from their natural drainage basin with rare exceptions.

The hearing, scheduled for Wednesday, will be chaired by Senator Russ Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat. more

Explorer Won't Budge on Shipwreck Mystery

ABC News

The gray waters of Upper Lake Michigan are deep, cold and treacherous. And lately, they've been contentious.

A three-way court battle is brewing among an explorer who says he's found a 329-year-old shipwreck, the state of Michigan and the U.S. government. Just as precarious as the weather that supposedly sank the Griffon in 1679, the legal battle seems to portend a perfect storm.

"This whole area has a lot of wrecks," said Capt. Carl Carlson. "That's why they call it death's door. There's been lives taken in the water everywhere."

The Griffon shipwreck is a legend where Wisconsin meets Michigan. It's a 300-year-old mystery that Carlson and his diving partner, Steve Libert, are determined to solve.

Libert may be a secret agent by day-- he works as a senior defense analyst for the U.S. Navy -- but by night he's a passionate hunter for the old and precious. more

Great Lakes Photo Contest Seeking Submissions by August 8

Think you're the next Ansel Adams? Now's your chance to prove it by submitting your photos to the 2008 Great Lakes Photo Contest.

The Biodiversity Project's Great Lakes Forever program is teaming up with Budweiser to sponsor a photography contest for those who love to capture images of the Great Lakes. The grand prize winner in both the Professional and Amateur categories will see their original photographs printed on the 2008 Great Lakes Forever/Budweiser beer coasters, to be distributed to bars and restaurants throughout the Great Lakes region.

In efforts to raise public awareness and activism for protecting and improving the health of the Great Lakes, the beer coaster campaign integrates environmental education in common-place settings. In 2007, more than 60 photographers submitted approximately 140 photos to the contest. The top two photographs were printed on the educational beer coasters, and were distributed in eight Great Lakes states and two Canadian provinces. more