LAKE OF THE OZARKS, Mo. — The Lake's biggest boating event is also the Lake's most charitable event, and Shootout Director Ron Duggan announced last weekend that the 2017 Lake of the Ozarks Shootout raised $200,000 for local charities and non-profits.

Duggan made the announcement at a check-presentation event on Saturday, Oct. 21. This year's record amount brings the total to more than $1 million since the race moved to Captain Ron's Bar & Grill in 2008. “We are very proud to have surpassed the $1 million mark this year!” Duggan said, to an eruption of cheers and applause. “The combined Shootout events have raised a total of $1,143,000 since moving to Captain Ron’s 10 years ago.”

Shootout Director Ron Duggan Announces 2017 Donation

photo by Janet Dabbs

View photos of the check presentation event, below...

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Shootout Donates $200,000 To Lake-Area Charities, Topping $1M In 10 Years

At a check-presentation event on Saturday, Oct. 21, Lake of the Ozarks Shootout Director Ron Duggan announced this year's event raised $200,000 for local charities. That brings the total to more than $1 million since the race moved to Captain Ron's Bar & Grill in 2008.

Photos by Janet Dabbs -- All photos are copyrighted, but if you see one you're in, shoot us an email at lakeexpo@yahoo.com and we'll send you a price for a high-res version!

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Races + 11 Events

The Lake of the Ozarks Shootout powerboat races have been held as a racing event for 29 years, since 1988, but the races moved to Captain Ron’s, located on the 35.5-mile marker in Sunrise Beach 10 years ago. Since moving, the Shootout board has added 11 events, that happen over a two-week period before the races. Last year’s events included the Make A Wish Powerboat Rides, two poker runs, a golf tournament, a mini-shootout, an auction, a treasure hunt, a volleyball tournament, the hall fame induction dinner, a meet and greet and a home tour.

$7 Million Boost to Lake Economy

The growth has not only increased the amount of funds raised for charities, but it also has spread the economic boost to more businesses and cities around the lake. According to the Tri-County Lodging Association Administrator Jim Divincen, using a formula that averages each visitor spending $73 per day, and applying that to the estimated number of visitors (84,500) over the five-day period, from the first major Shootout event on Wednesday to the final race day on Sunday, this would equal $6,168,500 spent per day in the Lake area.

Duggan estimated the crowds could be upwards of 110,000. Even with the conservative estimate of 100,000, that would equal a $7.3 million economic boon, at the end of August, which historically would mark the winding down of the tourist season. “We are tremendously thankful to Ron Duggan and his entire team for continuing to successfully produce one of the largest, and now nationally known, on-the-water events, at the Lake of the Ozarks,” Divincen commended. 

The Recipients

Besides offering high-speed thrills (244 mph is the record!), 77 race divisions, an air show, a ski show, 11 exciting events and a major economic boost to the Lake of the Ozarks, the Shootout raises significant money for area fire departments, which enables them to purchase much needed safety equipment, thereby increasing their ability to save lives and property, and keep their firefighters alive.

The money that is donated to the charities goes to help members of the community including abused children and women, the homeless, the handicapped, and the hungry. 

Fire departments and charities receive money based on the number of volunteers that work during the Shootout events. There is a formula that is based on the number of volunteer hours multiplied by a varying value associated with the task. For instance, the volunteer firefighters, doctors and nurses out on the water earn a weightier pay for their chosen organizations than many other volunteers. 

“Keep in mind, we also have people who will come to us and want to donate to a specific charity,” Duggan said. “We pull those funds out of the equation and earmark them, then once that is pulled out, we calculate the hours, and multiply that by the weightiness of the task.” 

$200,000 in 2017

"There were 647 volunteers, who clocked 8,800 hours in 2017," Duggan announced. The total amount raised in 2017 was $200,000. There were a few donors who stepped up to give a few more thousand dollars at the end to help the event reach the $200,000 mark. "We have raised more than $1 million since the move 10 years ago, and now the sky is the limit for what we are going to do over the next ten years. We kept saying from the beginning, that this is a million-dollar event. We kept saying, 'We can get there.' It took us 10 years... we expect to raise $2.5 million over the next 10 years."

There are a total of 37 fire departments and charities benefitting from the 2017 Shootout. The eight fire departments are: Lake Ozark, Osage Beach, The Edwards DD Lake Road FF-14 and FF-17, Rocky Mount, Sunrise Beach, Mid County, Northwest and Coffman Bend Fire Protection Districts.

The 28 charities include: The Lake Area Arts Council, Citizens Against Domestic Violence, Habitat for Humanity, Ivy Bend Food Pantry, Boy Scouts of America, the Camdenton VFW, City of Lake Ozark, Camden County Sheriff’s Employee Association, Boat Drop Recipients (a 50/50 drawing), Missouri Naturalists, C.L.E.A.R., Elks Club No. 2858, Ozark Coast Kiwanis, Water Safety Council, E4C, Camdenton Optimist, Dogwood Animal Shelter, Greenview Elks No. 2857, the Lake of the Ozarks Soccer Association, Forget Me Not Horse Rescue, Laurie/Sunrise Beach Rotary Club, Lake of the Ozarks Watershed Alliance., Shrine of St. Patrick’s Knights of Columbus, Kids Harbor, the Sharing and Caring Foundation, Make A Wish Foundation, Lake West Chamber of Commerce and the Osage Community Elks Lodge No. 2705.

Community support

Duggan added, "We have had such great support from the community and all the local officials, the fire and law enforcement agencies. We greatly appreciate everyone’s time and efforts in getting to this kind of a number. It was something we have always dreamed about getting to, and we are really excited!"

Duggan then announced that to help accomplish this, they are taking a step, and the Shootout board has approved hiring a full-time executive director, within the next few months. “And, if you have any ideas, as far as expanding the Shootout, we are always open to new-ideas,” he added.

The Shootout Board of Directors are Ron Duggan, Mark Maasen, Connie Weyer, Karie Maasen, Paul Hooper, Don Silva, Kent Morris and Frank Scarpino.  “We’ve got some pretty lofty goals, and as you all know, I hate not meeting goals, so we are going to do everything we can,” Duggan ended.

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