My boss at DSM Events (that's Desert Steel Motorsports Events...) has had the contract for the World Finals for 15 years now, and he's had a lot of experience in providing infrastructure for this particular venue. He normally gives me some part time job at the World Finals, but this year he put me in charge of port-a-potties. Okay, I was in charge of more than that, but port-a-potties were part of the package.
DSM Events handles the vendors, the grandstands, the telephone lines, the DSL hook-up, the security staff, the food for the ancillary staff, the patrol boats, and the 82 separate media representatives from around the globe. The Polish Yachting magazine staff was there. It was definitely a big deal.
Once the racing began, we found ouselves hosting over 600 racers from 44 countries all over the world. We were busy. It's nothing new.
The DSL connection allowed for the video of the race to be live-streaming over the internet, and on Saturday alone we had over 10,000 unique computers logged on to watch the competition.
Part of the racing show is a free-style event, where jet skiers get out on the water and do tricks just like the BMX guys and motocross guys. It was the only part of the 7 day event that I was able to enjoy---and it was only because I was giving some BLM representatives a tour of our facilities!!!
So here are my photos ( Okay, SOME of my photos ) of the 2010 IJSBA Jet Ski World Finals....
We began setting up on the beach at the beginning of October, starting with an empty beach with nothing but sand and wind. The grandstands take about 2 days to construct--thankfully there's a crew of guys from Phoenix to do that...
Once the crowds start coming in, those granstands come in REAL handy!!
