The Grand Marais community hosted the 24th annual Splash-In on the Bay, an annual event showcasing seaplanes and amphibious aircraft from around the Midwest. Roughly 15 planes participated in various contests in front of roughly 500 airplane enthusiasts.
“This was a great weekend. The weather really turned alright yesterday and today,” said Co-Chairman Ed Shumway. “Everybody looks forward to it every year.”
Some of the pilots have been coming to the Splash-In since its inception, including Jerry Ness of Rapid River.
“It’s kind of like a reunion it’s been going on for so long,” he said. “People around here welcome us. You never know who you’ll see waiving to you or people waving their fists at you at events like this, but it’s always a good time here.”
Ness also won one of the contests on the day. He won the short takeoff contest, which is similar to a drag race, except the finish line is the first person to get airborne on a takeoff. Metro Detroit father/son duo Walt Plentis Sr and Jr won the closest bomb drop and straight on landing contest, respectively. The bomb drop has pilots dropping a water balloon at the raft in the bay. No one has actually hit the raft in the years of the contest, but Plentis Sr was within four feet of the target. The landing contest sets up a simulated air strip where pilots try to land as close as possible to the front flag. Plentis Jr landed right at the threshold of the target area to win.
Other events like a custom quilt raffle, poker run and community dinners also were a part of the event.
According to Shumway, pilots specializing in seaplanes only make about five percent of pilots in the United States, so events that showcase air and sea are rare. Some events will happen in Gaylord, Oshkosh or Angola, Ind., but seaplane pilots would have to travel to the East or West Coasts to get involved with larger events. The wide sandy beaches surrounding Grand Marais Bay provides the kind of location that’s sometimes hard to find in the Great Lakes region.
“Our only connection to most of these people come at events like this. We have friendships that linger due to connections we made here in Grand Marais. It’s a great opportunity to keep the (seaplane pilots) together,” Shumway said.
Next year will be the Splash-In’s 25th anniversary and organizers are proud to bring the event back next year.
“The community really supports it and the people on the bank show up just to see the planes,” Chairman Jay Aeschilman said. “I’ve been a pilot all my life and it’s good to stay involved with the community.”
