No-Wake Fireworks
A Family Friendly Twist for SML’s July 4th


By Jerry Hale
                More people enjoy Smith Mountain Lake on the July 4th weekend than on any other weekend of the year. America’s independence is cause for celebration, and our beautiful Lake provides a perfect backdrop for holiday gatherings and festivities. 
                Lake residents, guests and vacationers typically have their own family traditions for the 4th, but none is more imbedded in SML culture than the annual bash thrown by Parkway Marina in conjunction with — and to benefit — Saunders Volunteer Fire Company.
“Parkway Marina first hosted a July 4th celebration back in 1991,” said principle Jeff Graff. “It began as a neighborhood event — something my father did for the community.” After Bill died, his friends and neighbors pitched in to help the celebration live on.
                But it soon grew too popular for marina staff to handle without dedicated help, Jeff explained. “Saunders was seeking a suitable fund-raising event, and we began hosting it together in 2001. With the help of fire company volunteers (some 30 people help out each year) and the support of the Lake community, it’s gotten bigger and better every year since.”
                “It’s just a huge weekend for us,” said Saunders Fire Company President Richard Goode. “Proceeds from the day are really significant because they enable us to acquire equipment that helps protect residents of the areas we serve. New fire-fighting gear isn’t cheap. Without this kind of supplement to our operating budget, we’d find it impossible to stay as current as we do.”
                This year, the action on the Parkway peninsula (by car, 3.5 miles past the SML State Park; by water, adjacent to marker R8) will begin at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4. Planning is still underway, but the evening is expected to include live music, food and craft vendors, local business booths and displays of emergency vehicles, fire boats, antique cars, classic mahogany and modern high-performance boats. Activities for children will be plentiful, including games, face painting, and crafts. And, of course, the ever-popular Parkway carousel will be up and running for the occasion, to the delight of youngsters and adults alike.
The 30-horse and two-chariot carnival piece was built in 1953 by the Allan Herschell Company of North Tonawanda, N.Y. (factory museum located 15 minutes from Niagara Falls). Bill Graff acquired it for the point at Parkway after seeing it decaying beside the Wytheville Comfort Inn in 1996. He passed away before restoration was complete, but family and friends took over the project as a tribute.
“It made its debut in 2001, the first year we partnered with Saunders,” Jeff recalled. 
Fireworks Draw Thousands by Land and Water
                One of the most colorful aspects of each year’s Parkway/Saunders Independence Day celebration is the after-dark finale — a professional-grade fireworks extravaganza that delights viewers on decks, chairs, blankets and boats.
                “Look for some surprises,” promised Parkway office manager Ronnee Chivas-Clayton. “We insist that the vendor (Pyrotechnico of New Castle, Pa.) make it better each year!”
                The “oooohhh-inspiring” fireworks display has indeed become a major draw, attracting thousands of residents and vacationers to viewing points throughout the SML area. And there’s something special about fireworks over SML: colorful reflections on the mirrored surface; the smell of powder mixed with humid Lake air; the cannonades echoing off Smith Mountain; the lure of just being out on the water for a warm summer evening’s cruise.  
                But with SML’s growing population of runabouts, pontoons, deck boats and cruisers, the appeal of going to the fireworks by water brings thousands of boats into very close proximity in the prime offshore viewing areas. With Virginia’s mid-summer evenings usually dead calm, boaters can sit adrift in SML’s deep waters with little risk of mishap. It’s another story when the fireworks end and everyone heads for home.
                Captain William Tice, Master of the Lake’s Virginia Dare, has piloted the popular cruise boat’s Fireworks viewing trips for the past 11 years. From his vantage point high on the Dare’s bridge, he’s watched the traffic grow.
“The Dare is big and slow and relatively unaffected by the crisscrossing wakes. But for most of the boats out there, the wakes created by so many boats speeding away so close together create real potential for mishap,” the experienced captain cautioned.
                SML Water Safety Council Chairman Dave Moran knows we’ve been fortunate that no significant collisions or swampings have occurred to date.
                “All those boats scurrying for home create a mix-master of wakes that can be difficult to navigate, especially in the dark,” he said. ”It can be intimidating for the every-day skipper.”
                Indeed, despite the appeal of viewing the spectacular from afloat on an idyllic summer evening, the dicey post-fireworks ride home has kept many SML boaters from cruising to the display.
                “We’ve experienced the departure frenzy and are hesitant to brave it again,” said long-term Blackwater resident Charlie Rowe. “So we usually decide to watch from land instead.”
A “No-Wake” Approach to making the Fireworks more Boater Friendly
                Hopefully, all of that will change this year. The Smith Mountain Laker magazine, working with the SML Water Safety Council and the Smith Mountain Eagle newspaper, has set out to make viewing the fireworks by boat safer and more comfortable for skippers and their passengers by proposing a no-wake departure from the fireworks viewing areas following the show.  
                The designated No-Wake Zone will extend 1 to 1.5 miles up each major channel. Skippers are simply asked to proceed at displacement (idle) speeds until they reach the No-Wake Zone boundary on their route home. The No-Wake Zone is shown on the map accompanying this article and will be marked on the water by boats from the Smith Mountain Lake Power Boat Association (SMLPBA) flying large orange balloons. 
                “Our boats will be clearly visible as skippers approach the viewing areas,” said SMLPBA president Jim Marsh. “After the show, we’ll stay in place and light the balloons with lanterns. By the time boats pass our locations, traffic should have spread out enough to make prudent after-dark cruising speeds safe and comfortable.”
                Smith Mountain Eagle Editor Rob Lyon has pledged the support of the Lake-area’s premier weekly publication. “Our goal is to make sure everyone in the area knows what’s expected at the conclusion of the fireworks,” he said. “With full cooperation, the No-Wake Fireworks will be a significant step toward our goal of making SML the safest boating lake in Virginia.”
                The SML Boating Association is one of many community groups that have endorsed the plan. Says SMLBA president Kim Harden: “We expect this to be well received by our members. It’s a common-sense approach to addressing the boat traffic issues that have developed at this popular event.” Boaters are encouraged to come out and enjoy the No-Wake Fireworks.
                “The same concept has been used successfully at other lakeside events around the country,” said Laker magazine publisher Micah Gaudio. “There’s no reason it can’t work at SML.”