“Lickity Split went over. Not in the shootout. After.”

That was the text message I received last Saturday just past noon from my speedonthewater.com co-publisher Jason Johnson, who spent most of last week in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., covering the Desert Storm Poker Run. For the first time in years, Johnson had to handle the assignment—a hefty one given that Desert Storm is a three-part event with its street party, poker run and top-speed shootout—solo as I had commitments elsewhere.

Whether he’s interviewing a marine  industry figure such as Iconic Marine Group’s Fred Ross (above right) or reporting on scene, Jason Johnson (left) dedicates himself to accurate reporting and writing excellence. Photo courtesy/copyright Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.

As it happened, Johnson stayed in the Lake Havasu City home of J.P. O’Donoghue, the owner of the Lickity Split DCB M35 catamaran involved in a tragic solo-boat accident after Saturday’s shootout, with O’Donoghue’s longtime friend, Brad Kloepfer and his wife, Connie.

It made sense. In covering the Lickity Split project closely since it began in 2015—he wrote six stories about it and even drove from Southern California to Arizona for the boat’s delivery and shakedown cruise—Johnson became friends with O’Donohue and Kloepfer. And they appreciated him and his extensive coverage so much that they had Visual Imagination of Pelicular, Mo., paint the speedonthewater.com name and logo on the color-matched hauler for the beautiful catamaran.

Read More: A True Professional

Related Story: Kloepfer Remembered Following Fatal Accident On Lake Havasu In Lickity Split