With attendees from as far as Texas, Florida and Michigan, the Cigarette Owners Rendezvous on the Lake of the Ozarks in Central Missouri set a record for the number of Cigarette models gathered in one place at one time today. According to Brett Manire of Performance Boat Center, the full-service new and pre-owned powerboat dealership that hosted the rendezvous for the second time in two years, 66 Cigarette V-bottoms showed up for the event.

This weekend’s record-setting Cigarette Owners Rendezvous hosted by Performance Boat Center began yesterday with a fun run on the Lake of the Ozarks. Photo courtesy/copyright Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.

“It’s definitely the most Cigarettes ever gathered in one place,” said Skip Braver, the owner and chief executive officer of the Opa-Locka, Fla., sportboat and performance center console company, who attended the event with longtime Cigarette employee Bud Lorow. “We’re grateful to everyone who came, and we’re grateful to Performance Boat Center.”

The event actually began yesterday with a late-afternoon fun run for Cigarette owners who were in town in time for it. The fun run was followed by an evening pool party at th Lakeside Bar and Grill, which is owned by Performance Boat Center and part of the dealership’s extensive property.

This morning’s run saw the fleet, which included models as new as Cigarette Racing Team’s 2016 AMG-themed performance center console powered by twin Mercury Racing 1100 engines and as vintage as 38-foot Top Guns built in the early 1990s, head from Performance Boat Center to Coconuts waterside restaurant. From there, the fleet divided with either H. Toad’s or Frankie and Louie’s as its choices for the next destination, though most ended up at H. Toad’s. Then the participants headed back to Performance Boat Center for a party with a dinner and entertainment.

The scene at Coconuts earlier today—the first stop of the Cigarette Owners Rendezvous. Photo courtesy/copyright Speedonthewater.com

“There were so many details to handle before we got started,” said Manire during the Coconuts stop. “Now, that we’ve started, I can sit back, relax a little and enjoy it all.

Editor’s Note: Look for a complete feature on the 2016 Cigarette Owners Rendezvous in the upcoming issue of Speed On The Water digital magazine.

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