As auction items go at high-performance powerboat events for charity, shot-skis—think shot glasses mounted on a pimped-out water-ski if you’ve never seen one—are hot tickets. A single shot-ski painted by Chris Mills of Boat Customs in Caledonia, Mich., reportedly fetched around $10,000 during the Boyne Thunder Poker Run auction in Northern Michigan a few years back. Mills-painted shot-skis also have brought in thousands of dollars in the live auction benefitting Samuel’s House, which anchors the annual Speed On The Water/OffshoreOnly Key West Bash in early November.

Bidders during the Kuttawa Cannonball Run auction this Saturday night will have a chance to take home a couple of shot-skis painted by Stephen Miles Design.

Of course, some of that could have to do with our auction’s shot-ski demo-team that includes Nikki Sorenson, Christy Wright, Nic Shepard and others who represent us so beautifully each year. And, OK, maybe a little bit of could have to do with Nolan Ferris, our charismatic auctioneer, who’ll also be handling the live auction this weekend after the 100-plus-mile Kuttawa Cannonball Run in Kentucky.

Now Mills’ good friend and colleague, Stephen Miles of Stephen Miles Design in Owensboro, Ky., is getting into the act with a pair of shots-skis to be auctioned off at the fifth annual Kuttawa event.

Miles had a good reason to create the auction items other than to showcase his outrageous talent and upstage Mills, his Yankee powerboat-painting buddy. Though Miles is one of the event’s organizers, he confesses to “leaving the heavy lifting” to his fellow organizers Jeff Hoefling and Terry Martin.

So he had to do something to prove his worth and contribute.

“With all the bodywork, prep and painting, I would say each one took about 30 hours,” he said. “It was a nice change of pace.”

The bidding for each shot-ski will start at $500. Proceeds from the event will go to Lyon County’s Sheriff Department Kids’ Camp and Search and Rescue agency.

Editor’s note: Speedonthewater.com will on scene to cover the 2021 Kuttawa Cannonball Run.

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