Last weekend’s Oneida Lake Fall Chicken Wing Run brought in a slew of high-performance V-bottoms and catamarans. All photos courtesy/copyright Rodney Olson/Full Speed Photography.

Organized by Ron Forbus with considerable help from his wife, Jeannette, and their friend, Brenda Coogan, the Oneida Lake Fall Chicken Wing Run, about 25 miles east of Syracuse N.Y., attracted more than 100 boats—with about four people per boat—last Saturday. Though fall is coming fast, the weather was incredible and we had everything from a 22-foot Baja to a 50-foot Hustler, which I enjoyed for the return trip (what a rush)—in the fleet.

The lake is about 17 miles long so it doesn’t take some of the bigger, faster boats to cover the distance from its starting point to the chicken wing buffet at a local restaurant. But the real purpose of the Oneida Lake Fall Chicken Wing Run is for a bunch of like-minded powerboat enthusiasts to get together, enjoy some good food, tell a few jokes and stories and make some great memories one last time before the weather changes here in the Northeast.

Of course, there’s a charity involved. From the sale of event T-shirts, which were sold out before the run started, we raised $1,500 for the local fire department and emergency services.

For a look at some of the action from last Saturday’s Oneida Lake Fall Chicken Wing Run, check out the slideshow above.

The Oneida Lake Fall Chicken Wing Run will return in 2017. Between now and then, we have the rest of fall—and a few of us might sneak out to the lake again if the weather holds—and winter to get through before the boating season begins again. But we sure ended on a great note last weekend.

Editor’s Note: Photographer Rodney Olson is a frequent contributor to speedonthewater.com. This is the first article he has written for the website.

Related stories
Gallery of the Week: Alexandria Bay by Rodney Olson
Image Portfolio: Rodney Olson