I don’t know about everyone reading this, but I’ve never seen a picture of Ron Szolack sitting in the back of a Skater Powerboats catamaran in a Florida Powerboat Club poker run. Yet on both days in which participants ran from Miami to Islamorada in this year’s FPC Miami Boat Show Poker Run, whom do I see in the back of two different 388 Skaters? Szolack.

Ron Szolack (standing), Michael Ciasulli (left) and Vinnie Rifice were all smiles after running the first leg of Friday’s Miami Boat Show Poker Run organized by the Florida Powerboat Club. Photo by Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix

I’ve known Szolack, who owns homes in Michigan and South Florida, for almost 10 years and while he’s bought and sold more boats than any one individual I’ve ever met, all I’ve ever seen is him holding onto the wheel or the throttles of a high-performance boat. Can the same be said for any of the cruisers or center consoles he’s owned? I don’t know, but those are different boats.

“I’ve never sat in the back of a boat like that ever, and I don’t really want to do it again,” said Szolack, who opted to still make the run to Islamorada’s Postcard Inn and Resort at Holiday Isle since he’d already registered his new Mystic Powerboats M4200 center console that he sold after taking it on the FPC’s Winter Poker Run to Marathon at the end of January. “It’s not like either ride was a bad ride—Thursday was much calmer so we were able to run faster than Friday—it’s just that I like to be in control. It is kind of boring sitting in the back.”

Read more: Vinnie and Ronnie’s Wild Rides

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