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LakeFest’s future uncertain as drag boat association changes hands

Marble Falls LakeFest

A drag boat tears down Lake Marble Falls during a previous LakeFest. The future of the popular event is in limbo as the drag boat racing association that organizes it is changing hands in January 2025. Photo by William Brown

The Southern Drag Boat Association, the organization responsible for the high-octane LakeFest races on Lake Marble Falls, is changing hands at the end of January 2025. According to outgoing SDBA owner David Carroll, the shift leaves the popular race in limbo.

On Dec. 4, Carroll announced he would be selling the association to pro racers Cody Childress and Travis Tuttle. 

“Although it is a bittersweet emotion, I say ‘good-bye’,” Carroll wrote in a Dec. 4 letter addressed to the SDBA membership and fans. “I am deeply confident (that) with your continued support of (the new owners), drag boat racing will continue well into the future.”

DailyTrib.com spoke with Carroll, a Highland Lakes resident, about what the transition means for LakeFest.

“I’m still in the negotiating part of that,” he said. “I live here. LakeFest means more to me than anybody, but this is the hardest place we race. I’m trying to talk these guys into it, but at this time, we don’t know.”

LakeFest, in some form, has been held on and off again on Lake Marble Falls since 1992. The event features races between specialized drag boats that can reach speeds of over 200 mph. The event is traditionally a partnership between the Marble Falls/Highland Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and different drag boat racing promoters. The SDBA, with Carroll at the helm, has been partnering with the chamber since 2020.

According to Carroll, the race has become increasingly difficult to hold due to a variety of reasons.

“It feels like half the town wants it and half don’t,” he told DailyTrib.com. “We’ve had boats interrupt the races, and it’s hard to race on a lake where you have as many homes as this.

He did note that the Marble Falls chamber has been consistently supportive and hopes details can be worked out among the new owners, himself, and the chamber to continue LakeFest

“I’m going to try all I can,” he said.

The chamber also hopes for a resolution, but nothing has been determined as of Dec. 9.

“I think until we have a meeting, we’ll remain in limbo,” Katie Savage, the Marble Falls chamber’s special events coordinator, told DailyTrib.com. “LakeFest is one of the biggest events we have. If we’re able to put it on, we will. It has over 30 years of history, and we don’t want to just stop.”

dakota@thepicayune.com