The starting line was a chaotic scene of small boats circling around, some bumping into each other, others losing power, and frantically trying to get their engines overturned again. Suddenly, the horn sounded, and the race was on. With supreme confidence in his boat's performance, Captain Mudguts held the throttle back, and cruised along, pumping his fists into the air, as if to imply his boat was so good, he would give the rest of the racers a head start. The other boats quickly approached the first turn, while Captain Mudguts just laid back. I turned to the person beside me and said, "I think he is just toying with them". "Ha, yeah, he is quite a character", he said.
As the other boats rounded the first turn, Captain Mudguts started to circle the small bay, and finally headed back to the dock. The engine sputtered as it got there, Captain Mudguts got out, and tied up his boat. "Wow, he is amazingly confident", I thought to myself. Captain Mudguts came back up the hill and sat beside me. "How's the race going?", I asked. "Good, I think", Captain Mudguts said, and then followed with, "hand me your finest beverage and my Drink Toque".
He didn't win the race. He didn't even finish. But, like The Drink Toque, Captain Mudguts is all about the fun of the whole event, not just race results. We had a great day with all his island friends. See you next year!
