By Greg Wells
Times Journal Managing Editor

By most accounts this was one of the most heavily attended poker runs ever on Lake Cumberland. The crowd of spectators and participants both were larger than ever before according to organizers and state officials on the lake.
With so many packed onto the lake on a warm and generally rain-free weekend there were parties and fun to be had around the water.
Friday night there were two people arrested for boating under the influence, while deputies arrested two others for disorderly conduct.
Fish & Wildlife Lt. Tony Wright said it was one of the biggest crowds he has ever seen at the Poker Run last weekend, and though he was aware of 16 arrests by F&W officers on this end of the lake by and large it was a quiet weekend.
Capt. Tim Catron agreed, “The crowd was a lot better than the holiday weekends; especially the fourth of July.”
He said the crowd was generally older than the college crowd that tends to show up on the holiday weekends.
In all Catron said there were 39 citations on the lake, even though it was a major weekend.
“This was the biggest crowd I think I’ve ever seen for a Poker Run,” Catron agreed.
Bill Jasper, president of the company which owns State Dock, said it was the largest he was aware of.
“We had over 120 boats in the Poker Run,” Jasper said.
Though the tragedy of the loss of life during the Poker Run caused this year’s event to be canceled just as it was beginning, he said the participants would be back again next year for this even and possibly another.
The off-shore boat race that had been proposed this year didn’t materialize. Jasper explained that was largely due to a lack of time to prepare and the available date was not the best choice.
He said they would be re-examining the concept with an eye toward next year.