First day of DePue boat races ends early after three accidents send drivers to hospital

After a third accident sent a driver to the hospital in an ambulance and darkness looming on Friday, the first day of the Lake DePue Pro National Championship Boat Races was called with four heats left to contest.

“It’s about 7 o’clock and we still had about 40 minutes left of racing, and with everything that’s going on today and the accidents we had, we just figured it was safer to end it,” race director Paul Bosnich Jr. said. “We were at a good point to stop.”

The first accident of the day came in the second heat of OSY-400 in the first session of the day when Tara Cook and Brady Wyant collided in turn two.

Wyant was transported to the hospital.

Three drivers had their boats flip in the second session of the day. Doug Martin flipped in the second heat of C-Service Hydro, Jackson Hall’s boat overturned in an elimination heat in 500 Runabout and Dustin Pearson’s boat flipped in the final heat of 500 Runabout.

Hall and Pearson were taken to the hospital. Pearson’s accident happened just before the races were called for the day.

Bosnich Jr. said “he thinks Jackson is OK” but he did not know the status of Wyant or Pearson.

“We had a little wind, but not much,” Bosnich Jr. said. “You’re running here for national championships. Everybody drives hard and everybody drives fast. Sometimes with these boats and the way they’re set up, it’s just like a snap of a finger. You don’t know what’s going to happen.”

All four classes in the first session were able to finish.

Spring Valley’s Joseph Perez swept the three heats in the 125 runabout to claim his second national title in the class.

“Everyone in my whole family coming down to watch me gave me the win,” Perez said. “They were cheering me on. They were always right by the start gun. When I was going by I saw everyone standing at the end of the fence every time.”

Perez won the title in 2023 but finished runner-up last summer.

“I got runner-up last year, so it gave me something to fight back for,” said Perez, who will be a junior at Hall.

In the first heat, Perez had a strong start to build a big lead that he maintained throughout the race.

“It went better than I expected,” Perez said. “My starts are what really saved me.

“Memorization and knowing your path (are key to good starts). It takes years of coming out here and practicing.”

Perez also won the second heat to give him a cushion entering the final heat.

“I was very calm,” he said. “I kind of played it safe. I played the outside and tried not to do something stupid.”

In the final heat, Brady Brinkman stalled and Perez passed him for the lead on the backstretch of the third lap and cruised to the victory.

“It took all the weight off me,” Perez said about passing Brinkman. “Because there was no one else left to really stop me, so all I had to do was just finish.”

Carson Kelly swept the three heats to win OSY-400 and Ike Yoder swept the three heats to take the crown in 500 Hyrdo.

In 500 Hydro, three of the five racers did not finish at least one heat, including defending champion Doug Hall, who stalled in the first heat, sputtered toward the end of the second heat he was dominating to finish second and did not start the final heat.

Martin won the first two heats and finished second in the final heat to win C-Service Runabout.

In the second session, only one class was completed as Tyler Keller edged Ethan Fox in the final heat to win 175 Hydro. It was Keller’s first national title.

I K-Pro Runabout, Harper Kelly-Moer won the first two heats with Rayce Bosnich placing second in both.

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Marshall Walk races during the US Title Series (USTS) Pro National Championship Boat Races on Friday, July 25, 2025 in DePue. (Mike Vaughn for Shaw Local News )