In April, Havre de Grace resident Kelly Shane wrecked her 1.5-liter stock racing boat at 102 miles per hour. She walked away with a few stitches in her knee, courtesy of an in-boat modification she made to help with aerodynamics. Her motivation that day? Beating her brother Jimmy?s record in the one-kilometer race.
“Between me and Jimmy, it?s really tight,” said Kelly, whose parents, Stuart and Robin, also race. “My parents enjoy doing it. They?ll race maybe three for four races out of the year. With me and Jimmy, it?s every weekend. It?s pretty cutthroat.”
Last weekend, the family went in separate directions. Parents Stuart and Robin headed to Canada, while daughter Kelly and son Jimmy made the trip to Kent Island.
“We had to split the team because Kelly was running for high-points, so she can stay with [her competitors] or above them,” Robin said. “So she?s got to go where the competitors are.”
Currently, every member of the quartet is in the top-five of the American Power Boat Association 1.5-liter point standings. Jimmy and Kelly sit first and second, respectively, with a key race looming in the coming weeks.
The family currently owns five boats, which they built in the family business, Havre de Grace?s Shane Sheet Metal.
“I met Stuart on a blind date, and the first date was at the roller rink,” Robin said. “The second date was in the garage.”
Working on the boats gives them an extra interest in the sport, whereas many newcomers to racing have extra money to spend and less time to dedicate to building the boats themselves.
“We pretty much own all the [1.5-liter] records right now,” Robin said. “The competition is really getting hot. I don?t know how long we?ll have that.”
Dedication is key to the success. While building boats seems to be an expensive hobby, Robin says the travel is the biggest issue for a small team. The small-team camaraderie helps in the garage, but the Shanes are all business during races.
“We call ourselves Team Shane,” Robin said. “But once we?re on the water, we?re individual Shanes.”
THE SHANE FILE
» Parents: Stuart, 54, and Robin, 47
» Children: Kelly, 23, and Jimmy, 20
» APBA Records: Jimmy holds the record in the kilometer, one-mile, and 1.25-mile; Kelly holds the records for the 1.75-mile.
» For more racing info, visit: www.apba-racing.com.
