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The Rivian R1T is one of the most exciting electric cars on sale today. One owner decided to push the boundaries of that excitement by driving their EV right into Bear Lake in Idaho in order to launch their boat. The owner of this particular Rivian R1T is youtuber Rivvit . blog, who uploaded a video of the aquatic adventure alongside a description of the events. According to the owner, this idea of driving their Rivian into Bear Lake was a goal of theirs since they pre-ordered the EV back in February of 2020. Bear Lake is located right on the border of Idaho and Utah, with half of the freshwater lake belonging to either state. There are only a handful of public boat launches surrounding the lake, which are reportedly often jammed up with traffic. Boaters can launch directly off the beach if their vehicle is capable of surviving the plunge, with the video description noting that many locals utilize heavily modified vehicles to skip the lines.
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Thanks to a few key factors, this R1T owner felt his truck could take on the challenging launch in stock form. Firstly, the beach surrounding the lake itself is composed of a relatively compacted sand, which the truck doesn’t seem to displace much of while on land or in the water. Secondly, the beach also gradually falls off after you’ve entered the drink, creating somewhat of a natural boat launch beneath the surface. Combine those factors with the fact the Rivian is capable of fording through over 43-inches of water, and things seemed relatively straightforward to this boating family.

Before the attempt began, the owner disconnected the truck’s trailer lights and engaged the Rivian’s Deep Sand drive mode. As the video starts, we watch as the R1T silently drives nose first into Bear Lake. The truck then manages to flip around, positioning the boat trailer for the most effective launch. The boat in question is a 2004 Malibu 23 LSV, which requires around 36 inches of water to float off the trailer. Once the boat is operating as intended, the truck simply pulls back out of the lake without any trouble. It’s a wild scene to behold, and not exactly the sort of ending we’re used to seeing when heavy trucks take on the beach. That said, the owner of this truck repeated this process several more times over the course of their visit to Bear Lake. The process reportedly only got easier to handle, though we have to imagine there was always some anxiety involved. That’s especially true when it came time to load up at the end of the day. Rivian likely didn’t test the R1T’s abilities as a standalone boat launch, but we’re glad to see some owners embracing the outdoorsy image the brand has crafted for itself. I wouldn’t suggest trying something like this without some real knowledge of your local beaches and their rules, but I can’t imagine this is the last aquatic Rivian we’ll encounter.

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Good things come from the Hawaiian islands: chocolate-covered macadamia nuts, surfing, and winning racers. Danny Ongais, who raced everything from Top Fuel to F1; John DeSoto, motocross legend; and Roland Leong, famed Funny Car tuner, share more than their island birthplace: as of August 2022, they are now the only wheeled inductees in the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame. We’d say they were the only motorsports representatives at all, but that would leave out Thomas Gentry, powerboat racer. Leong is the most recent inductee, officially joining the list in 2020, but due to COVID only celebrating the honor on August 25, 2022, when the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame finally held its much postponed banquet. We were on hand to cheer as Leong took the stage, introduced by his first driver, Don “the Snake” Prudhomme. It was the first time the two men had been in Hawaii together since they met in 1964. Street Racing on OahuLeong grew up on Oahu, racing cars on the streets, much to the dismay of his parents. “My dad had a master’s degree from Harvard. My mother was also a college graduate, very rare for a woman in the ’30s. They were respected businesspeople. I didn’t graduate high school and I wanted to be a drag racer. They weren’t pleased.”Leong’s dad didn’t talk to him for years, but his mother came around and supported him as he moved from street racing to running a dragster at the island’s only track, Kahuku Dragstrip. Leong held the gas dragster record of 8.50 at 180 mph when he met Prudhomme, who was piloting the Greer, Black, Prudhomme nitro dragster, shipped over to make exhibition runs on the island’s new, bigger dragstrip. The two hit it off, despite the fact that Prudhomme could barely understand Leong’s mix of Hawaiian slang and accented English. It didn’t matter; talking cars was a common language. Later that year, Leong was in California, working for a chassis shop and building a top fueler of his own. The first drive didn’t go well. “I guess I was supposed to only go half track? I didn’t know that,” says Leong, with the easy cadence of a much-told tale. “I didn’t know where the parachute handle was, and by the time I found it, I’d driven off the dragstrip. [Engine builder] Keith Black wasn’t pleased. He said he couldn’t support me if I drove, because he didn’t want to tell my parents I’d been killed in a car.” Elana ScherrBlack recommended Prudhomme, as their partner in the G-B-P car was calling it quits. Prudhomme started driving for Leong and took the new car, appropriately named “The Hawaiian,” to victories at the NHRA Pomona Winternationals and the Indy U.S. Nats along with countless match race rounds. “I always tell Prudhomme he’s lucky I wasn’t worth shit as a driver or he wouldn’t have had a career,” says Leong. “Sometimes I think of how odd we must have looked in ’65, on the road across America, a Chinese-Hawaiian and a Black guy, often the only ones in a restaurant. We never had any trouble, though. I guess people liked the car too much to worry about who was with it.”Prudhomme left Leong the next year, a decision he says he regretted as he watched the Hawaiian repeat victories at the Winternationals and the U.S. Nats with a different driver behind the wheel. Leong would become infamous for his changing roster of hotshoes. “Not everyone had the same desire to win as I did,” he says with a shrug. “The Hawaiian”Hawaii Sports Hall of FameIn 1969, he built a Funny Car, noting that the bodied fuel cars were more popular with the fans and had more opportunities to match race than the long, naked rails. Leong’s “Hawaiian” cars won regularly, including the famous Bakersfield March Meet in ’67 and ’83, and another U.S. Nationals win in 1991 with a car that would later set a record as the first Funny Car over 290 mph. His last year as a team owner was 1993, but he continued working as a hired crew chief, including rejoining his old buddy, the Snake, to tune the Copenhagen Funny Car with a young driver named Ron Capps behind the wheel. They finished second by a narrow margin to John Force in the championship in 1997.More Drag RacingOne might consider that a solid career, but Leong continued to tune nitro cars after leaving the NHRA “big show,” working for nostalgia racers running in the NHRA’s heritage series. Through it all, Leong has stayed friends with many of his teammates, including Prudhomme. Now 78 and 81 respectively, the Hawaiian and the Snake still act like they’re in their early twenties as they were when they met, pointing out hot cars and ribbing each other about their various failings. “You know, Snake and I would have lunch every day in Van Nuys,” said Leong. “He was working at a paint shop, and I convinced him to go on the road with me in ’65, so he quit, and he hasn’t had a real job since.” That’s one way to describe Prudhomme’s 389-round winning career, but then, Leong has known him since before he was a big shot, back when they were both just kids talking cars in Hawaii, never imagining they’d be back for a Hall of Fame induction nearly 60 years later. Elana ScherrElana ScherrLeong was inducted as part of the 2020 class, along with surfer Ben Aipa and racquetball champion Egan Inoue. The 2021 inductees, honored at the same celebration, included volleyball champ Reydan “Tita” Ahuna and sports promoter Larry Price. 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The legendary Mercedes SL roadster has reached its seventh generation, and there are big changes in store for the 2022 SL55 and SL63 models. For one, they’re exclusively offered as AMG models, and the old model’s retractable hardtop has given way to a softtop. Positioned as a competitor to the Porsche 911, the new SL is far more expensive than before, so we figured we’d take to the online configurator tool to determine our favorite ways to spec the new car. Here are our builds, from the “base” model to nearly $200,000.

Drew Dorian’s $151,700 SL55

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

I’d start my build with the SL55 in the base Touring trim. The 55’s 469-hp version of the twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 is plenty of power for me, especially since we estimate this model will hit 60 mph in just 3.4 seconds. With the money I’d save by skipping the more expensive SL63, I’d load up my new Mercedes with tasty options such as the Burmester stereo system, a microfiber headliner, and a set of handsome 21-inch wheels. I’d go with the Moonlight White metallic exterior paint, and the optional red softtop helps my SL stand out. I’m disappointed that I can’t choose the red Nappa leather with the red roof, but the black interior is classy so I’ll make that concession. Lastly, I’d splurge on the optional head-up display, the driver-assistance package, and the performance steering wheel with Nappa leather and microfiber wrap. My SL55 carries a price of $151,700, a lofty sum, certainly, but one that’s nearly $40,000 cheaper than an identically outfitted SL63.Joey Capparella’s $184,950 SL63

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

The SL makes the most sense to me as a cushy cruiser, so I’m not entirely sold on the idea that AMG has taken over the latest generation and turned it into a sportier, more performance-focused model. That said, I think the new model looks fantastic. Even though I don’t want the sportiest model possible, I still want power in a vehicle like this, so I’d splurge for the 577-hp SL63. Opting for the Performance trim doesn’t mean what you think, as the 63 model has most of the performance goodies standard anyway; instead, this version adds a front-axle lift system that I think would be useful. The only other options I chose were the subtle $3250 Monza Gray Magno paint and the $750 Dark Shadow interior trim. I stuck with the base 20-inch wheels for the sake of ride quality. My car totals out at $184,950, which is 911 Turbo territory. Hmm.Caleb Miller’s $194,660 SL63

Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz

For my 2022 Mercedes-AMG SL, I started off by choosing the more powerful SL63 model, which produces 108 more horsepower than the SL55. I then selected the Performance trim, which adds a front-axle lift system—necessary on Michigan’s pockmarked roads—for $1800. To spice up the already gorgeous roadster’s looks, I splurged on the vibrant Hyper Blue metallic paint for $1750 and 21-inch silver 10-spoke “Y-design” wheels for $1100. I also added the AMG Aerodynamics package for $2850, which includes an active carbon-fiber underbody element that increases downforce on the front wheels above 50 mph. Inside, I thought the Sage Gray and black Nappa leather combination matched the exterior well, and I went for the carbon-fiber trim for an extra $2850. I also chose the AMG Performance steering wheel in Nappa leather and microfiber ($500) and front and rear floor mats for when winter hits ($160). My final excessive add-on was the Burmester surround sound system, which costs an insane $4500. All told, my SL63 rang in at $194,660.
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