CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Sternwheel boats have returned to the Kanawha River for the fifth straight year.
The boats are in town for the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta through Sunday.
Jim Kranz and his wife have a sternwheel on the Kanawha this weekend, the Donna Ray. Kranz visited with Dave Allen on “580 Live” Friday to discuss his boat and the Regatta.
Kranz was originally from Long Island, but said he’s been in West Virginia for the last half-century.
The Donna Ray was built over four years by a Pittsburgh man, Kranz said. The boat was christened in 1988. After spending many years with its owner, the Donna Ray was up for sale 13 years ago.
Kranz said he wasn’t looking for a sternwheel boat, but friends encouraged him and his wife to check it out. They fell in love with the boat and purchased it.
“My wife and I are boaters,” Kranz said. “We enjoy the river, and we have a boat — a little cruiser. We’ve been around, we’ve been to the festivals, we drive to them, we got hotel rooms, and there are several festivals that happened, Charleston’s a big one. I don’t know, I can’t tell you, we just owned a boat, and there it happened.”
There are distinctions between sternwheel boats and other vessels, particularly as it moves on the water.
“Navigation of a boat, no matter what its size, is the same,” Kranz explained. “However, you ride around the river on a small pontoon boat or whatever that is, you typically have an engine or an outdrive that turns and the hull propeller turns to steer the boat. On sternwheel boats, we have a solid wheel — doesn’t turn — and we have rudders.”
Kranz emphasized that boats steer from the back, as opposed to cars on land that steer from the from. He said the longer the boat is, the more that you realize it’s the stern of the boat that’s turning, not the other way around.
All of the sternwheel boats in the Capital City this weekend are quite heavy, Kranz noted.
“I have one of the lighter sternwheel boats, and that’s at 32 tons,” Kranz said.
Because those boats are so big and heavy, Kranz said they oftentimes require lots of repair and upkeep work.
“The joke about boating in general is, the best day of life is the day you bought the boat, and the second-best day is the day you sold the boat,” Kranz said. “I would say the sternwheel owners don’t fall into that category.”
Kranz said most sternwheelers realize what they’re getting into, and care about the often-long history of their boats. He reported two sternwheel boats on the Kanawha River this year are 100 years old.
The Donna Ray is 38 years old. Kranz said his goal is to keep it going for 100 years.
Kranz praised Charleston Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin, who was instrumental in bringing the Regatta back in 2022. He said the sternwheel community loves coming to Charleston.
“She assembled a great group of people and they work incredibly hard, every day of the year, to make this happen,” Kranz said. “So, we’re always thankful.”
Fireworks
Three fireworks shows will lit up the Capital City sky on Saturday night for the Fourth of July. This year’s display includes three different locations setting off fireworks: Magic Island, Haddad Riverfront Park, and the state Capitol.
All WVRC Media Charleston radio stations will carry the fireworks live with a red, white, and blue soundtrack alongside.
V100’s Logan Scott previewed the coverage during his appearance on “580 Live” Friday.
“Don’t worry, it will be on all of our WVRC Media Charleston stations,” Scott said. “Starting around 9:45 tomorrow night. Yes, there will be a delay if you’re streaming on our app, about 40 or 45 seconds.”