News 12 at 11, July 18, 2008

Augusta, Ga. --- It's a big weekend on the Savannah River. And even though the drag boat drivers have been hit hard by the high fuel prices, they're still going!

Lots of drivers are getting their boats ready to compete in the Augusta Southern Nationals. This year, there are 70 racers. That's down seven from last year. Organizers say it's because the high fuel prices prohibit them from traveling. The boats go up to 250 miles per hour in just 4.8 seconds.

As for gas prices, they're impacting the drivers. Last year drivers were paying $850 for 53 gallons of nitro methane for the boat. Now it's over $1800. That's up a thousand from last year. Even though fuel prices are high, drivers say the drag boat races are a spectacle you won't want to miss.

"You're only going to see this once a year. I don't think there's any places you're going to go to in Georgia where you're going to see boats go 250 miles per hour in four seconds," 2007 Winner, John Haas said.

All the money from this weekend's Augusta Southern Nationals will go to the Special Olympics Area 9 division here in Augusta.