Upper Monongahela River Association

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The Loonies Behind UMRA

The Loonies Behind UMRA

Some people say "You must be crazy to spend your time fighting the United States Congress and the Corps of Engineers." We're crazy enough to reply "We're not fighting them, we're educating them." Actually we are crazy about boats, and feel we would rather fight for boaters' needs than quit and play golf or some take up some other more expensive hobby.

Among the small group responsible for UMRA, you will find

Don Strimbeck - Retired energy researcher and Army Colonel. He is lucky to only own one boat, The Flatulent Tosspot.

Wally Venable - Retired engineering teacher whose fleet of boats includes the sidewheel launch Ruddy Duck and the English canal cruiser Dawn Adventure.

Brooks & Bunny Javins - Whose fleet of boats includes the sternwheeler Cindy. Brooks is a directional driller (mostly oil & gas) who majored in English and who can recite Beowulf in Middle English. Bunny runs Javins Corporation, a drilling contracting firm based in Morgantown.