When I lived full-time in Alaska, one of my favorite places to eat was Sizzler Steakhouse. At one point, there were three locations in Anchorage alone. Sometime in the late 70s or early 80s, a television and radio commercial came out advertising all-you-can-eat barbecued ribs at Sizzler for $6.99.
The song or jingle that accompanied this advertisement went something like this: “Dem bones, dem bones, dem prime rib bones.” I cracked up each time that commercial came on.
All Sizzler restaurants in Alaska closed by the late 1980s. There was a Sizzler in Yuma when my family went there on vacation, yet it’s now shuttered as well. The closest Sizzler Steakhouse to Lake Havasu City is in Flagstaff, some 207 miles away.
Of course, with the price of beef these days, a single helping of ribs along with side dishes will be close to $30. I never ate the BBQ ribs, but I liked their steak. At this stage, with premium gas close to $5 a gallon, I’m not driving 400 miles round-trip to Flagstaff for a good Ribeye steak when Montana Steakhouse is 1.4 miles away.
Flagstaff may have a Sizzler, but we have something even better, ‘dem boats’. Boat season is fast upon us, and I drool each time I see one of those large high-horsepower babies being towed behind a monster truck. “Dem boats, dem boats, dem shiny big boats.”
Always carrying a camera in our vehicle, I’ve snapped many a photo of them fueling up at local gas stations and sent these pictures to my friends and family in Alaska. While Alaskans brag that the largest fish caught in Lake Havasu would make good bait in their state, they can’t one-up us in the mega speedboat department.
I snapped a photo of one offshore-type craft sporting five outboard engines. I believe the total horsepower was around 2,000. Fueling it one time would have me headed back to work to pay the bill. I suppose doctors, attorneys, and plumbers are the folks owning these expensive machines.
Several years back, when I was in Havasu on business, I had the opportunity to ride on one courtesy of an invite from Ron Claspill. Ron had a friend named Rusty who owned it. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the same Rusty of Rusty’s Café fame, although this guy once had red hair back in the day.
It was during a weekday, and we covered the whole lake from Topock to the dam in quick fashion, even taking time to stop on the California side for a burger and Coke. I got to take the helm for a few minutes, but never fully opened up the throttle.
During that excursion, a cheap pair of my sunglasses committed Jisatsu by leaving my head and jumping overboard. I was ever thankful that they weren’t Oakley’s.
Those cool boats will remain in town for several months, brightening the scenery with their vibrant colors, yet come October, they slowly begin to disappear as humongous land yachts start their pilgrimage west, towing ‘dinghies’ behind them, as RVers like to call their smaller shuttle vehicles.
The names Conquest, Nordic, Advantage, Domn8ter, and DCB will be replaced by Winnebago, Tiffin, Newmar, Prevost, Fleetwood, and Holiday Rambler. Captains of these land-based RVs are a much different breed from powerboat owners, with age being the biggest factor.
Despite a difference in age and machines they drive, along with music listened to, there’s one thing that powerboat and RV owners share alike: “Dem bones.” I’ve seen ribs being barbecued out on the lake on boats while the landlocked gang does the same near the front door of their homes on wheels.
When it comes to hot, sizzling meat, the old and young both love to eat!
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