The Board of Directors of the Evansville Convention & Visitors Bureau voted yesterday afternoon to NOT continue with Hydroplane Racing at Evansville HydroFest. Our Race Director did not attend the meeting nor was involved in the decision. We regret to inform our Fans, Race Teams, Vendors, Volunteers, and Sponsors there will be no Roar on the River in 2019.

The event is expected to kick off on Friday, August 16th through August 18th.

44News reached out to the Evansville Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive-Director for comment. They released this following statement:

It is the recommendation of the Executive Director and legal counsel of Evansville Events, Inc. that hydroplane racing for 2019 not be pursued. A contract with the hydroplane racing organization of choice has not yet been finalized and it is unlikely that sufficient sponsorships can be raised to cover the costs of the event, thus risking a deficit for a second year in a row.

It is further recommended that the barbecue festival and concert elements already being planned be reformatted into a yet-to-be-named event in downtown Evansville on the same dates. This new downtown event offers the unique opportunity to take advantage of the large crowds attending the Saturday night, August 17 Toby Keith concert at the Ford Center.

While many details are admittedly yet to be worked out, making the change now allows time to plan, market and produce the alternative event.