Originally, the boats were powered by outboard motors, which often overheated and had to be towed back to the dock.

Worse, the gasoline engines were so loud that the passengers could barely hear the spiel.  After a few months, the motors gave way to batteries stashed under the seats.

At first the ride was staffed predominately by men, dressed in white shirts and wide brim hats who had the arduous duty of manually pulling the boats into the storage area and connecting the battery cables to charge the boats overnight.

Eventually, electricians installed a two-way switch, providing a reverse gear to easily back the boats into the storage tunnel.

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