But only for a moment.
On the third try, the brine behind the exhaust began to gurgle. And then, with a vroom, vroom, Jerome signaled that he was good to go.
In two weeks, Jerome, along with his son Terry and pals Danny O'Hara, and Rene Gadoury, are scheduled to reach Key West, Fla. The foursome hopes that their trip - as nutty as it seems - will raise at least $25,000 for the Gift of Life program.
Gift of Life, conceived in 1974 by a Long Island Rotary club, brings children the world over to the United States for heart surgery. Twenty-six hospitals in the country, including Deborah Heart and Lung Center in Browns
Mills, have helped mend the hearts of about 1,000 children as young as 5 and as old as 18.
Before his departure, Jerome contacted Rotary clubs along the East
Coastasking fellow Rotarians to pledge 12 cents a mile for the trip. There are about 15 Rotary club districts on the East Coast, representing 20,000 members. If all of them pledged, Jerome could raise as much as $240,000 for the cause.
Jerome also plans to meet with any Rotary clubs he finds when the riders stop for rest and fuel.
Jerome couldn't put into words why this trip has become so important to him; but the 46-year-old caterer said he had anticipated only two other events with as much enthusiasm. "My marriage and the birth of my son."
Indeed, what began as a father and son vacation has turned into a major fund-raising effort involving the entire family.
"They've been planning this for three years," said Peggy Jerome, who will be one of two family members tracking the group on land using a mobile phone.
Lynn Conover, Jerome's uncle, has made this trip by boat three times.
Because of his knowledge of the Intercoastal Waterway, Conover was charged with charting the group's route along the Eastern Seaboard.
In preparation for the voyage, the four men practiced riding their water scooters all summer long, building muscles and skill.
