A drunken ride on Osoyoos Lake came to an abrupt halt for four boaters when the vessel they were in ran aground - but not before becoming airborne - twice.

Osoyoos RCMP were called to the White Sands area of the lake around 10:45 p.m. Friday.

When they arrived, RCMP found three men in their late 30's and a woman in her mid 20's.

All four were ejected from the speeding 18 foot, 150 horsepower boat when it hit the sandy spit. One of the men had hit a tree.

Police say the boat struck the south side of the spit dead on, and was airborne for 12 metres before it stopped.

"That's when things got interesting," says RCMP spokesperson Corp. Dan Moskaluk.

"The boat became airborne again (before landing) nose first into the ground -- causing it to flip and came to rest another eight metres from the water line."

Police say the 10 minute joyride was akin to a lightning speed chase in total darkness.

"It was just like the James Bond movie 'Live and Let Die'" says Moskaluk.

Despite being ejected, all passengers were relatively uninjured. The group had two cell phones between them, but one was severely water logged and the other partially damaged.

In a strange twist, the battery from the destroyed phone fit the other phone and they were able to call for help.

All passengers were treated for minor injuries. One of the men, a North Vancouver native, suffered a more serious neck injury and required x-rays to look for possible fractures.

The driver and owner of the speedboat was taken to the Osoyoos RCMP detachment to provide a breath sample.

"The operator of the boat blew twice the legal limit for alcohol," says Corp. Moskaluk.

The Osoyoos resident was released but is due to appear in Penticton court this week. Police have forwarded charges relating to the dangerous operation of a vessel while impaired by alcohol.

What surprised police is that the group were complete strangers.

"The woman just met two guys in a rowboat down by the shore," says Corp. Moskaluk.

The trio struck up a conversation, and then were invited for a ride in the speed boat by the driver who was floating nearby.

Corp. Moskaluk says the group is lucky to be alive. "It could have just as easily ended in multiple fatalities,"

"It was a series of bad decisions that brought them together out on the water."