The Great Lakes Waterway is a system of channels and canals that makes all of the Great Lakes accessible to oceangoing vessels. Its principal civil engineering components are the Welland Canal, bypassing Niagara Falls between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, and the Soo Locks, bypassing the rapids of the St. Marys River between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, at Sault Sainte Marie. Maintained channels serve the St. Clair River and Detroit River between Lake Huron and Lake Erie. A United States Coast Guard icebreaker helps keep the passage open for much of the winter, although shipping usually ceases for 2 or 3 months each year.

The Great Lakes Waterway is supplemented by the Saint Lawrence Seaway, which makes the Saint Lawrence River navigable from Montreal to Kingston, Ontario. The two waterways are often jointly referred to as the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Great Lakes Waterway has larger locks and deeper drafts than the St. Lawrence Seaway with the result that a number of lake freighters are confined to the lakes, being small enough to operate on the Waterway but too large to pass down the Seaway.

The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada–United States border which connect to the Atlantic Ocean through the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the Great Lakes Waterway. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth comprising 21% of the world's surface fresh water. The total surface is 94,250 square miles (244,106 km²), and the total volume (measured at the low water datum) is 5,439 cubic miles (22,671 km³). The lakes are sometimes referred to as the North Coast or "Third Coast" by some citizens of the United States.

The lakes have been a major source of trade through this area, and they are home to a large number of aquatic species. Many invasive species have been introduced due to trade in the area, and some threaten the biodiversity of the area.

Though the five lakes reside in separate basins, they form a single, naturally interconnected body of fresh water. The lakes form a chain connecting the east-central interior of North America to the Atlantic Ocean. From the interior to the outlet at the St. Lawrence River, water flows from Superior to Michigan-Huron (in the hydrological sense, a single body of water), southward to Erie, and finally northward to Lake Ontario. The lakes drain a large watershed via many rivers, and are studded with approximately 35,000 islands. The Great Lakes region contains not only the five themselves but also many thousands of smaller lakes, often called inland lakes. Of the five lakes, Lake Michigan is the only one that is located entirely within the United States; the others form a water border between the United States and Canada.

Mark Anthony Martin (born January 9, 1959) is an American stock car driver. He currently drives the #55 Aaron's Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series on a part time basis. He has the second most wins in the Nationwide Series with 49. He has finished second in the Sprint Cup Series standings five times and has been described by ESPN as "The best driver to never win a championship."

Martin began his racing career as a young man on the dirt tracks of Arkansas. He moved on to asphalt racing and joined the ASA racing series. During his ASA career, Mark raced against Dick Trickle, Jim Sauter, Joe Shear and Bobby Allison. Mark went on to earn Rookie of the Year in 1977. Mark rounded out his ASA career winning twenty-two races and four championships (1978, 1979, 1980, and 1986).

Martin had a tumultuous beginning in NASCAR, driving for six different teams from 1981 to 1987. He made five starts in 1981 driving for Bud Reeder, earning two pole positions at Nashville and Richmond and finishing third in his final race at Martinsville.