CLOSE

Yearly Archives: 2019

Billy Mauff (left) presents a $20,000 check to city officials.

Before he even got a chance to compete in the Great Lakes Grand Prix in Michigan City, famed WHM Motorsports boat racer Billy Mauff had already won something—our hearts.

Prior to the first day of racing Saturday, Mauff announced that he would be donating $20,000 to the city’s Washington Park Zoo to help build a new display for its lions.

Mauff, who drives a 40′ Skater catamaran in Supercat class, is a big fan of the zoo. Last year, upon hearing that the Michigan City zoo wanted to rebuild its “feline cage,” mentioned to city officials that he would be interested in making a financial contribution to the project, to the tune of $10,000.

He made that pledge to the zoo last year, but during a special event on Friday evening, Mauff announced that he was doubling that amount.

With one set of cats taken care of, Mauff and throttleman Jay Muller will hit Lake Michigan in WHM Motorsports to deal with another group of cats. They will face off with Performance Boat Center, AMH Motorsports, Pro-Floors, CJ Grant and M-CON to capture the win in Supercat Class. Powerboat Nation is on the scene and will be reporting from the event live.

 

 

 

 

Teams comprising four different “P” bracket classes (2, 4, 5 and 7) gathered on Lake Michigan for the first of two weekend race days in Michigan City, IN — the fifth meet-up in the OPA/Powerboat P1 ABPA series.

Spreading the race across two days was a new strategy for the race, due to the high boat count. Saturday’s race was split up into two starts (2 and 4, followed by 5 and 7); classes 3 and 6 were scheduled to race on Sunday.

In Class 7, three boats raced four laps for a total of 22 miles. Goofin’ Around (with driver Matt Lauer and throttleman Joe Lauer) took the unofficial win, followed by NJI Motorsports (an MTI featuring Nick Imprescia and John Woods) and Tomahawk.

Racing for 9 laps on the 5.5-mile course for a total 49.5 miles, two teams raced in Class 2. The unofficial winner was : Summerset Boat Lift (with Mitchell and Jim Watson) finished with a substantial lead, followed by Mama Ain’t Happy.

When Team Woody broke down, that left SimmonsMarine.com (with Jim Simmons and Jason Zolecki) as the winner in Class 4; they are also the OPA points champions for the season.

Reindl One Design, with driver Chris Reindl and Kim Kramer, was the unofficial winner in Class 5. They were followed by All Fired Up, Specialized Racing and Bronx Phantom.

Visit St. Pete Clearwater ran uncontested in  P1 Superstock class.

Responding to the strong sales and positive feedback of its 39 Shotgun, Calverton, NY-based Hustler Powerboats is planning to introduce a 29-foot version as early as next year.

With seating for up to 10 in its voluminous cockpit, the 39’ Shotgun was unveiled at the 2018 Miami International Boat Show and displayed again at February’s 2019 exhibit. The fully loaded model displayed this year featured a multitude of standard features and optional equipment, including reclining seats, lounge chairs and a luxurious cabin. It was powered by three Mercury Racing 400R outboards.

Paul LoGiudice of Hustler tells Powerboat Nation that the 29’ version is currently being tooled, and may be ready as early as next year’s Miami Boat Show. “Twin 400s would probably be the typical power package,” he said. “If a customer wanted to step up to 450s, they could certainly make that upgrade.”

Like the 39′ Shotgun, the 29 will feature “a large layout with a bench seat across the back, a vee berth, and there will be ample room for a bunch of people to stand in the boat,” he said.

LoGiudice said several customers of Hustler’s 29 Rockit had expressed an interest for a boat with quieter engines. “That’s the reason we decided to take what we had with our 39 Shotgun and apply it to a 29.”

 

Aside from some delays caused by freighter traffic and weather, the 25th annual St. Clair River Classic was a roaring success, as a couple of dozen offshore race boats delivered the goods Sunday on the St. Clair River in Michigan. It was the fifth OPA race of the season, and the fourth collaboration with Powerboat P1 in its APBA Offshore Championship Series.

Three boats turned out for the series’ Class One USA competition: Victory Team (with Salem Al Adidi and Eisa Al Ali), Miss Geico (with Steve Curtis and Miles Jennings) and 222 Offshore Racing (with Darren Nicholson and Giovanni Carpitella). The Victory and Miss Geico teams were racing for the first time since both of their boats flipped at the July 7 meet in Sarasota, FL. The St. Clair race was won by the Victory Team, in a thrilling bout that saw them battling 222 Offshore Racing, which had prevailed in Sarasota. Miss Geico came in third.

In the Super Cat class, NZ-11 Pro Floors Racing racked up another win for the season, repeating its first-place showing after taking the checkered flag at the season-opening Cocoa Beach race, and second-place finishes at the Lake of the Ozarks and Sarasota. The New Zealand team (with owner/driver Wayne Valder and throttleman Grant Bruggemann) are currently leading the class in high points. WHM Racing, Broadco and Performance Boat Center/Jimmy John’s finished in second, third and fourth place. Competitor M-CON rolled over about halfway through the Super Cat skirmish; team members Tyler Miller and Tyson Garvin escaped the 40′ Skater safely.

Super Stock boats put on another great performance, with S-8 CR Racing (with Casey Boaz and Rob Unnerstall) enjoying a substantial lead for most of the race to finish on top. Performance Boat Center/Auto Alert, featuring Rusty Williams and Myrick Coil, finished second, and Gary Ballough and Lorne Leibel in FJ Propeller came in third place.

Complete podium finishes:

ClassONE USA
1st – 3 Victory
2nd – 222 222 Offshore
3rd – 113 Miss GEICO

SUPER CAT
1st – NZ-11 ProFloors Racing
2nd – 5 WHM
3rd – 05 Broadco

SUPER STOCK
1st – S-8 CR Racing
2nd – S-21 Performance Boat Center
3rd – S-19 FJ Propeller

VEE EXTREME
1st – 66 Tug It
2nd – 20 Knucklehead Instigator

SVX
1st – 22 Punisher
2nd – 17 Marker 17
3rd – 2 BoatFloater

PROSTOCK VEE
1st – 66 LSB Racing
2nd – 77 Done Deal
3rd – 33 Showtime

CLASS 3
1st – V6 Strictly Business
2nd – V1 Wazzup

CLASS 4
1st – 404 Simmons Marine
2nd – 499 Rumbelphish
3rd – 466 Edward J Painting

CLASS 5
1st – 516 Bronx Phantom
2nd – 512 Specialized Racing
3rd – 533 All Fired UP

CLASS 6
1st – 651 Deception Offshore
2nd – 691 Liquid Addiction
3rd – 611 Smith Brothers

CLASS 7
1st – 721 Shadow Pirate
2nd – 766 Chug It
3rd – 749 On A Mission

P1 SUPERSTOCK
1st – 09 Visit St Pete Clearwater

CLASS 2
1st – 212 Summerset Boat Lift

Photos by Randy Nuzzo.

The 2019 edition of the Rock the Bay Poker Run is coming to northeast Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay area next weekend, Aug. 2-3. Now in its 17th year, the event has been scheduled a few weeks earlier than usual, and is being operated by the same team for seven years running. The brother/sister duo of Todd and Melanie Taylor of Poker Runs America have been working feverishly to make sure that this year’s Rock the Bay is the most memorable so far.

The fun begins on Friday evening at the welcome party, where the famous Nauti Goose Saloon and Anchor Boat Marina will be playing host; participating boats will all be docked right at the marina. Saturday’s poker run will kick off with a mandatory driver’s meeting before participants head off to five different locations to pick up their cards (and envelopes must remain sealed until the awards presentation).

The first card stop will be the Nauti Goose; Stop #2 will be Tolchester Beach, followed by a card stop and lunch at Joppatowne Marina on the Gunpowder River (the second consecutive year Rock the Bay has scheduled lunch there). Stop #4 is planned for Lee’s Landing in Port Deposit on the Susquehanna River, and then it’s back to the Nauti Goose for the last card and card hand unveiling. The awards dinner will feature great food, the crowning of the poker champion, and live music.

“The Nauti Goose is a great venue, and the hotel is close by,” says Melanie Taylor. “A shuttle will take everybody back and forth. There’s ample parking. Every couple of years, we alter the route just to give everybody a new flavor.”

Rock the Bay usually draws between 50 and 60 boats each year. The route will extend about 100 miles. Entry fee costs $495 for a boat with driver and navigator; the fee includes the Friday night welcome party, Saturday breakfast buffet, lunch, awards dinner banquet and an official event T-shirt.

Attendees can look forward to cash prizes for first, second and third place winners, and awards for Best Graphics, Best-Dressed Crew and Best Engine Compartment.

For more information and to register, please call Melanie Taylor at (800) 354-9145 ext. 252.

DCB Performance Boats of El Cajon, CA, has confirmed the delivery of a brand-new DCB to Dr. Steven Ossakow of Ohio. This is the good doctor’s third new DCB: he started with an M35 with twin Mercury Racing 1350 engines, moved to an M29 with twin 700s, and now he’s got an M28R with twin 300Rs.

The sticker price of this 2020 M28R, with all of the upgrades and options, came to about $315K. The boat has a beam of 9 feet and includes two 55-gallon fuel tanks, a 75% Alcantara interior package (with matching under cuddy), and a custom-matching carpet kid featuring shaved diamonds in the fabric.

Speed as tested at Lake Elsinore: 111 mph at 6,200 rpm with moderate boat traffic. DCB estimates a top speed of up to 115 mph in ideal conditions.

Some of the other goodies on this DCB:

• Phase III gelcoat scheme.
• Half cap with black powdercoated SS rubrail .
• Vacuum Infused Resin (VIR) process, balsa-cored, with full carbon-fiber layup.
• Exposed carbon-fiber on deck and all around windshield register.
• Two Simrad NSS9 Evo3 (9”) touch screen monitors.
• Garmin 922 (9”) GPS center plotter.
• Dual facing Garmin VIRB camera system, mounted to windshield strut, hardwired to Garmin 9” monitor.
• Six-person intercom set with VHF boat-to-boat communication (aka “DCB Channel”).
• Bimini top.
• Interior Rigid LED lighting package (mood lighting, courtesy lighting, LED cupholders).
• Stage II stereo – Fusion head unit | Two (2) JL Audio amplifiers | Six (6) JL Audio M6 midrange speakers | Two (2) 10” free air JL subwoofers.
Mercury DTS controls
• 40” Billet swimstep with SeaDek lining for easy boarding
• Foot shower.
• Extreme Custom Trailer, tandem-axle with chrome 18” FUEL rims, SS fenders and triangular drive guard, undercarriage LED lighting package, front courtesy ladder, etc.

Check out the awesome photo gallery below.

The boats on the docks of the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel at last year's 1000 Islands Charity Poker Run. Image courtesy of Horizon Aerial Media Services

The high-water woes that has plagued a large portion of the country has reached upstate New York and has threatened the overall success of the 1000 Islands Charity Poker Run, leaving most of the village docks at the scheduled lunch stop in Alexandria Bay, NY underwater and essentially unusable.

With the third installment of their highly successful Poker Run just days away, organizer Nolan Ferris and his team behind the Clayton, NY event decided not to let the high-water issues sink it for their attendees. But rather hunker down and roll up their sleeves. Literally.

“We purchased the materials ourselves and had a group of volunteers, including contractor Lance Peterson from Clayton (New York) that brought his whole (JR Construction) crew, and a friend of mine (Bruce) from New Jersey who’s a contractor and a friend of mine (Brian) from Pennsylvania who’s a contractor–drove up this morning to help us put this together today,” said Ferris. “We had a crew of 16 people and we nailed it out in about eight hours–600 feet of dock, three feet wide.”

After dealing with the town of Alexandria Bay for over a month regarding this issue, Ferris decided last week that it had to be done and to handle it themselves, mainly for the participants who will be traveling great lengths to experience this event–many for the first time.

The Poker Run, which is a 160-mile run out and back across the St. Lawrence River highlighted by picturesque castles and scenery, benefits the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Central New York and River Hospital, which provides Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) treatment to America’s heroes–past and present.

After the docks were installed and complete, the group received a generous $1000 donation from Carnegie Bay Marina in Alexandria Bay for their efforts. The fasteners were provided at cost from Garlock Lumber, also in “Alex Bay.”

In only their third year of running this event, it’s clear that the team truly cares about it and its success.  They are excited that so many new people will be coming to the small town of Clayton for some big fun and promises a charity presentation not to be soon forgotten.

 

 






Eliminator Boats, the iconic Southern California builder of go-fast vees and catamarans now celebrating its 50th anniversary, has finalized a deal to take on Legend Marine Group of Carrollton, TX, as an authorized retailer.

Located near Dallas, Legend Marine Group deals in high-quality speedboats; its other go-fast lines include Nor-Tech High Performance Boats and Statement Marine.

“We are very excited to have somebody with as much notoriety and credibility as Legend Marine Group, and we’re looking forward to doing business with them and helping to support their dealership,” said Eliminator President Jake Fraleigh, who sealed the deal in the last few days.

According to Legend owner Greg Connell and Sales Manager Casey Freeman, Legend has ordered two Eliminators, a 25 Speedster and a 28 Speedster to put in their inventory around the first of the year.

With few exceptions, Eliminator has long sold its boats factory direct. The partnership with Legend marks a bold departure—one geared to open up the traditionally West Coast market a broader part of the country.

“This is a big deal, because Legend is a solid dealership. They’re not a small mom and pop shop,” Fraleigh said. “They have a really nice facility, carry a lot of high-end boats, and I look at this as a great place for our brand to be seen across the Midwest and even on the East Coast. We’ve got a hub now that we can rely on.”

Connell said that Legend Marine Group acts as both a dealership and service center for all of the lines it sells, “whether we sell them in Dallas or Arkansas, Oklahoma or anywhere else,” he said. “We’ve always taken care of the customer, no matter where they are, or what kind of issues they have, whether it’s warranty issues or beyond. We’re always a phone call away to take care of their needs or problems.”

Connell purchased Legend Marine Group in 2005 as a Fountain and Baja dealer and has along the way, picked up Formula, Donzi, Cigarette Racing, Nor-Tech and Statement Marine. In addition Connell is also a dealer of high-end automobiles, having launched Legend Motorcars in 1988.

Contact Legend Marine at 214-9004-0052 or email Greg Connell at greg@legendmarinegroup.com and Casey Freeman at casey@legendmarinegroup.com.

    In a virtually unheard of series of events, two Class One offshore competitors—the Victory and Miss Geico race boats—rolled over within seconds of each other during the final two turns of the 35th Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix, dramatically bringing the day’s worth of racing to an abrupt conclusion.

    All team members were able to safely escape their boats: driver Salem Al Adidi and throttleman Eisa Al Ali (who had been in the lead) and driver James Sheppard and throttleman Steve Curtis of Miss Geico.

    This would seem to indicate that #222 Triple 2 Offshore, featuring driver Darren Nicholson and throttleman Giovanni Capitella (who had been in the third-place position) would be named the winner of the race, but nothing was official as this story was being prepared.

    Also participating in the race were #11 Scuderia Cazzani Turbo (with driver Ed Smith and throttleman Serafino Cazzani) and #77 Lucas Oil Satcom Direct (with driver Jay Johnson and throttleman Nigel Hook). It was not immediately known how exactly the podium would be configured in the wake of these shocking developments.

    As the Class One race was being conducted, two Vee Extreme boats were also in the process of racing: #20 Knucklehead Racing’s Instigator (with driver Edward Smith and throttleman Anthony Smith) and #66 LSB Hurricane of Awesomeness (with driver Brit Lily and throttleman Kevin Smith). Instigator had been leading the race when the Class One accident occurred. 

    As seven Supercat competitors battled in the third of four OPA/Powerboat P1 races at the 35th Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix, it was #06 M-CON (with driver Tyson Garvin and throttleman Tyler Miller) that took its unofficial first win of the season.

    In second place was #NZ-11 Pro Floors Racing (with driver Wayne Valder and throttleman Grant Bruggeman), which was the winner of the season-opening bout in Cocoa Beach.

    Performance Boat Center/Jimmy John’s, with driver Myrick Coil and throttleman John Tomlinson racing their new MTI hull, finished in third place.

    Meanwhile, fourth-place finisher #08 AMH Motorsports (with driver Aaron Hope and and throttleman Anthony Smith), had initially taken an lead early in the race before being passed by AMH, then Pro Floors, and then finally Performance Boat Center/Jimmy John’s. They were the winners of the Lake Race at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri.

    Also participating in the race were WHM Motorsports, Broadco Cat 5 and CJ Grant Racing.

    Three classes battled for the checkered flag during the 35th running of the Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix, presented by OPA and Powerboat P1. 

    Competitors ran nine laps in Superstock Class, where FJ Propeller took an early lead, only to be overtaken by Team Allen Lawn Care about halfway through the race. Driver Larry Pinegar and throttleman Billy Allen captured the unofficial win in Superstock, with FJ Propeller (with driver Lowin Leibel and throttleman Gary Ballough) finishing second in Ballough’s new Victory hull, and S-21 Performance Boat Center/Auto Alert (with driver Rusty Williams and throttleman Myrick Coil) finishing third. #S-111 Professional Plumbing, with driver Brian Hurd and throttleman Ryan Beckley, experienced a fuel pump failure on the way to the race course and didn’t get to participate.

    In Super Vee Extreme Class, driver Stephen Kildahl and throttleman Steve Kildahl of #2 Boatfloater.com took a substantial early lead and took the unofficial win. The pair—who were also victorious in the season kickoff race in Cocoa Beach—were followed by #5 Sun Print (with driver Steven Fehrmann and throttleman Steve Miklos) and #32 Mr. Technology (with driver Will Smith and throttleman Jimmy Deitch) in third place. #17 Marker 17 Marine and #07 JRA Boat Sales both came off plane early on in the race. 

    #66 Rev X Oil / LSB Racing, with driver Brit Lily and throttleman Kevin Smith, took the win in Pro Stock Vee class, beating out #05 Phase 5, #77 Done Deal and #19 R&S Racing.

    The first of four OPA/Powerboat P1 races, the Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix in Sarasota, FL, featured bracketed classes on a course that started off with clear visibility but eventually ended with a red flag due to increasingly poor weather as a storm blew into town.

    #404 SimmonsMarine.com, victor in both Cocoa Beach and the Lake of the Ozarks earlier in the season, picked up another win in Class 4. Driven by Jim Simmons and throttled by Jason Zolecki, the boat beat out #427 Team Woody (second place) and #P450 Rollin’ Dirty (formerly Thee Dollhouse with driver Clyde Petty) in the class. 

    In Class 5, #516 ABACO Windows / Bronx Phantom, with driver J.J. Turk and throttleman Robert Winoski, took an early lead and stayed out in front to beat #540 Pump It, which finished second. #542 Big Dreams Racing (formerly Typhoon) was third. 

    #622 Rum Runner / New Wave Marine was the unofficial winner in Class 6, besting second-place finisher #691 Liquid Addiction and #623 Country Service / Boom Shaka Laka in third. New Wave, featuring driver Mike McColgan with Fran Vellutato on throttles, got off to an excellent start this season, winning the Cocoa Beach race and following up with a win in Point Pleasant Beach as well. 

    Three boats competed in the P1 Superstock class. #28 Porta Products, with driver Andy Foster and throttleman Charles Morris, took the unofficial win, beating out #09 Visit St. Pete and #03 Geico.

    #06 Strictly Business, a Fountain driven by Louis Giancontieri and throttled by Johnny Stanch, ran unopposed in Class 3.

    A red flag ended the action toward what was practically the natural end of the competition.

     

    Prev1...456...13Next Page 5 of 13
    Powerboat Nation is the world's leading resource for Powerboating Videos, Photos, News and more!
    There's no better place on the web to live the powerboating life!
    Contact us: support@powerboatnation.com

    PBN's FINEST

    POPULAR CATEGORIES

    © Copyright 2015 - Powerboat Nation