Most offshore powerboat racing fans know Dan Lawrence as the throttleman for The Hulk, a remarkably fast 32-foot Doug Wright catamaran owned by his teammate and driver Rob Nunziato. Most recently, the team took second place in the Super Cat Light class in the inaugural Qatar Cup. But performance-boat enthusiasts in and around the Sarasota, Fla., area also know Lawrence for Loan Shark, his 32-foot Doug Wright pleasure boat.
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Farewell Loan Shark—32' Doug Wright Cat Remake Well Underway
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Boat Customs Updating 308 Skater with Flat Deck and More
After owning half a dozen Skater Powerboats catamarans from Douglas Marine, Arkansas performance boater Sam Jirik is going to great lengths to get the outboard-powered Skater of his dreams. After taking possession of a 2014 308 Classic Deck Skater with twin Mercury Racing OptiMax 300XS engines via the sale of his 338 Fatboy Skater with Smith Power engines last year, Jirik thought about a few things he could to update the 30-footer and make it his own.
This outboard-powered 30-foot Skater catamaran will have a whole new look once Arkansas' Sam Jirik gets it back.
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Risky Business Getting Back In Business
Purchased by offshore powerboat racer Nicholas Dorcich last year, Lighthouse Racing, a Skater 28 catamaran with twin canopies is undergoing a total renovation/modernization at Smart Marine Service in Orlando, Fla. When complete, it will be reborn as Risky Business, the latest member in a venerable family of offshore raceboats that began when Dorcich's father, Stephen, began racing a 24-foot Skater cat in the 1980s.
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Project: California Cat Getting Groomed in North Carolina
Well-known and widely respected in West Coast custom high-performance powerboat circles, Howard Custom Boats isn't a name you hear often on the East Coast. But a project happening at Boat Repairs Plus in Denver, N.C., could help the Valencia, Calif.-based go-fast catamaran and V-bottom builder gain a little name recognition far from home.
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Outerlimits Fan Building Tribute Truck
Since his first glimpse of an Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats V-bottom owned by Pete Mazzo—a longtime client of the custom go-fast powerboat company—in the early 2000s, Jared Horowytz of Bergen County, N.J., was hooked on the brand. His family owned four Outerlimits models—37-, 39-, 42- and 44-footers in that order—starting in 2010. Horowytz and his father, Adam, became regulars on the high-performance boating scene in the Barnegat Bay/New Jersey Shore area, as well as on the Hudson River.
"My father bought them, I drove them," said Horowytz, now 24 years old and working in his family's restaurant business, with a laugh. "It worked out very well."
Outerlimits name templates will pull serious duty in this project
Along the way through his family's Outerlimits journey, Horowytz became a Mike Fiore fan—maybe the biggest fan of Bristol, R.I., company's founder, who died last August after a high-accident during the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout in Central Missouri. So taken with the brand and its creator was Horowytz that he began volunteering at the Outerlimits plant in Bristol while he was in college in nearby New London, Conn.
"I went there once a month at least or more," said Horowytz. "Every Wednesday, I would go up there and help. I didn't get paid. I just enjoyed it. Mike said, 'Any time you want, come up.' I think he knew I just really appreciated what he did.
"Unfortunately, Mike passed," he continued. "I saved every text message he ever sent me. Every moment we ever had, I hung onto."
Details will include custom off-road lights from Rigged Industries. (Click image for full frame.)
Four months ago, Horowytz purchased a Ford F-350 truck. Even though his family is between Outerlimits V-bottoms at the moment, his plan from the beginning was to customize the truck in Fiore's honor. Though all of the family's haulers have had the Outerlimits name on them, this one will take the theme to another level.
"Johnny Ramirez at Fusion Bumpers hooked me up with a pair of bumpers," said Horowytz. "He was on board as soon as I messaged him. I also got a bunch of customized Rigged Industries off-road lights—I gave Chris Brown there a call. He had heard about Mike's passing so he jumped on board right away. The sides of the truck will have the Outerlimits name and logo, and the Outerlimits logos inside the doors will light up when you open them. The Ford logo on the front is the biggest one they make, and it will have the Outerlimits logo on on it. We're going to wrap the dash with the Outerlimits logo, and the rear of the truck and the mud flaps will have the logos from Panties Off,' a yellow 52-foot Outerlimits with Teague 1200s that was in Mike's shop. I always loved that boat.
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For a quick look at the Horowytz family's last boat and hauler, check out the slideshow above.
"The truck will be unique because every Outerlimits was unique," added. "There was no 'average' Outerlimits, because every boat was different."
The project needs to be complete by end of the month because the vehicle is headed to the New York Truck Show April 25-26, Horowytz said. He also said he's eager to have something—an Outerlimits of course—to pull behind the truck when it's done. But mostly, he just hopes the project will pay homage to Fiore, who made a profound impact on his life.
"It sucks he's gone," said Horowytz. "He meant the world to me. He was the sport. He brought so many people together."
Though the Horowytz family no longer owns their last Outerlimits—a 44 SL purchased from longtime Outerlimts customer Dave Scotto—there likely will be another in their not-too-distant future.
Editor's Note: Look for a follow-up story on the completed Fiore/Outerlimits tribute tow vehicle when the project is complete.
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Kaama Raceboat Restoration Moving Forward
Among the storied raceboats piloted by the late Betty Cook—the only woman to win national and world championships in offshore powerboat racing—was a 38-foot Scarab called Kaama and later Michelob Light. Cook, who ran the boat with legendary throttleman John Connor in the early 1980s, died at age 70 in 1991. But her famed 38-footer is still here and, thanks to the efforts of its current owner, Tom Jewsbury of Rochester, N.Y., could be back on the water in its close-to-original form next year.
As Rochester, N.Y., thaws out, restoration of the Kaama Scarab piloted by Betty Cook will heat up. All photos courtesy Tom Jewsbury.
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Outerlimits 47 GTX Remote Access Project Nears Completion
In about a week, Louisiana performance boater Nate Michel should be cruising around Lake Pontchartrain and the surrounding waterways in his flawlessly refreshed 2003 Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats 47 GTX. And just a couple of weeks after that he and his wife, Robin, will get to show off the boat—and it's recently completed stunning paint job from Grafik Worx in Miami—to their friends in the performance boating community at the wildly popular Tickfaw 200 Poker Run hosted by Blood River Marina.
Nate Michel's 2003 Outerlimits 47 GTX Remote Access is back in Louisiana after being painted by Grafik Worx in Miami.
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A New Beginning for a RPM 26 Redline
Louisiana performance boater Jeff Ford was as close to Steve Tripp, the late owner of Revolution Performance Marine (RPM Powerboats), as some members of his family. Not only did Ford own a 2008 26 Redline catamaran from the Harpersville, Ala., builder, but he took his boat to several events across the country with Tripp over the years and even spent some of his personal vacation time lending a hand at the RPM shop.
So to call his latest step in the life of his 26-foot cat bittersweet would be an understatement. Ford recently enlisted the talents of Stephen Wayne Miles and the crew at Stephen Miles Design in Evansville, Ind., to give his boat a fresh look—and that's exactly what he got when he picked up his boat last weekend.
While it's difficult not to see the same boat he created so many memories in, Ford believes Tripp would have been all in favor of the update and quite proud of how it turned out.
"It took about three weeks for Stephen Miles Design to finish the amazing transformation and wow is it spectacular," said Ford, who plans to run the boat at the upcoming Tickfaw 200 Poker Run (May 1-2) at Blood River Marina. "I know everyone says this, but the boat really does look so much better in person. It looks three feet longer to me with the new design. Stephen and his crew knocked it out of the park."
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For more photos of the 26 Redline paint job in progress as well as the older look of the boat, check out the slideshow.
Ford said there are probably a half-dozen small things that need to be complete before the boat hits the water, including installing the interior, the engine hatch, sun pad and scoop, as well as the glove box cover, which Miles still has in his possession. In a tribute to Tripp, Ford said the black carbon-fiber cover will feature a lime green Steve Tripp ghosted into it.
Ford said he originally approached Miles to paint his engine's valve covers after seeing his work on a variety of RC boats a few years ago. He was impressed with Miles and his paintwork and said that one day he would reach out to give his boat a facelift. That day came earlier this year as Ford and Miles went back and forth on a few designs and finally settled on the white, gray, blue and lime green graphics that tied in nicely with the boat's engine compartment that was already painted blue.
"The boat has like seven coats of clear on it—it's flawless," said Ford, who also changed the faces and bezels of his Livorsi Marine gauges to match the new design and added a black carbon-fiber dash panel and a chartplotter while he was at it. "The detail that went into this paint job is incredible. The surface is just amazing—it looks like you could just walk right into it."
Related stories
Steve Tripp Remembered
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Lake of the Ozarks Contingency Makes Over 42 Fountain
Born and raised in Camdenton, one of the communities within Central Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks, Ernie Dampier has been around boats of all of his life. Yet it wasn’t until he stopped racing Pro Mod dragsters and started hauling boats for a living that he really started to enjoy them. It helped that he was friends with the late Bob Morgan and was able to do some poker runs with the legendary boat racer who owned and operated the lake’s Big Thunder Marina for many years.
Ernie Dampier runs his recently restored 42-foot Fountain in the Performance Boat Center Spring Fun Run. Photo courtesy Brad Glidewell
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Boat Customs’ 308 Skater Flat Deck Conversion Complete
Just in time for the summer, Arkansas performance boater Sam Jirik got his 2014 30-foot Skater Powerboats catamaran with twin Mercury Racing OptiMax 300XS engines back from Boat Customs a week ago. And boy is Jirik glad he decided to go with the more extensive project rather than just have the crew in Caledonia, Mich., install one of its windshield retrofit kits.
Sam Jirik is excited about the new look of his 30-foot Skater Powerboats catamaran. All photos courtesy Sam Jirk
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Fast At Last: Harris Purchases Active Thunder 37 Excess
There are tons of boaters out there who’ve had the rug pulled out from under them or legal issues that derailed a potential boat purchase. So, in the case of South Florida native and real estate broker Greg Harris, his decade-long boat-buying drama is far from unbelievable.
Greg Harris and his girlfriend, Yvonne Aleman, sure look happy in Harris' new ride. All photos courtesy Greg Harris
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Fast At Last: Harris’ Active Thunder 37 Excess Ready for Lanier
With his recently purchased 2008 Active Thunder 37’ Excess powered by twin Mercury Racing 700SCi engines in tow on its spanking new Bad 2D Bone Trailers, Greg Harris and I caught up yesterday as he was entering Georgia en route to his first poker run in the 37-footer he purchased a month ago.
Greg Harris towed his Active Thunder 37' Excess on its new trailer to Georgia yesterday for the Pirates of Charity Lanier Poker Run.
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All-Purpose Skater Reborn for Racing and Pleasure
Anyone who spoke with Scott York, the Missouri performance boater who trailered his 32-foot Skater Powerboats catamaran to Oklahoma’s Grand Lake O’ The Cherokees for the GLOC Performance Boat Challenge Shootout a few weeks ago, days after he participated in the inaugural event would agree that York was on a boating high he’d yet to experience.
Driving the RDC Racing Skater, Scott York and Travis Hill competed in the Lake Race on Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks in June.
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First Skaterfest: Eger Brings Freshly Painted 28 Skater from Boat Customs
Being that it is his first Skaterfest, Michigan performance boater Joe Eger isn’t too familiar with everyone attending this weekend’s fifth annual event on Michigan’s Lake St. Clair, which brings Skater Powerboats enthusiasts together to celebrate the brand built by Douglas Marine in Douglas, Mich.
Joe Eger is enjoying his refreshed 28-foot Skater Powerboats catamaran at the fifth annual Skaterfest. All photos courtesy Chris Mills
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Baja Marine Leader Offers Powerboat Beauty Tips
Catamaran, sportboat or high-performance center console—whether your boat is brand new or has hundreds of hours on it, applying a simple, gentle cleaning method is the key to preserving its long-term beauty. That’s the word from Johnny Walker, the chief executive officer of Baja Marine, the Washington, N.C. parent company of the Baja, Donzi and Fountain powerboat brands.
In a recent press release, Walker—a longtime powerboat owner—outlined the basic boat exterior cleaning strategy used at Powerboat Headquarters, Baja’s pre-owned powerboat refurbishing company.
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Goodwin-Powered Outerlimits Upgraded with New Chartplotter, Engine Monitoring System
Pete Opperman, an optometrist from Northern Michigan who owns a 1998 37-foot Stiletto from Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats, is proud of the boat he bought four years ago—especially since he’s upgraded to a set of 725-hp, 600-cubic-inch Goodwin Competition engines and IMCO Marine SCX drives.
If Pete Opperman had his way, he'd run his Outerlimits with his family every summer weekend. Photo by Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix
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First Person: Inside The Team Provocative Paint Project
Not long after I purchased my slightly used Outerlimits SL 44 V-bottom, now called Team Provocative, from the Outerlimits factory in Bristol, R.I., I began to notice some problems with the paint on its deck. From what I could see, the paint was failing to adhere in a few areas. The trouble spots were small and easy to repair and limited to deck, but as time went by they got worse—the areas became larger and quite expensive to repair, especially when the repair area was in the middle of a graphic. In reality, the entire paint job on the deck was failing
As many people inside and outside the Outerlimits circle know, I have close ties with the Outerlimits factory. In fact my relationship with Mike Fiore, who founded the company, went further than the typical supplier-customer relationship. We were good friends.
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Ruffled Feathers Transformation Complete, Next Stop Lake of the Ozarks
Although the project took longer than expected to complete, Miami’s Frank Areces can’t wait to show off Ruffled Feathers, his restored 2002 32-foot Douglas Marine/Skater Powerboats catamaran, at Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks this week.
Frank Areces' 32-foot Skater Ruffled Feathers recently was restored by a talented and experienced group. Photos courtesy Frank Areces
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Inside Out: Baja Marine Head Offers Second Round of Powerboat Cleaning Tips
No matter how impeccably they’re maintained, performance boat interiors take a beating from spray—especially of the saltwater kind—and other less predictable “elements” such as sunscreen and spilled beverages. A longtime powerboat owner, John Walker, the chief executive officer of Baja Marine and its refit/refurbish shop dubbed Powerboat Headquarters in Washington, N.C., offered useful advice in a recent press release from the company.
“Cleaning the interior is different from the exterior because now you have food involved,” Walker said in the release. “A lot of what gets in there is fat-based, and once food gets ground in, it’s hard to get out. Use a mild solution of water and dish detergent to clean the interior and the upholstery. That will take the grease out.”
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Photo Essay: Mike Fiore Tribute Truck
In memory of Outerlimits' founder Mike Fiore, Jared Horowytz put together this Ford F-350 tribute truck
With the annual Lake of the Ozarks Shootout concluded just two days ago, more than a few people have Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats founder Mike Fiore, who died three days after sustaining severe injuries during the 2014 Central Missouri event, on their minds. A longtime admirer of Fiore’s whose family owned Outerlimits sportboats (read the story), 24-year-old Jared Horowytz of Bergen County, N.J., dedicated himself to building a truck in tribute to his fallen hero. That Ford F-350 truck was on scene during Poker Runs America’s Memorial Poker Run in New Jersey last month, one of two fundraising events (the second was hosted by the Performance Boat Club of Canada) for Fiore’s children held on the same day.
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