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Yearly Archives: 2020

Unless you’re a fan of dragboat or auto racing, it’s possible you’ve never heard of Roger Primm of Washoe Valley, NV.

On the other hand, you’ve probably heard of Primm, NV, the community famous for its casinos and off-road racing. The area’s developer was Roger’s father, Ernest Jay Primm.

Roger, 60, is the latest customer to be ecstatic over a build by DCB Performance Boats of El Cajon, CA. The builder is currently dialing in an M35 Widebody powered by TCM 1450 EFIs with #6 drives. The boat was on display at the Los Angeles Boat Show in January, and will be delivered shortly.

Primm was about 17 when his older brother was racing a K boat. “I went down to Lake Ming to watch the races, and I was instantly hooked,” he recalls. Before long, Roger was driving his first Eliminator flatbottom, a 100-mph lake boat that led to an award-winning 20+ year career racing in Pro Gas Hydro, Blown Gas Jet and Comp Jet classes, where he broke several IHBA records.

After that, he launched a career in auto competition, where he raced top alcohol and top fuel dragsters in the the National Hot Rod Association circuit. He also made a name for himself as owner of the famous Whiskey Pete’s casino, and has been focusing on real-estate development since selling the casino in 2000.

Both of his children also inherited his “need for speed.” His son, now 26, is a former Outlaw kart racer, while his daughter has a passion for barrel racing, a rodeo event in which a horse and rider attempt to complete a cloverleaf pattern around preset barrels in the fastest time.

The M35 is Primm’s first DCB and his first catamaran (he previously owned a Formula FasTech vee bottom). The boat features a 9’7″ beam and was constructed using the Vacuum Infused Resin (VIR) process, balsa-cored, with aggressive carbon-fiber and carbon-kevlar. It’s a half-cap hull with stainless steel rubrail painted black. With the current setup, Primm says the boat will do 160+ mph with no problem.

Some specs on the boat:

• Power: Twin TCM 1450 EFIs with #6 drives
• Interior: 75% Alcantara/ 25% CoolTouch marine vinyl with matching under cuddy
• Custom matching carpet kit with shaved diamonds in the fabric
• Phase III gelcoat scheme
• Two Mercury Vessel View 9s
• One Garmin 922 (9”) center plotters
• Rear-view camera
• Isotta Carlotta steering wheel
• Latham Marine throttle/shifter
• Tiger Communications 6-person intercom system with VHF boat-to-boat communication (aka “DCB Channel”)
• Two Garmin GMi20’s in back of headrests
Interior Rigid LED lighting package (mood lighting, courtesy lighting, LED cupholders) and 10” underwater LED
• Stage III stereo – Fusion head unit, two JL Audio amplifiers, 10 JL Audio M6 midrange LED speakers, and two 13” JL Audio W3 subwoofers
• Billet foot shower
• TCM Sea-strainers and water pick-ups
• Custom TCM exhaust pipes
• SeaDek boarding kit (walkway between engine hatches and steps down into cockpit and front bow entry way)
• Adrenaline Custom Trailer, triple-axle with custom two-tone black 20” FUEL rims, SS fenders, triangular drive guard, undercarriage LED lighting package, etc.

On the opening day of the Miami International Boat Show, Marine Technology Inc. (MTI) announced that it is building an all-new model to add to its line of luxury center console performance boats: the 50V. The vee-bottom boat will effectively bridge the gap between the company’s 42V and 57V models.

The announcement came from Randy Scism, president of the Wentzville, MO, manufacturer of some of the speediest boats in existence. It is well-known for its line of I/O-powered catamarans (38′ to 52′) and outboard cats, including the 340X and 390X. Scism said that he expects the boat to be formally unveiled at the 2021 Miami International Boat Show.

“Some of our customers love the amenities the 57 has, but they don’t want that much size,” Scism told Powerboat Nation. “So we’re scaling it back. It’s going to land right between our two center consoles. It will have more floor space than a 42, but less than a 57, both in the front and the back. But we will still maintain a big cabin, so they’ll have all the amenities they want. And it’ll still be a very performance-oriented center console available.”

The cabin will also feature a private head. The 50V can accommodate four or five outboard motors.

Some specs on the new model:

Length: 50 feet
Beam: 12 feet
Fuel Capacity: 550 gallons
Weight: 18,000 lbs.

Mercury Racing's new 60R outboard engine and Spitfire XP propeller.

While Mercury Racing already dropped a legendary product bombshell last June—the supercharged 450R 4.6-liter V8 outboard engine—it took the opportunity to unveil several new items at the Miami International Boat Show on Feb. 13, including a 60R outboard engine, an array of racing propellers and a new HD Steering Pump. This also marks the first time that the Fond du Lac, WI-based company has had the wildly popular 450R outboard at the Miami exhibit.

Mercury Racing calls its new 60R outboard “a brilliant performance solution” for technical flats skiffs. The only outboard in its class with a 15-inch midsection, the 60R fits perfectly on the transom of these compact performance skiffs and offers the added benefits of a high-thrust gearcase. This lightweight, compact outboard is a powerhouse tuned and geared to deliver amazing holeshot acceleration for instant on-plane performance in skinny water.

In addition to the outboard, Mercury Racing debuted four new high-performance propellers designed to maximize boat performance and handling in specific applications, and broaden a range of performance propellers that is unmatched in the marine industry. The propellers are handcrafted, precision-tuned works of high-performance art, customized for specific boat types and performance goals. Each individual propeller is zero balanced and measured to ensure consistent performance.

600HP-Rated 5-Blade CNC Cleaver.

The propeller introductions include:

• 600HP-Rated 5-Blade CNC Cleaver—A surface- piercing design engineered with the optimal blade thickness to deliver unmatched top-end speed and handling on performance hulls powered by Mercury Racing 520, 525, 540, 565 and 600 SCi engines paired with a Mercury Racing Bravo XR Sport or Sport Master outdrive. Prop slip is dramatically reduced to an average of 4.5 percent at WOT in Bravo XR Sport and Sport Master applications. The cleaver is produced to exact tolerances on the same state-of-the-art CNC milling machines used to create the benchmark Mercury Racing CNC Cleaver propellers for use with Mercury Racing M6 and M8 outdrives.

• 12-Degree Rake CNC Cleaver—Mercury Racing has added a new 12-degree rake option for its CNC Cleaver high-performance propeller line already available in 15-, 18-, and 21-degree rake designs. Intended for use with shaft drives and some Mercury Racing M6 and M8 sterndrive applications, the new low-rake profile generates the minimal lift desired for hulls that have substantial lifting characteristics at speed, such as Unlimited-class offshore race boats.

• Round-Tip CNC Cleaver—All Mercury Racing CNC Cleaver propeller models are now available with rounded blade tips for boat owners who prefer that design.

• Spitfire XP—Designed to be the ultimate prop for the new Mercury Racing 60R outboard, the Spitfire XP can also offer outstanding performance on Mercury outboards up to 115 hp. The Spitfire XP has a four-blade design and long barrel that combine to deliver extra stern lift for lightning-fast holeshot, a key advantage in skinny-water applications. This precision-tuned Mercury Racing Pro Finish propeller is crafted in Mercury-exclusive X7 stainless steel alloy. It’s offered in 12″ to 21″ pitch in half-inch increments to dial in optimal RPM at wide-open throttle.

Finally, Mercury Racing also introduced a new HD power steering pump for high-speed catamarans and other high-performance applications, designed to deliver increased pressure and flow rate. The new Mercury Racing HD power steering pump and Mercury Racing High Flow Helm deliver a new level of high-performance steering for boats powered by multiple outboard motors, including the Mercury Racing 450R outboard. The introduction of the HD pump allows high-performance boat builders to assemble a complete, validated steering system for almost any application using components from Mercury Racing.

 

Mystic Powerboats has doubled the size of its existing production facility by acquiring a building that neighbors its factory in DeLand, FL, according to company President John Cosker.

“The new facility gives us enough room to expand our model line without interfering with existing model production,” Cosker said. “It will enable expanded production on existing models as well.” With the growing number of Mystics currently on the market, the company will be adding a dedicated service and warranty department in one section of the new facility.

The move is just the latest in a series of expansions for the builder of luxury high-performance catamarans and deep-vee center consoles. Mystic is the builder of the five-time Top Gun competitor at the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout, American Ethanol, a 51-footer owned and campaigned by Don Onken.

Mystic Powerboats was launched nearly 25 years ago in a barn located in John and Robin Cosker’s backyard in Melbourne, FL. In 1999, they moved their facilities into a rented 5,000 square-foot building in Port Orange, FL, after which they joined Marine Performance to build a 6,400 square-foot building a couple of years later.

In 2005, Mystic purchased three acres in an industrial park in DeLand, FL, to build a new facility. The following year, it completed phase one of construction on a 15,000-square-foot building and officially relocated to DeLand. Since that time, the company has continued to expand its facilities, adding more space and employees. Today, the compound consists of a total of 60,000 square feet on six acres of property.

Among the changes: Mystic has added a nicely appointed conference room / design center, where customers can come in to plan their boats out. “Being a custom builder, this is key to customer satisfaction, and this new part of the facility will make this process easier and more effective,” Cosker says. “The new facility presents a better retail experience for existing and prospective customers.” Seven customers visited the new facility in the first month it was open.

Big Thunder Marine, the mega marine retailer and service center located in Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks, is now an official dealer of the Chris-Craft line. Big Thunder is a well-known dealer of the Iconic Marine Group brands (Fountain, Donzi, Baja), as well as Statement, Mastercraft and various runabouts, pontoons and more.

According to general manager Jeremy Anderson, the move became official at the recent Overland Park Boat Show, where the Big Thunder Marine booth featured several models in the Chris-Craft line, including a 34 Launch, 31 GT, 35 GT and a 34 Catalina. “It went really well,” he told Powerboat Nation. “We had a huge opening VIP party Thursday night, and it was awesome. There was a huge turnout, and the head guys from Chris-Craft were there. It was a good time.”

Anderson described the Chris-Craft line as “pure class, perfection and art on the water. People don’t buy them for the speed; they buy them for the look. They handle the rough water amazingly well, and their attention to detail is second to none.”

He tells Powerboat Nation that he had been wanting to bring Chris-Craft into the Big Thunder Marine mix for for a couple of years, because “I know that there’s a clientele here at the lake that we were not getting because we don’t have that really high-end product,” he says. “They interviewed a lot of dealers here at the lake—we didn’t just call them up one day and order boats. There was a process on both sides to make sure that we were the right fit for them, and that they were the right fit for us. And I think they are, because we’ve got plenty of customers who have a go-fast boat as well as another boat, such as a cruiser. And on this lake, that could be replaced with a Chris-Craft very easily.”

America’s oldest boat company, Chris-Craft continues to thrive in today’s marketplace. Founders Chris Smith and his brother Henry Smith could not have imagined the path the company would take when they began building rowboats a century and a half ago. They built wooden boats for 80 years—the classic, hand-built mahogany Chris-Craft speedboat was a status benchmark in the 1950s to 1960s. Chris-Craft later became a performance player with the introduction of of the 1970s Chris-Cat, a fast, stable air-trapper that stirred the imagination of the serious recreational boater, and cleaned up at the race course. Produced by Chris-Craft into the early 1980s, the Chris-Cat mold later spawned any number of offshore sport-boat companies, and was the “inspiration” for dozens of hulls.

Today, the name Chris-Craft is synonymous with luxury and style. The lines include the Launch, a series of 23’ to 38’ open-bow luxury vees; the Corsair, a closed bow vee line spanning 27 to 34 feet; the Capri series, a 21’ and 27’ modern interpretation of the 1930s runabouts; the Launch GT series of center-console vees ranging from 25’ to 35’; and the dual-console Calypso series, available in 26’ and 30’.

 

Chris-Craft Corsair 27

Chris-Craft Catalina 30

Chris-Craft Launch 28 GT

Chris-Craft Launch 27

 

Brunswick Corp.—the parent company of Mercury Racing and Mercury Marine—has been recognized by Forbes and Statista as one of the Best Employers for Diversity in 2020.  Brunswick’s Top 500 ranking is now live on Forbes.com, highlighting the company’s commitment to diversity across its entire global workforce.

“We are honored to be recognized on the Best Employers for Diversity list,” said Brenna Preisser, Brunswick Corp. Chief Human Resources officer. “Diversity and inclusion are key elements of our culture and a fundamental source of innovation, which is how we intend to shape and inspire the future of boating experiences.”

Winners of the award were chosen based on an independent survey from a representative sample of 60,000 employees working for companies employing at least 1,000 people in their U.S. operations.  Respondents were asked questions regarding the topics of age, gender equality, ethnicity, disability, LGBTQA+ and general diversity concerning their own employer.

“We continue to take steps to strengthen diversity in the organization. Over the past several years we’ve expanded benefits to include infertility treatments, we’ve added maternity and paternity paid time off, we’ve invested in manufacturing automation to expand talent pools and we’ve opened innovation labs in university and metropolitan settings,” said Preisser. “This award says we are executing on our strategy and our employees are taking notice.”

In 2019, for the second consecutive year, Forbes Magazine named Brunswick Corporation among America’s Best Employers.  That award, also employee driven, is determined by an anonymous survey of employees and identifies companies that employees like to work for and would recommend to others.  In addition, Brunswick was honored as a 2019 Corporate Champion by the Women’s Forum of New York for accelerating gender parity in the boardroom with 30% or more board seats held by women.

To see the entire list of the America’s Best Employers for Diversity, click here.

Headquartered in Mettawa, IL, Brunswick Corp.’s leading consumer brands include Mercury Marine outboard engines, Mercury MerCruiser sterndrive and inboard packages, Mercury global parts and accessories including propellers and SmartCraft electronics, Mercury and Quicksilver parts and oils, Bayliner, Boston Whaler, Crestliner, Cypress Cay, Harris, Lowe, Lund, Princecraft, Quicksilver, Rayglass, Sea Ray, Thunder Jet and Uttern boats.

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