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PBN Staff

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This Fountain 34SC (Sport Console) was brought to Miami by Big Thunder Marine and was sold to a customer at the show.

Jeff Harris, CEO of Iconic Marine Group (comprising Fountain, Donzi, Baja) told Powerboat Nation that the company enjoyed its best Miami Show since it started exhibiting at the event.

“It was clearly the best show we’ve had since we started about three years ago,” he said.

Iconic displayed six Fountains and two Donzi models, the 38 ZRC and the 41 GTZ. “They created a lot of excitement,” Harris said of Iconic’s lineup. “Our dealers sold boats at the show and continue to follow-up and close on deals almost every day following the show. We’re just really pleased with the momentum we’ve gained in the first part of the selling season.”

Mega-dealer Big Thunder Marine, based in the Lake of the Ozarks, was responsible for bringing two of the Fountains to the Iconic display this year: the 34 Sport Console and the 34 Thunder Cat. The 34 Sport Console (pictured above) was sold at the show to customers who had taken it for a demo ride; it will now be shipped to the Virgin Islands.

In addition, Harris said Iconic is looking to expand its dealer network, and met with a number of new prospects, both domestic and international, at the show. “We’re setting up visits with some dealers in areas where we don’t have coverage. “We’re taking a team approach,” he says. “We need to make sure we get the right people, who understand our product and our passion about what we’re doing, who understand the heritage of our brands.”

Looking forward, mega-dealer Big Thunder Marine will gather “BFD” (Baja, Fountain & Donzi) customers for its annual Fun Run this summer, to kick off with a Registration Party on Thursday, July 23, and the main event on Friday, July 24. “We already have a good number of people signed up for it,” says Big Thunder Marine general manager Jeremy Anderson. “We started with 70 boats our first year, and last year—our second—we had more than 120 boats. So it’s a very well-represented event for all of the Baja, Fountain and Donzi customers at the Lake of the Ozarks, and anybody else who travels in for it. So it was a great event last year, and it’s going to be a bigger and better one this year.” Register now by going to bigthundermarine.com.

 

The two Donzis on display, the 38 ZRC and 41 GTZ, were both painted “Black Cherry.”

Big Thunder Marine brought this gorgeous 34’ Fountain Thunder Cat, powered by Mercury Racing 450s.

Fountain 34TC (Tournament Edition), powered by twin Mercury 400 Verado outboards.

Fountain 39NX, powered by triple Mercury 300 Verado outboards.

Fountain’s 34CC LS, powered by triple Mercury 300 outboards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo by Malc Attrill

International powerboat racing promoter Powerboat P1 has announced two Ocean Cup offshore endurance events this year. In early June, the Gateway Marathon–Ocean Cup will send boats on a 200-mile round trip from West Palm Beach, FL, to Freeport, Grand Bahama Island. Then, at the end of August, an Ocean Cup world record attempt will be made over the Cowes Torquay Cowes course as part of the historic event.

The first Gateway Marathon entry received this year was from the SilverHook team of veteran offshore racers Nigel Hook and Jay Johnson, who set the Ocean Cup–Key West to Cuba world speed record in August 2017. The crossing of 102 miles was completed in 1 hour, 18 minutes and a new Guinness World Record was approved for the fastest journey by powered boat. The 2019 Ocean Cup event revived the Gateway Marathon race, which dates back some 55 years and, accompanied by Swedish co-pilot Michael Silfverberg in the 48-foot SilverHook V-hull 77 Lucas Oil all-carbon boat, Hook established the UIM world speed record from West Palm Beach to Freeport of 1 hour, 3 minutes 43 seconds, averaging 95.326 mph.

Also expected to take up the challenge is the DoublEdge Motor Sports team of Ryan Beckley and Chris LaMorte in their 30-foot Skater Powerboats catamaran. Throttleman Beckley, a veteran offshore racer who grew up in Key West and now one of a handful of racers who live in Sarasota, is looking forward to the Freeport record attempt on June 5-6: “It will be a true offshore run, with a real sense of excitement and freedom, and we are stoked to be taking part.” Speaking from his home in New Jersey, LaMorte added, “It will be great to be alongside my friend Ryan running a 100-mile open water, timed event that has history dating back to the 1960s.”

Another team planning to race in the Gateway Marathon is Sheriff Lobo, a Trinidadian- German duo who became Super Vee world champions last year. Experienced driver Mark Niemann has been competing in offshore circuit racing for more than a decade and is excited about the prospect of racing in constantly changing conditions in open ocean waters. Alongside him will be owner and throttleman Shameel Mohammed, nicknamed Shamo.

Promoted by Powerboat P1 and sanctioned by the UIM and the APBA, the Ocean Cup concept has special meaning according to P1 CEO Azam Rangoonwala: “It revives historic races and record attempts and creates ‘new history.’ Like Nigel, we want to keep alive the true spirit of powerboat racing and add real value. It’s great to continue our relationship with the SilverHook team and we’re excited about the two Ocean Cup events this summer. There are more Gateway Marathon entries in the pipeline and we’ll be announcing these next month.”

The local promoter in Freeport is Jamie Rose, Managing Director of OBS Marine who are the Mercury Marine distributor for Grand Bahama, and after Hook’s record-setting round trip last year he said that his aim would be to stage the Ocean Cup event annually: “It was a great experience and wonderful to see the passion and commitment from everyone involved. We always intended the 2019 Gateway Marathon event to be a stepping stone towards inviting a number of teams to compete head-to-head in the race to Grand Bahama in 2020 and beyond. The boats will be greeted in Freeport on the weekend of June 5-6, when we enjoy a public holiday to celebrate Labor Day, and join in the third annual Grand Bahama Powerboat Summer Fest presented by Prodigy Group in partnership with OBS Marine and Mercury Marine.”

Last September, Grand Bahama Island was devastated by hurricane Dorian and this year’s Ocean Cup will raise money for local organisations and charities to support the rebuilding and recovery programme. “In addition,” commented Rose, “we want the race event and the Powerboat Summer Fest to take people’s minds off the devastation and for it to act as a catalyst for bringing powerboat racing back to The Bahamas.”

Organized by the BPRC, the weekend of Aug. 29-30 will see the Cowes Torquay Cowes event celebrate 60 years of powerboat racing from Cowes and plans are in place for an Ocean Cup event to be staged over the same course within the race schedule to attempt to set a world record for the legendary 200-mile journey. Promoted by Powerboat P1, the Ocean Cup run will be called Cowes Torquay Cowes incorporating Ocean Cup. Nigel Hook and his team will make the journey from their base in California in search of another endurance world record. “All boats and crews who meet UIM specifications and register as an Ocean Cup entry will be eligible to set new world records within their class,” explains Rangoonwala. “The addition of the Ocean Cup challenge will enhance the 60th anniversary celebrations in Cowes.”

Christian Toll, race director of Cowes Torquay Cowes, said, “The British Powerboat Racing Club is delighted to incorporate the second round of the Ocean Cup 2020 series into the 60th running of the famous Cowes Torquay Cowes offshore powerboat race this August. We have already received firm commitments for entries from the United States, Bermuda, Italy, Sweden and France to name a few. We recognize there is a long-standing relationship with the racing community in the United States and very much look forward to welcoming these competitors for many years to come. The Cowes Torquay Cowes race is the only offshore race remaining that is comprised solely of long offshore sea passages; it’s the longest continuously running offshore race in history and without question poses one of the greatest challenges the sport has ever seen.”

For 2021, Powerboat P1 and Ocean Cup are in the initial planning stages for a world speed record starting in Fajardo on Puerto Rico’s Atlantic Coast. Also, in mid-April next year, Powerboat P1, Ocean Cup and Erik Norgskog, son of the legendary racer Bob Norgskog, are aiming to revive the famous Rum Run and establish a UIM world speed record course from Long Beach in Southern California around the Island of Catalina some 29 miles to the south west. Here’s how the Ocean Cup calendar currently looks:

June 5-6, 2020 : Ocean Cup – Gateway Marathon from West Palm Beach, Florida to Freeport, Grand Bahama.
Aug. 29-30 : Cowes Torquay Cowes incorporating Ocean Cup
March 2021: Puerto Rico – World Speed Record
April 2021: Ocean Cup – Rum Run from Long Beach, California around Catalina Island.

For further information on the Ocean Cup, visit oceancup.com.

DCB M28 powered by Mercury 300 outboards and Mercury props.

Mercury Marine of Fond du Lac, WI, has given DCB Performance Boats of El Cajon, CA, its prestigious Service Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) Award for 2019.

Mercury’s Service CSI Program measures the satisfaction of consumers after having service work done on their Mercury outboard or MerCruiser Sterndrive or inboard. DCB won the Service CSI Award for its ongoing commitment to providing exemplary customer service based on the responses of customers who had warranty work performed at the dealership during the past year.

The CSI score for each dealer is measured and monitored by Mercury Marine. After warranty work has been completed, Mercury sends out a Service CSI survey to the consumer, asking him or her to rate the service received. To be eligible for the Service CSI Award, a dealer must maintain a score of 94 or better out of 100 in the Service CSI survey. These surveys ask consumers to rate their overall service satisfaction with the dealership and also indicate if they would re-visit the dealership again in the future.

Tracking Service CSI scores is a way Mercury evaluates the effectiveness of its individual dealers and of its own policies and training programs. Dealerships that score high in Mercury’s Service CSI surveys are recognized through the awards program.

Powerboat Nation and Speedboat Magazine salute DCB for their commitment to excellent customer service!

 

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.

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