Who is the greatest offshore racing throttleman of all time? The question elicits strong responses and even heated arguments among diehard fans of the sport, especially those whose rabid interest is measured in decades rather than years.
Was the late Joey Imprescia better than the late Tony Caliguri? Is John Tomlinson, who currently runs in Pro Class 1 and Factory Stock, better than currently sidelined Class 1 throttleman Steve Curtis? And you can’t even have the discussion without considering the likes of late Hurley Stepp and the currently up and kicking Jay Muller.
But the answer doesn’t matter. Only the fan-driven passion that drives the question truly matters. Minus that, offshore racers compete with no one but family and friends watching.
Here’s a more relevant question: Who is the greatest offshore racing throttleman with no steady ride at the moment? That’s an easy one, and tough to debate, at least if keeping a straight face is among your priorities.
Steve Curtis.
Curtis owns multiple world championships, including those of the Class 1 kind. Accomplished drivers such as the Monster Energy/M CON team’s Myrick Coil and Brit Lilly of Dirty Money speak with reverence of their experiences in the cockpit with the United Kingdom-based throttleman.
Those weren’t just learning experiences for Coil and Lilly. They were unforgettable honors, the kind they can share with their children.
Curtis isn’t just “charismatic”—a good quality for any motorsports star to have. He personifies charisma.
The moment he walks into a room, you feel his presence. Heads turn.
That’s Steve Curtis, fans who spy him whisper to one another.
And yet Curtis is completely approachable, especially when he unleashes his disarming laugh. Once you hear that joyful, goofy guffaw, you know he’s human, just like you.
Curtis comes to mind right now for a couple of reasons. First, his teenage son, Max, joined him in the cockpit of a Cougar raceboat last weekend. It was the first time they competed together.
“I always regretted never doing that with my dad,” said Curtis, whose father, Clive, was the main behind Cougar Powerboats. “So I am super-happy I got to do it with Max.”
Second, Curtis is heading to the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout late next month, where he’ll attempt to remake history—albeit on a shorter course—on the Central Missouri waterway.
Greatest the throttleman of all time be damned.
Curtis is among the greatest competitors and ambassadors the sport has ever seen.