Outboard engine owners have another set of four-blade propellers to choose from, thanks to BBlades Professional Propeller Service in Princeton, Wisconsin. The well-known propeller sales, service and tuning outfit has created its own line of outboard props called the Blaster series. Dubbed “clopper-style” propellers for their hybrid cleaverand- chopper blade design, the 14-3/4-inch diameter wheels are available in pitches from 24 to 32 inches in 2-inch-pitch increments. They are cast from a single piece of 98-percent virgin stainless steel and honed to a satin finish. Each Blaster propeller has an “introductory price” of $799. “From day-one, having our own propeller offerings has been a goal, so this is a natural progression,” said Brett Anderson, the co-owner of BBlades, in a press release from the company. “It has taken some time, but we wanted an offering that wasn’t a ‘me too’ product—something to fill a need.”

It’s no secret that times have been tough in the highperformance powerboat industry during the last threeand- a-half years. No custom or production go-fast boat company has been immune to the effects of the recession, and that includes Thunderbird Products/Formula in Decatur, Indiana. Like many production builders, Formula was forced to lay off a substantial number of employees. While no one at the family-owned company is predicting a return to the 300-plus models Formula built in its best years anytime soon, Scott Porter, its chief executive officer, said that 2011 has given him and his brothers and sister, who help lead and manage the company, cause for guarded optimism. “It’s been a good rebuilding year after what were major setbacks for the industry,” said Porter. Porter said that the increase in demand and production has been sparked by the FX package the company introduced in June 2010 for its Sun Sport and Super Sport models. The FX package takes its interior and exterior style cues, which include bold, “performance-oriented” graphics and carbon fiber dash panels, from the company’s FASTech sportboat line. As for the FASTech line, it, too, has seen a modest upturn, according to Porter. “It’s still a small part of what we’re doing,” he said. “The 353 is probably the boat we’ve seen the most action on.”

Popular in the 1970s and 1980s, outboardengine- powered sportboats more than 30 feet long have all but disappeared. Most were replaced by models with inboard engines and stern drives, or “I/Os” as they were called when they took over the market in the mid to late 1980s. That makes the latest Active Thunder 33 Evolution, which is powered by twin 300hp Yamaha four-stroke outboards something of an anomaly, and a rather handsome one at that. The Pompano Beach, Florida, company has been building the 33 Evolution since 1997, yet the most recently completed model is the first one with outboard power. According to Active Thunder’s Patrick Haughey, the owner plans tow his new sportboat behind his trawler-style Nordhavn yacht—the 33-footer was outfitted with a towing bracket on its nose for just that purpose—and use it as tender. “He wants to be able to pull into a harbor, live on the yacht and use the 33 to get around,” said Haughey. In its first sea trial, the 33 Evolution reportedly reached 72.3 mph. Haughey said that with different propellers he believes the boat can hit 75 mph.

No one in his right mind would argue that any form of powerboat racing is in robust health, but that hasn’t stopped a number of big-name sponsors from getting involved and staying involved during the past several years. In fact, while no one keeps numbers on such things, you could make a case that sponsorship—at least for a few lucky teams—is in better health than the sport itself. Consider this:

• Insurance industry giant Geico is entering its fifth year of its sponsorship deal with Miss Geico, a turbine-powered 50-foot Mystic catamaran piloted by Scott Begovich and Marc Granet, which competes offshore. Miss Geico has arguably, though just barely so, become the most recognizable race boat in the world.

• Amsoil is entering its fifth year backing offshore racers Paul Whittier and Bob Teague in their 36-foot Team Amsoil Skater that competes in the Super Cat Light class. What’s more, the company sponsored the 2011 Amsoil Offshore Powerboat Series sanctioned by the Offshore Powerboat Association.

• Lucas Oil continues to support the efforts of veteran offshore racer Nigel Hook. In 2011 Hook and teammate Michael Silfverberg ran the 48-foot SilverHook Mystic V-bottom in the Ocean Grand Prix circuit in Europe. The oil company has backed Hook for 12 years, which makes the deal one of the longest-standing, if not the longeststanding, sponsorships in offshore racing history. “Every year, it’s a negotiation,” says Hook with a laugh.

• The Air National Guard stepped up from backing the 2010 San Diego Bayfair H1 Hydroplane event to sponsoring the entire Air National Guard Hydroplane Series in 2011. A portion of the sponsorship money is being used for a television show on the series the will air on the Versus Network. Six consecutive shows will run starting in October.

• Peters & May, the global leader for powerboat transportation and logistics, is at current count sponsoring 15 different race teams, including its own Unlimited hydroplane. While the hydro is Peters & May’s marquee sponsored race boat, the company, which is based in England, has focused most of its sponsorship efforts on grassroots “feeder” classes in the United States and abroad.

Of course, there are many lower-profile sponsors in the powerboat racing world and their contributions are essential to the teams they support and the fans who follow the sport. But the presence of heavy-hitting backers raises an obvious question: Why invest sponsorship dollars in any form of powerboat racing?

The 430hp 6.2L engine Ilmor is supplying MasterCraft is based on GM’s LS architecture.

Ilmor Marine to Power MasterCraft Boats

MasterCraft Boat Co. announced an agreement with Ilmor Marine as its exclusive engine supplier beginning with the 2012 model year. Until now, Indmar Marine in Millington, Tennessee, had been the sole supplier of engine packages to MasterCraft. For 2011, Indmar and Ilmor engines will be offered in MasterCraft products.

Three Ilmor engines will be offered: an old-school 320hp 5.7L Small-Block, and a 375hp 6.0L and a 430hp 6.2L based on new LS engine architecture.
“Ilmor is one of the most impressive high-performance engineering companies in the world,” said John Dorton, president and CEO of MasterCraft Boat Co. “The same exceptional minds that dominate Indy are now dedicated to giving MasterCraft owners a powertrain experience unlike any the industry has ever seen. And it is all exclusive to MasterCraft.”
To meet demand for its new MV8 engines, which have been in development since 2007, Ilmor opened a new 50,000-square-foot marine engine assembly and test facility in Mooresville, North Carolina, in 2010. The move appears to be a logical next step for Ilmor, which entered the marine market in 2004 with a marinized version of the Dodge Viper V-10 engine.
Formed in 1984 in Northampton, England, Ilmor was originally conceived as a partnership among Mario Illien, Paul Morgan, Roger Penske and General Motors to design and build turbocharged Chevrolet engines for Indy cars. The company’s first Indy win came in 1988 with Rick Mears at the wheel.
“From the beginning, our goal was to provide MasterCraft with a superior product that would enhance their brand,” said Paul Ray, president of Ilmor Engineering Inc. “Since that time, our engineering staff has worked nonstop to design the new range of Ilmor MV8 engines, which are built to the same exacting engineering standards as our high-performance racing and powerboat engines.”