Wow, does this boat excite me! What a great way to spend a weekend…

This is a class racer, built to go around a closed course in a defined oval or circle. Its sole purpose is racing: Completing the course better and faster than competing boats within the class rules of the APBA (American Power Boat Association).

Although it might be tempting, don’t plan to use this boat for any other water sports. These boats require exact foot petal and steering input to get on plane from a displacement speed. Even then they just barely make it up. There’s no such thing as an efficient cruising speed, either. It’s designed, balanced, and propped to do just one thing: GO FAST!! And a fast thrill it is.

What's it made out of, fiberglass or wood? That top photo looks like wood at the transom.

Wood.

These boats are hand-made—usually from wood. For speed they need to be as light on the water as the rules allow, yet they also need the durability to withstand the chop of a protected bay along with the wash from another half dozen racers buzzing around together for several laps. Length, weight, and engine size usually define what class this boat races in. Certain safety features are also required and are checked before a boat is allowed in the water.

How you going to blow your hair back with the enclosed cockpit?

Engine/drive system?

I think the helmet will stop the wind too, but no helmet for me for over 20 years.

You used to race these, sb?

Nope. Never a racer on the water. Did skipper the rescue boat though for COBRA (Calif. Outboard Racing Assoc.) for a year, though.

Only had to have the diver go after one racer ( the rescue boat carried a helmsman and a diver that went into the water) and then I had to crank the basket up and skipper that driver to the shoreside Ambulance.

He woke up only after he was on the way to the Hospital.

He was driving a flat bottom race boat that blew over. His boat broke apart.