Every restoration has a story and sometimes that story hits close to home. For Dan Umbarger, the restoration of this Hustler Victor has more than a little meaning, this boat represents the start of his father’s boat business and racing career.
Blueprint Until You Are Blue in the Face
Blueprinting has been written about since the beginning of time or at least since the beginning of trying to make boats go faster.
Bowriders: The Death of Safe Boat Design
Bowriders are the worst boat design because they cause the greatest number of fatalities on the water, obstruct the driver's view and negatively affect performance. There, I said it. I hate bowriders, always have, always will.
Electric Revolution: Backyard Mechanics vs German Engineering
In the automotive world we are firmly in the the electric revolution. But what does this mean for performance boats?
The Top Outboard Tunnel Hulls Under 22 Feet, You Can Buy Now
This is a difficult category because there are so many small tunnel hulls that are great.
Lost and Found: A Composite Hydrostream Done Right
In 1978, Randy Tidwell and his wife purchased a brand new Hydrostream Vector in Panama City Florida and brought it to their longtime home of Macon Georgia.
A Legendary 24 Pantera: Built to Perfection
What happens when you take the second 24 Pantera ever built and put it in the hands of a true boating enthusiast who has incredible mechanical aptitude and next level attention to detail? You get one of the nicest restored classic offshore boats around.
Keep it Straight: Steering for Sterndrives
We covered some basics of steering systems for outboards and we will do the same in this article for sterndrives.
Keep it Straight: Steering for Outboards
The most critical component in your performance boat is your steering. Your steering is critical to safety, performance and usability.
Are Four Stroke Outboards Pulling Their Weight? Part 2
In the late 90s the EPA began to set goals for outboard marine engines that evolved around the same time they outlawed lead from gasoline.
California Dreaming: West Coast on the East Coast
What does the performance boat world have in common with Rap music? Besides drugs and money, there is a rivalry of sorts but it’s not really a rivalry it’s just a strong distinction between how boats are made and designed in each region.
Are Four Stroke Outboards Pulling Their Weight? Part 1
As performance minded boaters, we have seen the slow demise of the small displacement, lightweight and powerful two stroke outboards.
Boating in Hollywood: Films With Fast Boats
Here are five good movies with boats, including the all time greatest.
Beyond a Shadow: Engineered Back to New
In the fall of 2010, Eric Batson was presented with a unique opportunity to own a 1984 21 Shadow. Eric was an engineer in training at the time and was working at Raybo Marine where he worked on some incredible boat restorations. Raybo Marine is a renowned fiberglass and composite repair shop in Lindenhurst NY.
Ship Shape TV: A TV Show About Boats That Isn't Miami Vice
I think I discovered Ship Shape TV while cruising around YouTube a couple years ago and I have to say I love it.
Donzi Classics: Stuck in the Past
First off, before the Donzi mafia comes to get me, let me be clear; I really like Donzi classics, there is no arguing about their place in boating history.
Offshore Resurgence: Are Big Outboards Better than Big V-8 Sterndrives?
A noticeable number of new midsize offshore boats and big lake performance boats are running outboards now.
Learning to Fly With Small Boats
Small sport boats are absolutely the best way to learn how to drive performance boats.
Evinrude drops the big E-Tecs: RIP light outboards
Evinrude removed all of the G1 outboards from 175 and up from their website.