Gold Coast based Maritimo Offshore Racing was running neck and neck with the boat that ultimately won the world championships at the Key West based Superboat World Championships last weekend when a blown steering hose ended their hopes.

The team had run fourth in the first day of racing last Wednesday and was travelling well on Friday when a blower belt to the supercharger failed. The Maritimo mechanical team rushed into action and had the boat ready for the final day of racing on Sunday.

Maritimo’s International Sales and Marketing Manager Greg Haines said the team was going extremely well in the Sunday event until the mechanical failure.

“They were neck and neck with the CMS Offshore Racing boat that ultimately won and had it not been for the steering hose mishap things would have been very different,” said Haines.

“The boat was travelling at more than 120 miles per hour when the failure occurred and the vessel was sent spinning around slamming stern first into the water breaking a tunnel tab completely off.”

Maritimo’s race boat was crewed by long time Maritimo race team member and throttle man, Ross Willaton, and driver Travis Thompson. It was powered by two 1500 horsepower engines and is a tried and proven performer in international standard racing. Prior to heading to the USA Willaton tipped that the Miss Geico and CMS teams were the ones to beat.

Willaton said the Aussie team’s race boat had been set up by Maritimo’s team manager and engine builder, Kurt Davies who, along with Andrew Willaton, were the mechanical crew in Key West.

He said the boat would now be shipped back to Australia where it would be repaired, refined and undergo more testing. Haines said the Maritimo team would be back bigger and better again next year.

He said the experience gained at the coal face of international offshore racing was invaluable in the design and performance of the company’s production cruisers.

“No other Australian manufacturer, and actually very few internationally, have the benefit of the learnings we gain from serious offshore racing which can ultimately be built into our production boats,” he said.

Maritimo had a large on water display at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show which started on November 3rd and a significant contingent of owners and Maritimo fans went to the World Championships from the boat show. A Maritimo owners’ muster was held as part of the pre – World Championship activities.

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