Poltu Quatu, Sardinia :: UIM GPS Rounds 5 & 6 :: July 11, 2010

See YouTube video featuring multiple onboard GoPro cameras.

The seas at Sardinia, the second largest island in the Mediterranean, were relatively calm at the start of the Grand Prix, with two foot swells rolling in. However gigantic wakes were frequently thrown off the sterns of the ever present mega yachts. These conditions took a casualty during Pole Position with the #17 Rotary Watches tripping, stuffing and sinking! Driver Shelley Jory and thottleman Patrick Huybens survived, but in water ninety meters deep, the wreck was not recovered until a week later.

The Saturday Sprint Race was delayed by half an hour, but the green flag initiated the best start of the season with all race boats, including new race boat entries from Italy and China, in a disciplined line off the transom of the pace boat. The first corner was hotly contested by #60 Italian Metamarine, #33 Belgium Furnibo, and #77 Lucas Oil SOC, with #88 SNAV- Kiton in the mix.

Hundreds of spectator boats lined the perimeter of the racetrack, which featured seven right-handers and two left-hand dog-legs making it a real driver’s course. “After reviewing the telemetry data from qualifying practice laps with Kieran Ironmonger from Race Technology, we decided to select a smaller pitch prop than usual,” said Nigel Hook, Captain of the #77 Lucas Oil SOC. The smaller pitch offered increased acceleration rather than top end speed — a strategy that gave driver Michael Silfverberg more power out of the corners to take advantage of the special characteristics of the Mannerfelt designed hull.

At the checkered flag, Hook and Silfverberg took a well earned second place finish in the Ilmor powered #77 Lucas Oil SOC after swapping positions many times from second place to fourth place. Italian driver Giampaolo Montavoci in the #60 Italian Metamarine took first place.

The Sunday Endurance Race followed much the same pace with conditions a bit less turbulent. Calmer seas played well into the hands of the Fountain race boat, and at the end of the race, the #33 Belgium Furnibo entry finished in first place. The #77 Lucas Oil SOC held third place for most of the race, but experienced some over-heating in the cooling system with just two laps to go, and dropped to a fifth place finish.

Conventional global television coverage of the event is courtesy Chris Courteyn TV, renowned for World Rally. Television production for the new UIM World Championship series is captured with 1 stabilized webcam on a helicopter recording in XDcam, 3 ENG camera crews on XDcam broadcast cameras, and 5 cameras onboard the boats. Shows are distributed for transmission to Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal, Poland, Hungary, Serbia, Croatia, Romania, United Kingdom, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Australia, and the Middle East.

77 Lucas Oil SOC :: Malta Race Report :: June 15, 2010

77 LUCAS OIL Scandinavian Offshore Challenge takes Silver Medal at the Maltese Grand Prix of the Sea

“Local Teen Saves the Day!”

Robert Bugeja, a native Maltese teenager, spent the “best week of my life” at the Maltese Grand Prix of the Sea as a volunteer crewing with the 77 LUCAS OIL Scandinavian Offshore Challenge race team. Saturday was a special day - Rob got to meet the Prime Minister of Malta, Lawrnce Gonzi, who came to tour the pits and thank the team for traveling so far. On Sunday Rob got to shine - he never dreamt he would be the one to save the day. But he did just that when he used his local connections to secure a critical bearing the boat needed for Sunday’s race. As a result, the team’s performance in the Sunday Endurance race enabled them to take 2nd place overall in the standings.

A strong finish in Sunday’s Round 4 Endurance race was crucial for the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC after taking 3rd place in Saturday’s Round 3 Sprint in the UIM World Championship. “In our practice before the Saturday race, we had taken two extra laps to get a lock on the water conditions,” said team captain Nigel Hook. “We were running well across the 5-foot seas, but since we expected Saturday’s waves to keep getting taller, we went with our smallest propeller selection.”

When the time came for Saturday’s green flag, however, the waves had dropped to barely two footers, leaving the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC severely under-propped. They struggled to stay competitive in the back straightaways, but tight turns on the course played well for driver Michael Silverberg who was pleased with the stellar cornering capabilities of the 40′ Mannerfelt monohull, hanging onto a 3rd place finish.

Sunday was the chance to show what the boat could really do, but vibrations felt during the afternoon test spelled trouble. Crew Chief Nico Bertels from Belgium determined the fix was replacement bearings, if they could be found. They searched without success, seemingly exhausting all options, when Rob stepped in with his family and local connections to acquire the bearings. They were back in the game.

The team’s live streaming video from the pits gave fans watching from afar a look at the team’s struggle to get the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC ship-shape. Visable was chief engineer Craig Archer making things happen in spite of a knee injury suffered at the Auckland airport. As luck would have it, on hand to inspect his injury was Dr. Sarah Henderson, who is the owner of the Malta Lucas Oil Distributor and also an M.D. at the local hospital. Sarah founded the Lucas Oil Distributorship there in 2005 and recently expanded into Libya and Tunisia.

At the end of the day, the top three positions on Sunday’s podium were 1st place Issoto Diesel-powered 60 Metamarine Foresti & Saurdi (Italian entry, driver Giampaolo Montavoci), 2nd place Ilmor-powered 77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge (Swedish entry, driver Michael Silfverberg), and 3rd place 66 Cranefields Wine (German entry, driver Sigi Greve).

77 LUCAS OIL SOC now holds 2nd place standings in the European Championship and 5th place in the UIM World Championship.

Conventional global television coverage of the event is courtesy Chris Courteyn TV, renowned for World Rally. Television production for the new UIM World Championship series is captured with 1 stabilized webcam on a helicopter recording in XDcam, 3 ENG camera crews on XDcam broadcast cameras, and 5 cameras onboard the boats. Shows are distributed for transmission to Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal, Poland, Hungary, Serbia, Croatia, Romania, United Kingdom, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Australia, and the Middle East.

Lucas Oil is the leading producer of high performance lubricants.
Lucas Oil Made In America - Sold to the WORLD!

Links:
* Lucas Oil
* Scandinavian Offshore Challenge

* Ilmor
* Vector Powerboats
* Virtual Spectator
* Custom Marine Inc.
* Premiere Shipping and Packing

With a special shout out to Rob Bugeja - Michael Silfverberg, Gabriella Williams, Janet Wilson and Nigel Hook wish to thank their teammates for the hard and diligent work:
     Nico Bertels - Crew Chief, Belgium
     Craig Archer - Chief Engineer, New Zealand
     Jason Witt - Telemetry, California
     Mauro D’Alessio - Communications, Italy
     Ian Hawkins - Ilmor Marine General Manager
     Nick Reed - Ilmor Marine Engine Builder

Broadcasting LIVE from the Pits :: Malta GPS - June 7, 2010

Maltese Grand Prix of the Sea racing events:
Powerpole - Friday, June 11 at 6pm (noon EST)
Sprint Race - Saturday, June 12 at 5pm (11am EST)
Endurance Race - Sunday, June 13 at 5pm (11am EST)

Now see LIVE broadcasting from the pits! 

The Maltese Grand Prix of the Sea, set in the heart of the Mediterranean, is the backdrop for new live broadcasting of the 77 LUCAS OIL Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team as they prepare for rounds 3 & 4 of the 2010 Powerboat GPS World Championships. Watch the action in the pits as the teams prepare for the Grand Prix. This is where languages and cultures intersect, where aerodynamics and hydrodynamics intervene, where racers from many countries battle each other and the elements. 

Fans will be able to gain a unique perspective of the beehive of activity and the occasional hurry-up-and-wait cadence inside the racing pits, thanks to the open technology of Ustream combined with Virtual Spectator’s VSTourTrac. Ustream provides a platform for live online event video streaming. Over 2 million registered users at Ustream generate over 1.5 million hours of live streamed content per month capturing over 10 million unique online hits. Users can watch and chat on the website and also on Ustream iPhone and Android applications.

There are at least three ways to watch the 77 LUCAS OIL Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team in the pits at the Maltese Grand Prix of the Sea:
     1. Website Viewing
     2. Ustream Channel
     3. Mobile Application (download for iPhone or Android)

“Our 77 Lucas Oil race boat has been campaigning on the international circuit since 2007, and we been seen on television in several hundred million homes all around the globe for each race, with some races having live national television,” said Nigel Hook, team captain. “This new Ustream channel offers another element to broaden the appeal of this great sport by sharing a live link into our base camp in the pits.”

Watch for Sara Henderson, CEO of the Lucas Oil Distributorship for Malta, onsite in the pits along with her General Manager, Sandro, and his staff. See the Principal of the Scandinavian Offshore Challenge Michael Silfverberg, driver of the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC, and Nigel Hook, team captain and throttleman.  See all the hard-working teammates, and listen for the various accents - Swedish, American, English, Belgium, New Zealander and Italian.
 
Looking like a giant sand castle resting between the boot of Italy and tip of Tunisia, Malta has been inhabited since it was settled around 5200 BC. The Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs and British have left their mark. Today Malta is part of the European Union.

The TV programs are being distributed for transmission to the following countries:
Belgium / France / Italy / Portugal / Poland / Hungary / Serbia / Croatia / Romania / United Kingdom / Ireland / Sweden / Norway / Australia / Middle East

Lucas Oil is the leading producer of high performance lubricants.
Lucas Oil: Made In America - Sold to the WORLD!

Yalta, Ukraine - Battle on the Black Sea - May 9, 2010

Kicking off the first two rounds of the 2010 UIM Powerboat Grand Prix of the Sea World Championship, the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC gained 5th place in the Yalta Grand Prix of the Sea. The top three positions on the podium were 1st place Mercury-powered 88 KITON (Italian entry, driver Luca Fendi), 2nd place Issoto Diesel-powered 60 Metamarine (Italian entry, driver Giampaolo Montavoci), and 3rd place Mercury-powered 33 Furnibo (Belgium entry, driver Benjamin Van Riet).

The 77 LUCAS OIL SOC premiered the new 40’ Vector designed by Ocke and Ted Mannerfelt of Sweden and powered by Ilmor V10 / Indy drive packages. Sea trials for the new boat began in Canada in January, followed in February by extensive testing in Sarasota, Florida, then in April to Belgium for rough water and prop testing, and finally in May to the Ukraine to be the first boat to commence official practice for the Yalta Grand Prix of the Sea.

“We had every angle covered,” said Nigel Hook, Captain of the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC. “All the preparation. A great team. The best equipment. And, optimistically I was expecting a little better result, but overall we are very happy. This all came together so well and from so far, and we have a truly evolutionary boat in the EVO class. A winner — mark my words.” The speeds on Saturday supported his comments, with the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC achieving the fastest time over all the boats for Lap 3.

A mechanical issue kept the 77 LUCAS OIL SOC from fulfilling its potential in Yalta, as an electrical short shut off all power to the port side of the race boat in Saturday’s race just three laps short of the checkered flag. Before that abrupt end, however, Michael Silfverberg, driver and partner in SOC, demonstrated the remarkable cornering capabilities of the Mannerfelt design by safely passing several boats inside the corners by carving a tighter course. The electrical gremlin reoccurred at the onset of the Sunday Endurance race.

With 3 new raceboats in the fleet of 15 for the first race, the rough conditions on the Black Sea gave an opportunity to witness the potential of another new entry, the Ilmor V10 powered Chaudron Evo boat, 55 Spirit of Ukraine. Driven by Aaron Ciantar and throttled by Victor Shemchuk, this last year’s P1 Super Sport World Champion was also challenged with new boat issues, completing the Yalta Grand Prix in the 5th place tie.

Many festive parties during the weekend allowed the hosts to share their excitement for the racing events and harmonize with the country’s biggest annual celebration – Victory Day. Since 1995, the Ukraine and the other former siblings of the USSR have increased their openness with the West from the iron curtain cold war days. Victory Day ceremonies in Moscow for the first time ever included troops from four NATO countries. About 1,000 soldiers from the United States, Britain, France and Poland marched alongside Russian troops through Red Square to mark the 65th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in the Second World War.

The Sunday evening closing party featured an art exhibition to raise money for a local children’s charity, including paintings of activities at the Yalta Grand Prix of the Sea by local child art groups (see Facebook Photo Album). Of the 19 paintings, 14 featured the 77 LUCAS OIL race boat, which had clearly created a memorable impression in Yalta.

Also featured in the March/April 2010 edition of World of Powerboats.

Television production for the new UIM World Championship series is being captured with:
- 1 Wescam on a helicopter (stabilised camera) recording in XDcam.
- 3 ENG camera crews on XDcam broadcast camera’s
- 5 on board camera’s in/on the boats

Each one-hour show is being distributed for transmission to the following countries:
Belgium / France / Italy / Portugal / Poland / Hungary / Serbia / Croatia / Romania / United Kingdom / Ireland / Sweden / Norway / Australia / Middle East .

Lucas Oil is the leading producer of high performance lubricants.
Lucas Oil Made In America… Sold to the WORLD!

* Lucas Oil
* Scandinavian Offshore Challenge
* Ilmor
* Vector Powerboats
* Virtual Spectator
* Custom Marine Inc.
* Premiere Shipping and Packing

YouTube Video

Belgium Launch Report :: P1 UIM World Championship

Today marks the successful completion of the beta test phase for the new 77 LUCAS OIL Scandinavian Offshore Challenge, an Ilmor powered Vector. The race boat, trailer and support truck are being transported to Trieste, Italy to catch the ferry to Yalta, Ukraine.

Yalta, Ukraine is the first stop in the 2010 UIM P1 World Championship series. The series has already made waves by replacing CEO Asif Rangoonwala and reorganizing under the direction of the UIM, the international sanctioning body for all water motorsports. Jean-Marie Van Lancker, President UIM Pleasure Navigation and veteran race organizer, has taken the helm providing untold hours and relentless services to fulfill the P1 World Championship obligations.

As pilots Michael Silfverberg and Nigel Hook return home to Stockholm and San Diego respectively, the rest of the international team disperses to New Zealand, Michigan, California and Sweden. Not even flight cancellations courtesy of the volcano Vulkaanuitbarsting have dampened the enthusiasm for the results achieved to date. Team Captain Nigel Hook, expressed high marks on the accomplishments of the new team which has come together so successfully since its inception just five months ago.

Expectations were exceeded during the sea trials, with renowned naval architect, Ocke Mannerfelt on hand to witness the impressive rough water handling capabilities of his new design. The twin Ilmor V10 powered 77 LUCAS OIL / SOC crushed the 6 to 7 foot waves as it flew across the turbulent North Seas in Zeebrugge recording G-Forces up to 6.4G.

The Scandinavian Offshore Challenge carefully selected Bernico International (www.bernico.be) as its European race headquarters. Owned by Nico Bertels, the Bernico facility not only provided work shop, cranes, and a convenient marina hotel with restaurant, it also provided immediate access to the Channel Willebroek facilitating high speed propeller test runs.

The remarkable speeds achieved during alpha testing in February just prior to the Miami Boat Show exhibit were re-demonstrated and additionally, the acceleration parameters have been greatly improved with new Hering propellers and the minor set up changes which were made during the longer speed runs on the River Schelde.

All test session data was logged on the new Race Technology system (www.race-technology.com) which synchronizes four video cameras, all the Ilmor engine ECU information, and sensor data received from the electric/hydraulic control systems. This has allowed the team to review and analyze the testing statistics and leverage the knowledge of all resources in the team including onsite support from Ian Hawkins, GM Marine Division Ilmor and former Formula One engine guru.

Lucas Oil is the leading producer of high performance lubricants.
Links:
* Lucas Oil (www.LucasOil.com)
* Scandinavian Offshore Challenge (www.SOCRacing.se)
* Ilmor (www.Ilmor.com)
* Vector Powerboats (www.VectorPowerboats.com)
* Premier Shipping and Packaging (www.psap.co.uk)

Ilmor and Powerboat P1 Race Team Form Partnership - February 2, 2010

One of the world’s most renowned engine manufacturers is choosing to partner with the Swedish team Scandinavian Offshore Challenge in the 2010 Powerboat P1 World Championship. This is the first ever Swedish powerboat team to compete and they are proudly premiering a brand new boat, a Vector V-40, designed by the famous Swedish duo Ocke and Ted Mannerfelt and the boat will be powered by two Ilmor V10 engines with Ilmor INDY drives.

Ilmor Engineering Inc. has chosen to cooperate with the Swedish team. Ilmor is first and foremost a worldwide engineering company. Their high technology MV-10 marine engines utilize precision components, all manufactured using latest production techniques. Ilmor engines and components have won world championships in all the major motor sports such as Indy Car, F1, P1, Indy 500 and NASCAR, including three successive world championship trophies in Powerboat P1 in the past 3-years.

The #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge will be using the highly efficient Ilmor MV10 engines complete with transmissions and INDY drive system — the first in a racing environment. Ilmor’s first step into boat racing was in 2004 backing Nigel Hook’s entry in the 1,200 mile endurance race across the Amazon plains and through Venezuela and Colombia in the “Nuestros Rios San Navagables”.

The Scandinavian Offshore Challenge has also another key partner. The team is backed by the Vector Powerboats factory, who constructed the race boat at their facility in Kelowna, Canada. Vector has set a new standard in safety with structural design and high-tech composite lamination. Bringing together the best talent in the World, Scandinavian Offshore Challenge hired Craig Archer of Auckland, New Zealand to complete the rigging and be Crew Chief.

Powerboat P1 is the boat racing equivalent to Formula1, where teams from all over the world compete in twin engine mono-hull boats at speeds exceeding 200km/h. The boats are up to 14 meters long, weigh up to seven tons and are powered by engines developing as much as 2000 total horse power — double that found in a Formula 1 car. For the second year running, a P1 race event will be held in Gothenburg, Sweden on the 6th-8th of August 2010 and this time the Swedish crowds will have their own team to cheer for.

Michael Silfverberg, Partner and Pilot, Scandinavian Offshore Challenge says:
[INDENT]To have an engine manufacturer like Ilmor chose our team, as newcomers, is not only beneficial financially, but it is also a recognition that what we are doing and how we are doing it is right considering the tough competition and the fact that many other teams want to work with Ilmor. Illmor Engineering Inc. delivers fantastic quality, in both products and processes.[/INDENT]

Paul Ray, CEO, Ilmor Engineering says:
[INDENT]We are very pleased to be working with Scandinavian Offshore Challenge. With their new boat, design line, PR strategies and their way of working with their partners is what made us choose to enter this cooperation with the Swedish team.[/INDENT]

Nigel Hook, Throttleman and Team Captain, signed Lucas Oil as main sponsor, hence the team name of #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge. They will be competing as a Swedish team in the Evolution class of the Powerboat P1 World Championship. The Championship starts April and runs through to October. The team will be based in Stockholm at Biskopsuddens Marina and in Italy. The team’s owners are Michael Silfverberg and Martin Ohlsson. The team also includes Janet Wilson, Team Manager and Gabriella Williams, Finance Manager, and Craig Archer, Crew Chief.

The events in P1 are called the “Grand Prix of the Sea” and are held about once a month around Europe. TV broadcasts from the events reach 400+ million homes around the globe and tens of thousands visitors come to the events. The Powerboat P1 World Championship consists of two race classes: Evolution (for one-off prototype boats) and SuperSport (for production boats), and both the classes each compete in two separate races — Sprint and Endurance, during a race weekend.

Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge Announces 2010 Plans - November 12, 2009

Swedish driver Michael Silfverberg and veteran Nigel Hook have unveiled their new Vector 40 race boat in which they will compete the 2010 Powerboat P1 World Championship.

The boat, recently featured on the front cover of Powerboat Magazine, is the first of its kind and has only had ten hours on the water to date. The hull is designed by Swedish naval architect Ocke Mannerfelt and the exterior design by his son, Ted Mannerfelt.

Hook, currently in Key West for the SBI World Championships, has been a long time admirer of Ocke’s designs: “Ever since I got passed by a B28 Mannerfelt in a Pacific Offshore race in 1994, I’ve been fascinated by the simplicity of this design. The Vector 40 may be the first of its kind but it has a true racing lineage.”

In addition to his nationalistic pride in racing a Swedish designed race boat, Michael Silfverberg commented on the unrivaled elegance of the Vector 40, which was matched by the experience in testing: “The Vector 40 excels in the way it moves through the water and in its willingness to respond to power. That combined with the beautiful design and the excellent building quality will make it a real thrill to race.”

The Scandinavian Offshore Challenge is entering the quest to be the Powerboat P1 Evolution class champion in 2010 alongside main sponsor Lucas Oil as the #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team (www.SOCRacing.se).

The Vector 40 is manufactured by Vector Powerboats (www.VectorPowerboats.com) under the watchful eye of company founder Rex Jardine: “We’re very proud to be involved with such a high quality group as the Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge Team. The combination of experience and talent that Nigel and Michael have, together with the revolutionary design of the boat is sure to be a dominating force in Powerboat P1 next season.”

Powerboat P1 Travels To Key West SBI Championship - November 10, 2009

Though the Powerboat P1 World Championship has concluded its 2009 season, its racers, administrators and fans are still hungry for more racing action.

As previously reported, the 29th Key West SBI World Championships get underway today and Powerboat P1 will be represented by a number of familiar faces including Dan Cramphorn and Kim Collins in their #26 SW1 Capital SuperSport boat.

The #77 Lucas Oil Outerlimits team will split into two teams for Key West. Nigel Hook will pair up with Swede Michael Silfverberg to pilot Hook’s Lucas Oil Skater in the Performance class whilst Joe Sgro and Outerlimits will compete in the Super Vee Unlimited class using and brand new SV 43.

Other P1 teams such as Chaudron Seagull Ukrainian Spirit had hoped to race in Key West, although the logistics or taking boats to the US following the final race in Sicily presented challenges. However, Siegfried Greve and Mark Nelson of the Evolution class SeaRex team will make the trip to Florida for a bit of research and well-earned relaxation.

Also visiting from Powerboat P1 management will be Commercial Director, Robert Wicks and Race Director, Jean Marie Van Lancker.  Both were in Key West last year and Wicks in particular is looking forward to visiting again: “Key West is an amazing venue and we’re keen to watch the international racing action at a place where so much offshore history has been made.”

Other international competitors in Key West will include two Class I race teams who will compete in the Superboat 750 and 850 classes.  Abdullah Al-Sulaiti will join Italian throttleman Matteo Nicolini in Qatar 95, who also throttled for the P1 Smash Poker team. In addition, Sheikh Hassan bin Jabor Al-Thani will team with veteran throttleman Steve Curtis of England in Qatar 96.  The eight-time World Champion Curtis has competed and consulted in Powerboat P1 and is also involved in the Formula F4SA series just acquired by Powerboat P1.

Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge - November 7, 2009

Nigel Hook Racing has become a multi-national conglomerate.  The British-American powerboat racer who has carried the US-based Lucas Oil sponsorship banner for eleven years, is preparing for his 2010 racing season by expanding his multi-continental boundaries-literally-to Sweden and Canada.
 
Swedish driver Michael Silfverberg and Nigel Hook met at this year’s Powerboat P1 Scandinavian Grand Prix in Gothenburg, Sweden and continued their conversations about racing when they again met in the airport.  Obviously on the same “plane” they shared insights about various boats in which Silfverberg was interested and about racing in the Powerboat P1 World Championship.  Silfverberg was impressed by Hook’s extensive experience and Hook was likewise taken with Silfverberg’s enthusiasm for offshore racing.  After testing together, the duo decided to race as the Lucas Oil Scandinavia Offshore Challenge Team in Hook’s Skater in the Key West SBI World Championship. 
 
Now, Hook and Silfverberg announce their plans to race together in the 2010 Powerboat P1 World Championship and will unveil the new Vector 40 race boat, featured on the cover of the current Powerboat Magazine.  This pleasure boat is the first of its kind with the hull designed by Swedish naval architect Ocke Mannerfelt with exterior design by his son, Ted Mannerfelt.

 
Ocke Mannerfelt Design’s prestigious works include the “Bat Boat” that became known in US in the early 2000’s  as the “One Design” class that enabled novice racers to rent the boat and compete in the APBA offshore circuit.  Its “wings” enabled it to cut through and seem to fly over waves. “Ever since I got passed by a B28 Mannerfelt in a Pacific Offshore race in 1994, I’ve been fascinated by the simplicity of this design,”  said Hook, who spent time with Mannerfelt in Gothenburg, “The Vector 40 may be the first of its kind, but it has true racing lineage. In fact, another newly-designed Mannerfelt race boat premiered this year in the X-Cat World Championships [in Europe] where his boats won every race in the UIM World Championship. That is very impressive especially since that class has 25 race boats in it!”
 
Proud to race in a Swedish-designed boat, Silfverberg, an experienced boat captain and Swedish Navy submariner, commented on the elegance and feel of the Vector 40, experienced while testing in Canada. “The Vector 40 excels in the way it moves through the water and its willingness to respond to power. That combined with the beautiful design and the excellent building quality of Vector Powerboats will make it a real thrill to race!”   The original Vector 40 design will be somewhat modified to suit Powerboat P1 rules and the powered and propulsion plans are in discussion.
 
The Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team will maintain Hook’s #77 and the long-time Lucas Oil sponsorship.  The 40′ boat is built in Kelowna, Canada by Vector Powerboats.  Company Founder and President, Rex Jardine carries 25 years of experience in the boat building industry and traces his racing heritage to his father’s mentoring as the founder of Campion Boats, also in British Columbia, Canada’s largest independent producer of over 37 models of boats.

 
“All of us at Vector Powerboats are very proud to be involved with such a high-quality group as the Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge Team,” said Jardine, “We have no doubt that the combination of talent and experience in Nigel Hook and Michael Silfverberg, combined with our extraordinary team and revolutionary Mannerfelt design, will be a dominating force in P1.” 
 
Hook’s dual US and British citizenship, combined with his All-American sponsor, Lucas Oil, the leading producer of high performance lubricants, a Swedish teammate in Silfverberg, fellow-Swede boat designers, Ocke and Ted Mannerfelt, and Canadian boat builder, Vector Powerboats, gives this team a unique place in the international Powerboat P1 World Championship-a UK-based organization with a cross-continental race schedule including Western and Eastern European countries from Malta to Croatia to Turkey and others in the near future.  Visit www.powerboatp1.com for more information and updates to the 2010 provisional calendar.

World Champion returns to Key West - October 25, 2009

World Champion returns to Key West to compete in the 2009 SBI World Championships after a thrilling World Wide Tour with Powerboat P1.

Swedish driver Michael Silfverberg and veteran Anglo-American Nigel Hook are uniting their two nations to compete next month in the 29th Annual SBI World Championships held in Key West forming the new entry #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge.

Adventurer, businessman, and entrepreneur Michael Silfverberg, a native of Stockholm, brings a fresh energy to the team. He excels from a lifetime on the sea with service as a commercial captain, a navy submariner, and leader of a marine dealership Supreme Marine for yachts and high–performance boats in Sweden.

No other offshore venue draws the number of race boats as Key West. For over 40 years, this race track has been the proving ground for the offshore sports greatest. In myth and reality, Key West, where the Atlantic Ocean collides with the Gulf of Mexico, trumps them all.

The Key West races are produced by Super Boat International with John Carbonell at the helm. The week long event kicks off with a boat parade and registration at the Race Village, Truman Annex, on November 8th-9th. Testing and official practice will be permitted on Tuesday, November 10th, before the first race on Wednesday, November 11th.

Officially the opening race to the 2010 SBI season, Key West is an ideal catalyst to ignite the new international partnership between Lucas Oil and SOC. As Lucas Oil continues its expansion throughout Europe, a focus in Scandinavia will bring access to a market driven by Volvo, Saab, Scania and others.

Michael and Nigel will pilot the Super Vee Skater V399 with Mercury power, the World Championship winner in 2006.

“I’ve test driven on the water with Michael at speeds in excess of what we’ll be running on the Key West track, and I’m keen to play out our race strategy,” said Hook.

“I feel very confident racing with such an experienced pilot as Nigel. I look forward to racing in Key West and I have a really good feeling about this,” said Silfverberg.

The #77 Lucas Oil team comes off a busy International season having competed in Powerboat P1 with TV coverage broadcast to over 400 million homes across 79 countries. 4th Place Overall 2009 P1 World Championship Series

Lucas Oil is the leading producer of high performance lubricants.
Lucas Oil (www.LucasOil.com)
Scandinavian Offshore Challenge (www.SOCracing.se)
Mercury Racing (www.MercuryRacing.com)
Premier Shipping and Packaging (www.psap.co.uk)

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