Vision Marine collaborates with the record breaking Hellkat Powerboats V32
This past week, a record breaking Hellkat Powerboats V32 blew through a crowd of hundreds at 109 mph. That dispelled the myth that all electrical vessels are slow boats, and earned electrical boats a place in the high performance record books.
A number of prominent, well-known companies from around the world had to come together in order to accomplish such a feat. Vision Marine, in partnership with Hellkat Powerboats, developed the record breaking Hellkat Powerboats V32.
The racing cat is a 32-inch (9.75-meter) catamaran hull constructed to accommodate the necessary battery banks to power a pair of 180 horsepower Vision Marine’s E-MotionTM electric outboards. To power the V32, Vision Marine developed a uniquely shaped battery pack in collaboration with Octillion Power Systems, which also served as the race’s sponsor. Nextfour Solutions improved the onboard monitoring systems, while Pat Weissman of Weissman Marine designed the outdrives.
This changed the rules of the electrical boating world as Shaun Torrente, a five-time UIM champion and current F1 H20 World Champion, helped guide the V32’s chances of setting a record. On August 28, Torrent sailed the record breaking Hellkat Powerboats V32 and hit 104 mph on his first attempt. On the second run, he reached 109 mph. Both speeds broke the 88 mph record previously achieved by Jaguar’s Vector V20E.
Torrente recalled the event as “an amazing experience to push the boundaries of what people thought was impossible.”
“We wanted to show the world that electric power is not your granddad’s electric trawler doing three miles an hour,” said Bruce Nurse, director of business development for Vision Marine Technologies. “It’s not a golf cart.”
Nurse is looking forward to next year with the goal to set a new record. “The purpose of this race is to showcase the power, speed and torque off the line of electric boats,” said Nurse. “We want people to know that the option is out there for a fast boat, with 90 percent less maintenance, zero carbon emissions and noiseless cruising.”
