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Sail-World.com : Racing for Redcliffe
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'’Ezy Does It’ crew chief Kerry Horan working on the boat’s XR2 Mercury engines at his Oxenford workshop. - Racing for Redcliffe'
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For Graham Fraser (driver) and Ian Harris (throttleman), co-owners of the Supercat Outboard Lite offshore racer ‘Ezy Does It’, the name does not ring entirely true.
Easy does it?
As Normie Rowe once sang, ‘It ain’t necessarily so.’
The boys ‘blew’ an engine in the Townsville round of the ‘07/’08 championships and now it’s spanners front and centre as they strive to ready the boat for the opening round of the ‘08/’09 titles at Redcliffe (September 21).
Crew chief Kerry Horan, together with the crew, of course, is confident they’ll be at the starting line.
'At this stage we’re hoping to run the boat later this week,' Graham said.
'The XR2, 200hp Mercury engines are coming along slowly, but well and there’s no doubt in our minds that we’ll be there to defend our Australian title.'
‘Ezy Does it’, a 25’ Victory Cat, will be entering its third season when the starter’s flag drops at Redcliffe.
'We’ve been more than happy with the boat, winning the Australian championship in our class in only our second year was a feat we’re pretty proud of,' Graham added.
In race trim ‘Ezy Does It’ is capable of 150km/hr-plus.
The boys carry two sets of propellers, three-bladed cleavers for rough conditions, four-bladed for calm waters.
Hydraulic steering and standard instrumentation have all been checked for efficient operation.
Throttleman Ian Harris was heavily involved in the actual construction of ‘Ezy Does It.’
And if you’re wondering how a throttleman can claim to be a boat builder, look no further than his ancestry.
For Ian Harris is the son of the original 'Cat Man', the legendary Bruce ‘Sharkie’ Harris.
'You could say Ian has seen a few boats built in his time,' Graham laughed.
Can ‘Ezy Does It’ defend its Australian title?
'We’ll certainly be in there swinging, Graham declared.
The crew rates ‘Elders’ (the ex-Hog’s Breath boat) as their main threat.
'You can bet Mick Walker (driver) and Gary Smith (throttles) will be looking to take us on, but that’s racing, they’re great blokes and we love competing against them,' Graham explained.
With the current Australian champions in all five classes competing, the Redcliffe 100 is looming as an exciting day for offshore racing.
Crews will be testing their boats off the Moreton Bay Boat Club on the Saturday, with racing scheduled for the Sunday afternoon.
Class I entrants will race over a 180 kilometre course off the Redcliffe waterfront, offering spectators a clear view of the spectacular racing.
Supercat Outboard will tackle a 150 kilometre course; Supercat Outboard Lite face 135 kilometres, Super Vee Lite take on 120 kilometres and Production Class will battle it out over 90 kilometres.
Powerboat-World will be there to cover the action.
Where else would we be that weekend?
by Bob Wonders
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http://www.powerboat-world.com/index.cfm?nid=48765
10:51 PM Thu 11 Sep 2008 GMT
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