Marc Granet and Scott Begovich piloted Miss Geico to its first Superboat Unlimited world title Sunday, Nov. 10, the final day of the week-long Key West World Championship offshore powerboat races.Granet of Boca Raton, Fla., and Begovich of Jupiter, Fla., maintained an average speed of 110.63 mph to outpace their adversaries during 17.75 grueling laps.
"The first few laps were tense, and the last five, hoping everything would stay together, were even more tense," said Begovich. "I think I held my breath for the last five."
After a first- and a second-place finish, respectively, in preliminary races staged Nov. 6 and 8, Granet said patience and running a conservative race were the keys to victory Sunday.
"Because the race is so long, you have to pace yourself," he said. "This [title] really shows the world what we're capable of."
During Sunday's race, Geico almost lapped 2012 class champion Spirit of Qatar, this year driven by Nasser Al-Attiyah, a Qatari rally car driver and Olympic skeet shooter. Another Spirit of Qatar boat ran in the turbine class, winning a world championship despite an engine fire during Sunday's race. Throttleman Steve Curtis of Great Britain confirmed that he and driver Sheik Hassan Al-Thani of Qatar were uninjured.
Another incident occurred Sunday when the Superboat Stock entry 5 Brothers Grocery rolled over and a rescue diver was deployed. Driver Chris Schoenbohm of Orlando and throttleman Ryan Beckley of Bradenton, Fla., were unharmed, race officials said.
In the Superboat class, WHM Motorsports, owned and piloted by William Mauff of East Setauket, N.Y., earned top honors after a three-day battle with rival Stihl, driven by Robert Noble of Orlando.
Twisted Metal Motorsports, driven by Brett Lee Furshman of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., captured the Superboat Extreme title after finishing ahead of Lucas Oil Silverhook, throttled by veteran racer Nigel Hook of San Diego.
The championship featured 44 registered boats competing for world titles in eight classes.
2013 Key West World Championship Class Winners
Class: Boat Name Owner or Driver's Name Hometown
Superboat Unlimited Miss Geico Marc Granet Boca Raton, Fla.
Superboat Extreme Twisted Metal Motorsports Brett Lee Furshman Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Turbine Spirit of Qatar Sheik Hassan Al-Thani Doha, Qatar
Superboat WHM Motorsports William Mauff East Setauket, N.Y.
Superboat Vee Snowy Mountain Brewery Mark Tuck Smithfield, Va.
Superboat Stock Talbot Excavating Kyler Talbot Bremerton, Wash.
Manufacturer 3 Black Pearl Gary Jones Bradenton, Fla.
Manufacturer 4 Crazy Chicken Dee Early Buford, Ga.