Redemption for Dirty Money At Shootout Offshore

The American Power Boat Association today announced that the Offshore Racing Commission has overturned the disqualification of the Dirty Money racing team from the Shootout Offshore event on June 1 at Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks.

After it appeared that the 38-foot Skater, Dirty Money, driven by Brit Lilly and throttled by Bill Pyburn, had won the race, the team was penalized for a “reckless driving” infraction for missing a dogleg turn on the course. That resulted in a disqualification and handed the win to owner Billy Mauff and throttleman Jay Muller in the 40-foot Skater, WHM Motorsports.

Dirty Money wound up last and the team owned by Beau and Tiffiney Renfroe appealed the decision. Pyburn filed the paperwork and told speedonthewater.com that he received an email from P1 Offshore that read, “The disqualification from LOTO have been overturned.”

Needless to say, the Renfroes and their team were elated when they got the news. “After the restart, we thought we weren’t going to get a lead like that again and we came back and got it a second time,” said Beau Renfroe. “We knew we earned (the victory.)”

The disqualification that took away the team’s victory in the Super Cat race at Shootout Offshore has been reversed, giving owners Beau and Tiffany Renfroe their first win in the sport. Photo by Jeff Helmkamp copyright Jeff Helmkamp Photos

That the process turned out in their favor only served to further the Renfroes’ resolve to build their team and have the boat ready to compete at the next Super Cat race in Sheboygan, Wis.

“Either way, we’re still going to keep pushing forward,” Beau Renfroe said. “It wasn’t going to discourage us. The appear process is there for a reason and we knew deep down that it would be overturned. It was just a matter of being patient.”

Rich Luhrs, chairman of the ABPA Offshore Racing Commission, said lessons were learned from the call during the race and from the appeals process. “The APBA is a democracy and not a dictatorship,” he said. “It went through proper channels and the appeal process worked as indicated the rulebook.”

For team driver Lilly, the announcement was redemption and relief at the same time. “It’s just been something that weighed on me heavily,” he said. “I’m glad the ORC felt the same way I did. I’m happy to have the win back and I’m most excited to get a good night’s sleep tonight.”

From a professional perspective, perhaps the thing that hit Lilly the hardest was the terming of infraction as “reckless driving.”

“I take pride in my driving skills and for someone to think I would purposely endanger someone is not how I’ve gotten to where I am today,” said Lilly. “I like to race hard, but I want to make sure everyone comes back to the dock at the end of the race.”

Pyburn has had his driver’s back since the infraction was announced. “From the time the green flag dropped to turn 6, Brit only moved the steering wheel two degrees,” he said. “Most people can’t hold a car that straight.”

In the big picture, the win pulls Dirty Money closer to Super Cat points leader M CON/Monster Energy. In only two years of racing, the team has faced its share of adversity with the boat breaking in half in Michigan City, Ind., running out of gas while leading at the start of this season in Marathon, Fla., and the escape hatch blowing open on the last lap of the Ocean City Grand Prix in Maryland the week after the Shootout Offshore race.

“We should have three wins right now and we’ve had little things bite us,” said Pyburn.

Added Renfroe, “We have definitely had a lot thrown at us in the last year. The boat is there. We pushed hard to have it where it is.”