Eight-Seat Doug Wright Cat Ready To Roll At Grant’s Signature Racing
Some two-plus years in the making, an eight-seat catamaran from Doug Wright Powerboats of Melbourne, Fla., sea-trialed for the first time this week in Southwest Florida. Grant’s Signature Racing in Bradenton rigged the 38-footer with twin Mercury Racing 450R outboard engines for longtime client Danny DeSantis of Massachusetts.
Grant’s Signature Racing tested customer Danny DeSantis’ new twin Mercury Racing 450R-powered 38-foot catamaran from Doug Wright Powerboats earlier this week. Photos by Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix
The famed rigging shop’s namesake tested it on the wind-whipped waters of Sarasota Bay.
“It was blowing hard at 25 to 30 mph but the boat did great,” said Bruggemann of the first 38-foot eight-seater from the Melbourne, Fla., builder. “It turned out fabulous. Jamie Borg of Cutting Edge Interiors did a fantastic job with the interior and Doug Harrell delivered a great paint job. I think Danny is going to be very happy with it.”
When DeSantis first commissioned the cat, Mercury Racing had not yet released its 500R outboard engines. So the former offshore powerboat racer, who also currently owns a Skater Powerboats 426 catamaran, opted for the most powerful outboards from the Fond du Lac, Wis., high-performance and engine accessories at the time.
“I’m sure he would have gone with 500s if they’d been available,” Bruggemann said.
Check out the slideshow above for more images of the new eight-seat catamaran from Doug Wright.
DeSantis has a second home in West Palm Beach, Fla., and on the shores of in New Hampshire. The 42-foot Skater is ideal for running in the Atlantic Ocean, as well as the Intracoastal Waterway, in the Sunshine State. The 38-foot Doug Wright is better-suited to the more-restricted environs of the idyllic New Hampshire waterway.
Though he was in Florida this week, DeSantis wasn’t able to run the cat himself before he had to return home. He plans to have it hauled to the Northeast next month, and then he’ll get to try it out.
“I’ll probably use it up there most of the summer and in the Lake Winnipesaukee Poker Run,” said DeSantis, who hasn’t owned an outboard-powered cat since his offshore racing days. “I’m looking forward to finally running it. It should be fun, and I know that Grant and his crew there did a great job with it.”
Above is the last outboard-engine catamaran owned by Danny DeSantis.
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