Powerboat Talk
By Joe Rode
Categories: Leisure, Hobbies, Sports
On the Powerboat Talk podcast, we talk everything performance boats including offshore powerboats, lake racers, jet boats, v-drive boats, race boats. Featuring interviews with leaders and influencers in the performance boat industry.
78 episodes indexed on PodSearch.
Recent episodes
- Episode 78 - 2026 Parker Enduro Champions Dylan Runne, Rusty Wyatt, Andrew Tate
For the first time in 36 years, a tunnel boat has captured the overall victory at the Parker Enduro, a race where factory-backed tunnels once ruled the Colorado River. The last to accomplish the feat was the late François Salabert in 1990, making the 2026 win the first by a tunnel boat since the…
- Episode 77 - Steve Curtis Offshore Boat Racer
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we sit down with Steve Curtis, one of offshore powerboat racing's most accomplished throttlemen. Curtis won his first UIM Class 1 World Championship in 1985 at age 21, becoming the youngest ever and first Englishman to win the title, and has since amassed nine…
- Episode 76 - Tony Scarlata Drag Boat Racing Legend
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we sit down with Tony Scarlata, Southern California boat racer and hot boat enthusiast who is famous for driving some of the most recognizable and successful Top Alcohol Flatbottom drag boats in history. A native of Northern California who spent his early years…
- Episode 75 - Bob Wartinger Outboard Racing's Record Man
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we visit with Bob Wartinger, one of the most accomplished powerboat racers of all time. With 148 world and national records to his credit, Wartinger has spent more than 60 years in outboard racing, setting his first record in 1971 and his most recent in November…
- Episode 74 - Harlan Orrin The Wood Craftsman Behind Legendary Performance Boats
Harlan Orrin is a true legend in the West Coast performance boating world, with more than 60 years of hands-on experience designing and building molds, hulls, and custom wood decks. His roots in boat building trace back to World War II, when his father and uncle built wooden boats for the US…
- Episode 73 - Mary Rife Drag Boat Racer and Fastest Woman on Water
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we sit down with drag boat racing pioneer Mary Rife, the first woman ever licensed to drive a Blown Fuel Hydro and the only woman in history to surpass 200 mph in a boat. Long before women became common in motorsports, Rife was competing head-to-head against the…
- Episode 72 - John Connor Offshore Racing Legend and Genius Innovator
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we sit down with offshore racing legend John Connor to explore a career that helped define the sport's golden era. As throttleman and crew chief for Paul and Betty Cook, Connor played a key role in Betty's rise to prominence as one of the most important figures…
- Episode 71 - Cade Wilson Owner of Sterling Engines
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we sit down with Cade Wilson, the new owner of Sterling Engines, a name deeply rooted in offshore racing history. After a successful corporate career and a leadership foundation built through service in the U.S. Army, the U.S. Naval Academy, and as a Naval…
- Episode 70 - Ty Newton Flatbottom K-boat Racer
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, we sit down with veteran flatbottom K-boat driver Ty Newton of Phoenix, Arizona, a multi-time national champion and member of the American Power Boat Association Hall of Champions (2009). With more than three decades behind the wheel and 15 years in K-boats…
- Episode 69 - Dave Villwock Unlimited Hydroplane Racing Legend
In this episode, recorded before the 2025 racing season, we sit down with Dave Villwock, the most successful driver in Unlimited Hydroplane racing history. At the time, Villwock had amassed 67 career wins, 10 national championships, 10 APBA Gold Cups, and multiple world speed records. During the…
- Episode 68- Joe Zelinski Founder of Custom Marine, Inc
As the founder of Customer Marine, Inc. (CMI), Joe Zelinski stands as a central figure and true innovator in the high-performance marine world. For decades, CMI headers have set the benchmark for performance marine exhaust systems. Raised by a father who was a plumbing contractor, Zelinski…
- Episode 67- Tyler Speer Drag Boat Racer (Part 2)
In this episode, the 2nd of two parts, we talk with racer Tyler Speer following the 2025 drag boat racing season as he breaks down the continued progress of his A Fuel Nitro Hydro, Georgia Outlaw, through the 2025 season and his plans heading into 2026. Speer, who works in the family boat business…
- Episode 66- Tyler Speer Drag Boat Racer
Tyler Speer is one of the most versatile racers in modern drag boat competition and a rising force in nitro-powered hydro racing. Today he campaigns an Injected Nitro Hydro in the Top Alcohol Hydro class, pushing the limits of performance while developing one of the most demanding boats in the…
- Episode 65 - Live from Eddie's SoCal Performance Expo opening night
This episode of Powerboat Talk is a recording of a livestream that we did at Eddie Marine in Rancho Cucamonga for Eddie's SoCal Performance Expo opening night party. We had the privilege of interviewing 23 marine and automotive industry leaders and personalities. Eddie's SoCal Performance Expo…
- Episode 64- Racers and Engine builders Gordy Jennings and Paul Fitzgerald
This week's episode features an inside look at the Boat Alcohol Displacement (BAD) Boat Challenge in Australia with Stock Racing team members Gordy Jennings (Jennings Motorsports) and Paul Fitzgerald (Southern Thunder Marine). As the crew chiefs responsible for tuning and maintaining Mike Stock's…
- Episode 63 - Tate Ramsey Australian National Drivers Champion
On this episode of Powerboat Talk, we welcome Tate Ramsey, an Australian circuit boat racer, three-time winner, and reigning National Drivers Champion. Ramsey is also the current BAD Boat Challenge champion, and he puts that crown on the line in the upcoming 2026 USA & New Zealand vs. Australia…
- Episode 62 - Richie Powers Offshore World Champion Throttleman
In this episode, we sit down with one of offshore powerboat racing's most accomplished throttlemen, Richie Powers. Over the course of more than three decades, Powers amassed an extraordinary record, more than sixty victories across Superboat and UIM Open Class competition, nearly 12,000 miles of…
- Episode 61- Alan Stoker Boat Racer and Founder of Stoker Boats
Alan Stoker is a world-renowned boat racer and the builder of Stoker Boats. An innovator whose career spans the formative decades of Mod VP outboard racing and tunnel-hull development, Stoker was raised in Southern California. This episode was recorded shortly after his third straight victory at…
- Episode 60- Next-Gen Circle Boat Racers Nick Balayan, Travis Hill, and Nash Thorpe
In this episode of Powerboat Talk, I talk to three new flatbottom circle boat racers—Nash Thorpe, Nick Balayan, and Travis Hill—who share their backgrounds, experiences, and insights from their first race at the Southern California Speedboat Club's season opener in Parker, Arizona, this past…
- Episode 59- Fred Inman of IMCO
Fred Inman is the owner and founder of Inman Marine Corporation (IMCO), one of the largest and most respected performance aftermarket marine manufacturers in the world. Like many entrepreneurs, Inman, a metal fabricator by trade, began his career in the marine industry by making parts in his…
- Episode 58- Chris Davidson from Hot Boat and Speedboat Magazines
In this episode, I sit down with Chris Davidson, longtime publisher of Hot Boat Magazine and current publisher of Speedboat Magazine, to reflect on nearly four decades in the performance boating industry. Chris shares his unique journey—from collecting Elvis memorabilia to shaping the voice of…
- Episode 57 - Mike Finnegan Returns!
Reality and YouTube star Mike Finnegan returns on this episode of Powerboat Talk. Finnegan fills us in on his new role as a full-time YouTuber following MotorTrend's recent shutdown of all its TV shows. He also gives an update on his carbon fiber Cheyenne drag boat, Side Chick, sharing some of the…
- Episode 55 - Freedom One Racing Team
In this episode, we're talking with the team behind Freedom One Racing, a new name making waves at this year's Lake of the Ozarks Shootout. The Shootout's loose rules invite wild setups, and Freedom One didn't disappoint, bringing a brand-new 388 Skater powered by twin 4,000-hp 4.9-inch bore…
- Episode 56 - Slug Hefner from Dirty Duck Racing
Slug Hefner's Dirty Duck Racing team made history at the 2024 Lake of the Ozarks Shootout (LOTO), breaking the 200 mph barrier for the first time. After falling just short of the milestone in 2023, Hefner's 438 Skater—powered by twin-turbocharged 557-cubic-inch engines—received a performance boost…
- Episode 54 - Billy Moore Class 1 Offshore Racer
Billy Moore stands as one of the most successful offshore powerboat racers competing today. Following in the footsteps of his father, Bobby Moore—widely considered the first throttle man in offshore racing—Billy "works the sticks" in both Class 1 and Super Cat. I spoke with Moore recently, just as…
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