Just checked in with Mike D’Anniballe, the creative genius—yeah I said genius—behind Sterling Performance in Milford, Mich. Like every business in the high-performance marine world, D’Anniballe’s famed engine shop has been slammed by the current recession. But during a phone call this morning, D’Anniballe told me that his company has sold 14 of its 1,500-hp/1,000-hp supercharged EFI engine packages.

“I’m thrilled to death with that,” said D’Anniballe. “And the racing-engine business has been decent—we had seven boats in Key West. Most everything else has been maintenance, refitting and rebuilding. The lower-level engine stuff has been dead.”

How does Sterling account for selling 14 engines that retail for approximately $89,000 a piece in a down economy?

“I think the guys who really have money have a lot of it,” he said. “And they’re getting some good buys so they’re freeing up some of it. That’s my take, anyway.”

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