Tucked away in the quiet coastal town of Palmetto, Fla., Manatee Marine Unlimited is anything but quiet right now. The first contest of the Race World Offshore Key West World Championships happens in less than two weeks, and led by Julian Maldonado the shop has no less than three raceboats to prepare for the three-race event.

Including Wozencraft Insurance, which received a new transom, Manatee Marine has three raceboats to prepare for the upcoming Race World Offshore Key West World Championships. Photo by Matt Trulio copyright speedonthewater.com.

But you wouldn’t know it from Maldonado, who co-owns the business with Sara Langheim, the wife of Factory Stock Jackhammer team-owner Reese Langheim. A soft-spoken gentleman, Maldonado is as cool as they come. Grace under pressure suits him.

“When are we not busy?” he asked a visiting reporter, then laughed.

Two of the three boats the Manatee team is prepping needed substantial work after the Englewood Beach American Power Boat Association World Championships a couple of weekends ago. The Jackhammer cat now has new Luna brackets for its 500-hp Mercury Racing outboard engines, which also have been repositioned on the 38-footer’s transom.

Jackhammer now has new outboard engine brackets.

Owned by driver Jeremy Tschida, the Super Stock-class Wozencraft Insurance Boat—on the other hand—needed a new transom and is now ready for re-installation of its 300-hp outboards on new brackets.