In Riviera Beach, Fla., a few weeks ago researching a feature for the upcoming July/August issue of Speed On The Water magazine, I sat down for an extensive interview with Gary Stray, the team manager and head rigger for the Miss GEICO offshore racing team. During our interview, Stray showed me a scale (1:12) pleasure-version model of the 47-foot catamaran he designed and will build. The first two complete catamarans—race and pleasure—are going to the same buyer in Trinidad, said Stray, who added that the buyer will most likely run the racing version in Superboat class on the Super Boat International circuit in 2014.

Shown as a 1:12 scale model, Stray’s 47-footer will be offered in pleasure and race versions. Photo courtesy/copyright Jay Nichols/Naples Image.

The current plan is for the Miss GEICO team to field a Stray-designed-and-built 47-footer in 2015, though the final class determination has not been made.

“The design I came up with is very much what we were working toward when I was part of the Victory team,” said Stray. “It’s a variable deadrise hull with steps on the bottom and on the sides of the boat. The running surface actually narrows as it runs toward the back.”

Editor’s Note: For more detail on the progress on the Stray-designed 47-footer, as well as an in-depth feature on the “state of the union” for the Miss GEICO racing team, check out the July/August issue of Speed On The Water magazine. The bi-monthly digital publication is scheduled to go live at the beginning of July.