Fans of the STIHL offshore racing team will have another boat to cheer for under the team’s banner this season as Mike Fosse and Billy Glueck will campaign a 30-foot Phantom, which formerly raced as No Vacancy, in Super Boat International’s Superboat Vee class. Dressed in STIHL colors, the boat will debut at the SBI season-opener May 18-21 in Cocoa Beach, Fla.

Graphics for the STIHL Superboat Vee-class raceboat are scheduled to be completed and applied this week.

Fosse, who is married to STIHL team founder J.R. Noble’s sister, Shari, and ran with Noble in the second race of his career, will drive the 30-footer. Glueck will throttle the canopied V-bottom, which is powered by an engine built by Mike Fountain of Sarasota, Fla. STIHL Superboat-class team throttleman/rigger Grant Bruggemann of Grant’s Signature Racing in Bradenton, Fla., is handling re-rigging the boat. Ryan Beckley of Kinetic Animation in Sarasota is producing boat’s vinyl wrap graphics, which should be completed and applied this week.

“We started talking about it after the SBI Key West Worlds last year,” said Fosse. “Senior (Robert Noble, J.R Noble’s father) said, ‘It’s time for a two-boat team.’ That’s the way Senior rolls. The opportunity was there and I was made a deal I couldn’t refuse.

“I’m excited to be in the boat with Billy,” he continued. “We have been friends forever. He’s the perfect choice. And I know he’s excited about it.”

The longtime throttleman/owner of the Superboat Extreme-class Twisted Metal canopied V-V-bottom raceboat, Glueck said he’s looking forward to the transition to the smaller-boat, single-engine V-bottom class.

“I’ve never run one of those before but I’m pretty sure we can make our way around the course,” he said, then laughed. “I’m friends with all the guys in that class—they’re good people. It should be fun.”

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