2023 Thundercat Season in Review
2023 was a great year for thundercats in the United States. We’ve seen more people get into the sport this year than the previous 2 years combined and at this pace, we should have regular thundercat races in the US in no time. There are already large groups of thundercats forming in southern California at the border of Arizona as well as Florida.
We launched some new hat merch that sold out for the first 2 batches thanks to the support of our killer customers all over the United States. Shout out to everyone that’s spreading the good word of thundercat racing.
The first of many race prep Tohatsu 50’s came in and was paired beautifully on a new Ceasar. The motor was built by wildly successful standard class racer Nikki DuBois of the S29 race number fame.
Possibly the lightest Ceasar Inflatable Thundercat in history, the 2022 teal S29 pictured above, is now in Florida at Cracker Bay Thundercats. The custom built carbon fiber nose cone and floorboards were one off’s just for the project and it made an absolute rocket. This hull will get a race prep Tohatsu 50 2 stroke and stay in Panama City.
The Pickle Rick hull came out beautifully thanks to Ceasar and Sky Rocket Design working hard to make my imagination a reality. Sad to see it go to New York but the new owner is having the time of his life. My second favorite hull graphic was the Marshmallow Pop hull that ended up shipping to a lady in the Virgin Islands.
Where will 2024 take us?
The availability of new and used thundercat hulls keeps growing as racing in South Africa thrives. Used thundercat hulls are a great way for budget minded folks to get into the sport or people that don’t have enough time in the season to get a custom built hull last minute. Check with Cracker Bay Thundercats for new and used hulls, new Tohatsu and Yamaha 2 strokes and race prep motors.
What’s the difference between a stock motor and a race prep? It depends on the builder but in general, the idea is to modify the motor so that it survives the rigors of thundercat racing. For a Tohatsu, that means welding the crank, lengthening the tiller handle and strengthening the clamp among a few other tricks. Yamahas only need their cranks welded in severe applications and the tiller handles are plenty long from the factory but both manufacturers benefit from extra cowling retention and steering dampers.
Speaking of new thundercat hulls, we’re excited to see the new Mako Evolution hulls due at our door early 2024. It’s been fun seeing Mako bring their thundercat lineup back into production. After countless hours of testing and revisioning, they feel they have a recipe that will be very competitive in this year’s Trans Agulhas.
We’re also looking at bringing in some 10 foot (2.8m) thundercats from Ceasar. They’d pair well with 20 hp motors for a youth race class and make the fastest yacht tender in the harbor.