Alabama Customers Delighted with New Pearl 368 Skater Catamaran

“We should have done it a long time ago.” Those were the first words out of Mike Goldbaugh’s mouth when asked what made him pull the trigger on a new 368 Skater Powerboats catamaran and put LATE FEE$, his well-kept Donzi Marine 38ZR, up for sale.

Mike and Angela Goldbaugh can’t wait to take their new 36-foot Skater to events starting with the Jacksonville River Rally & Fun Run.

Super excited to have the new Skater, which they took delivery of in time for Memorial Day weekend, Goldbaugh and his wife Angela, who live in Montgomery, Ala., an area where they aren’t allowed to use their boat, are well known within the poker run circuit thanks to their magnetic personalities and their bright 38-foot Donzi powered by a pair of upgraded Mercury Racing 700SCi engines. And because they have to tow their boat to enjoy it—they’re not afraid to travel across the country either thanks to their SportChassis—they have made friends all over the place.

Surely the first thing any of those friends are going to notice with the Goldbaugh’s new 36-foot catamaran powered by twin 700-hp Mercury engines is that it’s a far cry from the Donzi in terms of appearance. While Mike admits it’s probably not the way he would have ordered the boat from the Douglas, Mich., company, he has already fallen in love with the pearl paint job longtime Skater customer Ron Szolack picked when he started the build with the Douglas Marine crew several months ago.

“I’ve wanted a cat for a long time, it was just about convincing the wife we should do it,” said Mike, who celebrated his birthday over the Memorial Day weekend with his new boat at his friend Mark Godsey’s house (Godsey owns Project Mayhem, a 38-foot MTI). “I’ve been looking at a couple of Skaters and MTIs—I almost ended up with a 40-footer with Mercury 1100s—but the opportunity to own a new Skater as beautiful as this one with the 700s, and the warranty, was too good to pass it up.”

Beginning with this weekend’s Jacksonville River Rally & Fun Run in Florida, the Goldbaughs are planning to hit 10 to 12 events over the next five months. You can for sure catch them at the Lake Cumberland Thunder Run in Kentucky, the Old Hickory Fun Run in Tennessee, the Pirates of Lanier Poker Run in Georgia, the Emerald Coast Poker Run in Florida, the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout in Missouri and, of course, the Key West Poker Run hosted by the Florida Powerboat Club. Several other events are in their crosshairs as well.

Check out the slideshow above with images of the new 368 Skater and the Donzi 38ZR. Photos courtesy Karen Little, Justin Lucas, Mike Goldbaugh and Yvonne Aleman.

Following the long weekend with his new ride, which is dubbed LATE FEE$ x2, Mike called the Skater “amazing.”

“The boat is so comfortable,” Mike said. “After a few hours driving around in it, Angela looked at me and said, ‘We should have done this a long time ago.’ We are so happy with the purchase and can’t wait to use the Skater all summer.

“There’s a part of me that would have been happier with twin 1100s, but the familiarity and reliability of the 700s is nice,” he continued. “The insurance is a little easier to swallow, too. And once the warranty is up, we’ll get Mark Boos (of Precision Marine in Louisiana), who worked on our engines before, to bump them up. The fact that it sits on an aluminum trailer was icing on the cake since we plan on hitting some saltwater events.”

Mike said the only thing he’d like to add to the boat, which features a raised transom, cut-down scoops and an extra step below the steering tie bar, is an airbrushed Skater logo on the deck. He said he’s also planning to upgrade the stereo after this season, but he’s yet to make any decisions.

The only real decision he’s made is that he’s going to enjoy the new ride with Angela by his side.

Alabama Customers Delighted with New Pearl 368 Skater Catamaran

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