Countdown To Clearwater: Beckley Makes ‘Noble’ Cockpit Move

When the green flag flies at the Super Boat International National Championships in Clearwater, Fla., this coming Sunday, Jake Noble, the 27-year-old son of J.R. Noble, the well-known owner/driver for the Superboat-class Stihl team, will be in the cockpit for the first time. The rookie racer will be driving with veteran Stock-class throttleman Ryan Beckley in the S-11 Turtle Cove Marina boat, and 30-foot Skater catamaran that competes in Stock class.

Said Noble regarding his upcoming role as driver in Beckley’s Turtle Cove Marina raceboat: “I’m just glad I get to learn from Ryan.”

“I’ve wanted to race for awhile now, and we’ve been tossing it around for a few months,” said Noble. “We went back and forth and back and forth, and about a week ago I got the news. The next day Ryan sent me a photo with my name on the boat, and I was super excited.”

Noble and Beckley tested together in Sarasota, Fla., earlier this week. They plan to practice again tomorrow, as well as Saturday during the test sessions in Clearwater.

“Our first time in the cockpit together went well,” said Beckley. “He was good.”

Although Noble is a rookie, he’s also a veteran—of the United States military. A senior at the University of Central Florida who lives in nearby Winter Park, he finished a four-year stint in the U.S. Marine Corps in 2009. His tour included a seven-month deployment in Iraq.

Noble has driven his father’s Skater 388 offshore Stihl raceboat both in its current Superboat-class and former Cat Light (lower power) form. But on Sunday in Clearwater, he’ll get his first real-world racing experience.

“I just want to get some experience and learn as much as I can from Ryan,” said Noble. “Being around races so much and always working for my dad—it’s going to be a different experience to actually see it from the racer point of view. It will give me a better understand of what they do. I’m just glad I get to learn from Ryan, and I want to learn as much as I can from him.”

Related Stories

Countdown to Clearwater: Instigator Secures New Sponsor For SBI Nationals
Sneak Peek: Sun Print Coming to Clearwater
Countdown to Clearwater: Three-Boat Spirit of Qatar Fleet Ready