Envy Offshore Race Team Mystic Slated For 2014 Miami Boat Show Debut

Out of primary lamination and heading for the in-house paint booth with graphics created by Thomas Kulesia of No Coast Design in a week or so after its custom epoxy and carbon fiber lay-up work is complete, a 50-foot Mystic Powerboats catamaran dubbed Envy is scheduled to debut at the 2014 Miami International Boat Show.

The Envy cat will be powered by a pair of 1,800-hp, 700-cubic-inch supercharged Extreme engines built by Stotler Racing Engines, the noted high-performance marine engine outfit of Cinton offshore raceboat fame in Gainesville, Ga. The power will be put to the water through BPM drives, which currently are being shipped to the United States from the BPM plant in Italy. Latham Marine is supplying the steering system.

For Chris Cox, the 41-year-old air-conditioning contractor who lives in East Islip, N.Y., and owns the boat, the new 50-footerhe ordered in February is a big step up. His racing resume includes seat time in a 40-foot Platinum, the former Cintron cat with 1,100-hp Stotler engines, a 28-foot Pantera V-bottom and a 28-foot Kryptonite V-bottom, both of which we were single-engine boats. Famed offshore racer Joey Impresica will throttle Envy with Cox handling the driving duties next year in Super Boat International Races in the Unlimited class.

Cox has purchased a Kenworth hauler to pull the team’s new 56-foot competition trailer.

Designed for offshore racing and poker runs, Envy will have five seats—two up front and three in the back.

“We stayed with the traditional Mystic offshore racing canopy,” said Cox. “We didn’t want to change that. I didn’t want to build a poker run boat to race. I wanted to build a raceboat to race with all the latest safety upgrades and technology, but also one with all the creature comforts like air-conditioning and stereo system of a pleasure boat for poker runs. Our plan is to do a combination of races with SBI and poker runs with the Florida Powerboat Club next year.”

Without question, Cox is making a hefty commitment to offshore racing, and not just on the boat side. He has purchased a Kenworth hauler to pull the team’s new 56-foot competition trailer, as was as an Ford F-650 to tow the Mystic cat—at least until Mystic builds its first tilt trailer. When that happens, Cox will swap out the F-650 for a new Peterbuilt tractor he purchased.

For the time being, an F-650 truck—color-matched to the rest of team’s equipment—will pull the boat.

Asked why he decided to make such a large investment in offshore racing at a time when the sport has been struggling with boat counts and class sizes this season, Cox explained that he sees it as a way to promote the marine companies he’s doing business with as well as help renew excitement in the sport, while having a great time with his team—and family and friends—in the process.

“I wanted to provide a venue where we can showcase what John Cosker and Herb Stotler are doing, and draw some interest back into the sport,” said Cox. “I’m excited to show this boat, and I’m excited to see what we can do with this boat.

“We just really have such a solid team, and everyone involved has captured my vision,” he continued. “I wanted a ‘true heritage’ raceboat, a true 200-mph boat. Not that we’re ever going to go 200 mph, but as the speeds creep up in the Unlimited class we are going to be well within our comfort range in that Mystic package. When we were racing the Platinum at 150 mph, it was a lot for that boat.”

Editor’s Note: Speedonthewater.com will provide updates on this project as it moves forward, and will cover its planned debut at the 2014 Miami International Boat Show.