Father And Son Conquer The OPA Worlds
Hollywood could not have scripted a better ending or worse beginning for Art and Brit Lilly in their first full season racing together in the Offshore Powerboat Association’s Super Vee Light class. Engine troubles knocked them out of their first race, another boat knocked them out the next race and with a rollover during practices they knocked themselves out of the third one.
“It was a big learning curve—definitely an uphill battle,” said Brit Lilly, who drove seven races with Art, his famous offshore championship-winning and kilo record-setting father, on the throttles. “This was the first time doing a whole season together, and the other times we raced together we were in bigger boats like a 40-foot Skater.”
“Brit would ask why the boat wasn’t running the way we wanted it to,” said Art Lilly. “I’d say, ‘I don’t know. It’s a single-engine boat. You know as much about it as I do.'”
(All photos courtesy/copyright Tim Sharkey/Sharkey Images.)
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