LSB/Hurricane Of Awesomeness Flying Spectacular Flag Graphics

Just eight days ago, the new 40-foot LSB/Hurricane of Awesomeness raceboat was a blank canvas for Brit Lilly and Kevin Smith, the driver and throttleman who will campaign the canopied Fountain built in 2002 on the new six-race American Power Boat Association Offshore Championship circuit. But thanks to a weeklong paint-a-thon supported by a village of people that included crew chief Andre Butler, renowned powerboat painter Chris Dilling of Grafik EFX and several friends at the Lilly Sport Boats shop in Arnold, Md., the 40-footer’s patriotic paintjob is complete—and jaw-dropping.

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The result of a collaborative effort, the paintjob on the new LSB/Hurricane of Awesome Extreme-class raceboat is spectacular (click image to enlarge).

“I think it is the coolest thing I’ve ever painted,” said Lilly, who actually worked from scaffolding above the deck of the boat for hours to apply its American flag graphics and color fade. “Chris and I tag-teamed on the fade—we actually handed the airbrush back and forth and we each pretty much did one side each. It was the best painting experience of my life.”

Dilling, who has been painting high-performance race and pleasure boats since the mid-1980s and is a longtime friend of the Lilly family, was equally impressed with the results—and collaborating with Brit Lilly, the son of famed offshore racer Art Lilly, for the first time.

“It’s spectacular,” he said. “Brit is one hell of a painter. Not everyone can airbrush a fade like that. It’s not easy.”

While Smith doesn’t have painting skills, he was there to assist with anything his cockpit partner needed during the process. And he, too, is delighted with the finished product.

“We incorporated our team theme and there’s a little bit of both our tastes in there,” he said. “Brit and Chris came up with some really cool stuff, but you have to see it in person to completely appreciate it.

Check out the slideshow above for a closer look at the LSB/Hurricane of Awesomness 40-footer.

“For a raceboat, it’s a pretty intricate,” he added, then laughed. “Chris kept saying, ‘It’s a poker-run boat. It’s like painting a poker-run boat.’”

Next up for the LSB/Hurricane of Awesomeness team is installing the boat’s twin 572-cubic-inch Joey Griffin engines and its cockpit interior. Both will happen simultaneously, according to Lilly.

“I just applied one final coat of clear, wet-sanded and buffed it,” said Lilly. “The windshield came in yesterday and the seat brackets are in. I’d say about 70 percent of everything we need is already here.

“I really couldn’t be happier,” he added. “And I love that I keep catching my dad in the paint booth starring at it.”

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Said Dilling, “Brit is one hell of a painter. Not everyone can airbrush a fade like that.”

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