Outerlimits SV29 Tops V-Bottom Class in Desert Storm Shootout

Mike Fiore’s relatively last-minute decision to bring the new Outerlimits SV29 V-bottom—featured in the upcoming summer issue of Sportboat magazine—to Desert Storm last week proved to be a good one. The single-engine 29-footer powered by a Mercury Racing 600SCi was the fastest V-bottom in Saturday’s shootout with a top speed of 102 mph. With a reported top speed of 101 mph, the next-closest entry was a Howard 28’ Bullet V-bottom powered by an 1,100-hp supercharged engine.

The Outerlimits SV29 proved to the be the fastest V-bottom in the Desert Storm Shootout

“There actually was a 1-mile-per-hour down current, but we’ll take that number,” Fiore, the owner and founder of Outerlimits in Bristol, R.I., said and laughed during a telephone interview this morning. “There was a 15- to 20-knot crosswind coming across our port, so I wasn’t surprised that they didn’t continue the shootout in the afternoon. That was the right call.”

Just a week before Desert Storm, Fiore was not even sure if he and his team would be able to get the 29-footer across the country to reach the event in time. But the boat and crew showed up at the start of the Desert Storm Street Party on Thursday afternoon.

“Single-engine boats dominate the West Coast and Lake Havasu,” said Fiore. “We think the West Coast market presents a good opportunity for the SV29.”