Family-Inspired Outerlimits SL 41 Goes Beast Mode
In just 24 hours, Massachusetts-based Fred Bennett and his wife, Meredith, will meet up with their daughter, Jacqueline, son, Alex, and his girlfriend, Dinah, in Coconut Grove, Fla., for a new chapter in their performance-boating life. A former multi-time Cigarette V-bottom owner and go-fast boating fanatic, the senior Bennett exited his favorite pastime in 2004. For he and his wife, raising their son and daughter was the top priority. Speed on the water took a backseat.
With his new Outerlimits SL 41, Fred Bennett is back in the performance boating game after an 18-year absence.
Come Friday, that will change. Fred Bennett’s new SL 41 V-bottom from Outerlimits Offshore Powerboats will be delivered to Grove Harbour Marina that morning. The family’s plan is to spend as much time as they can in the fiery red 41-footer dubbed Beast Mode.
“We are boating Friday, we are boating Saturday and we are boating Sunday,” Bennett said. “I always wanted to get back into boating when the time was right, and I am lucky enough to be financially able. But the best thing is that my kids are really interested in it, so it’s like this big family affair.”
Bennett has a second home under construction in Boca Raton, but it will not be ready for several months. In the meantime, he’ll keep the boat, which is powered by twin Mercury Racing 700SCi engines, at Grove Harbour Marina. He plans to travel to the facility on weekends and run the boat “four or five times a month” there until his waterfront Boca Raton residence—with its own dock—is finished.
When he ordered the V-bottom a year ago, Bennett thought he would go with a pair of 565-hp naturally aspirated engines from the Fond du Lac, Wis., high-performance marine propulsion and accessories company. But in talking with Outerlimits national sales manager Dan Kleitz during the build, he opted for bigger power.
His first test ride just two days ago near Outerlimits headquarters in Bristol, R.I., validated his engine-upgrade decision. Check out the video above or on the Speedonthewater.com YouTube page.
Enjoy more images of the latest Outerlimits SL 41 in the slideshow above.
“We were running 85 to 90 mph in three- to four-foot seas and I didn’t feel a thing,” Bennett said. “I was in awe. I couldn’t be happier. The handling was unbelievable. It comes on plane so easily. The boat went 112 right out of the box and Dan thinks we can get a few more miles per hour out of it—I’ve ordered some new props.
“It was all great,” he continued. “Everyone at the Outerlimits factory was so warm and welcoming. And Dan really put his heart and soul into it through the entire build.”
Kleitz made sure the boat began the long haul to Florida this afternoon so it can be there Friday morning for the Bennett family.
“Fred and his daughter had a great time here—they loved it,” he said. “And I think this week’s test session might have been their first 100-mph boat ride.”
The molten-hot 41-footer is on the road to South Florida.
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