Offshoreonly.com - Reggie's new 35 Lightning does 103 with 525's!!!

Fountain Powerboats Hosts Fourth Annual Dealer Meeting
Wednesday October 25, 9:45 am ET

Company Introduces Three New Boats at Dealer Meeting

"We also introduced the new 35' Lightning with significant enhancements to its deck and interior. The 35' Lightning is powered by two 525 horsepower Mercury engines for a top speed of 103 MPH"

That's smoking for a stock pleasure boat with 525's.

WASHINGTON, NC--(MARKET WIRE)--Oct 25, 2006 -- Fountain Powerboat Industries, Inc. (AMEX:FPB - News), a leading manufacturer of high performance sport boats, fish boats and express cruisers, announced today that more than 150 people attended their annual dealer meeting on October 16-17, 2006, held at the Fountain factory and Greenville Convention Center in Greenville, North Carolina.
ADVERTISEMENT

"This was by far the best gathering of our dealers in Fountain history," said David Knight, president of Fountain Powerboats. "The meeting as a whole was a tremendous success with the two-day program, break-out sessions and entertainment being received with great enthusiasm by our dealers."

Fountain dealers were taken to the company's 65-acre facility along the Pamlico River where the company's entire line of sport boats, fish boats and express cruisers were available for inspection and demonstration rides. Dealers were also treated to a comprehensive factory tour that included seeing boats in their design, building and final assembly phases.

"We introduced three new boats, the largest single release of products commensurate with a dealer meeting," said Knight. "We showcased the new 38' Sport Fish Cruiser with triple Mercury Verado outboard 275s -- it was the hit of the show and dealers loved the fuel efficiency when running at a top speed of 66 miles per hour (MPH). When we slowed down to our competitor's top speed of 42 MPH, we were getting 1.4 miles per gallon (MPG), compared to the .7 MPG of the competitor's boat. That's a 100 percent savings on fuel due in part to our unique hull design and a racing boat design adaptation applied to our cruiser line."

"We also introduced the new 35' Lightning with significant enhancements to its deck and interior. The 35' Lightning is powered by two 525 horsepower Mercury engines for a top speed of 103 MPH. And," continued Knight, "the dealers were very, very impressed with Fountain's first-ever billfish boat, the new 52' Express Fish that we will unveil to the public at the upcoming International Boat Show in Miami, Florida."

The dealer meeting was hosted by company founder and CEO Reggie M. Fountain, Jr. and the keynote speaker was Mercury Marine Products President Patrick C. Mackey, who was supported by 12 members of Mercury Marine's senior management. Also in attendance was an international representative of Fountain Worldwide, there to represent the 15 Fountain dealers around the world.

"While the marine industry as a whole is in a decline, we wanted to convey to our dealers that Fountain Powerboats stands alone with an increase in sales and market share," said Knight. "Fountain Powerboats and Fountain dealers have created a demand for our products and management measures this demand in orders and commitments. We far exceeded expectations for both orders and commitments during our dealer meeting and have essentially booked our production for fiscal 2007."

"When David told the dealers that Fountain chooses to ignore the decline and that we stand together with our dealers to execute the Fountain strategic business plan, which has resulted in a 11.3 percent growth in sales for fiscal 2006 ended June 30, he received a standing ovation," said CEO Reggie M. Fountain, Jr. "When our dealers succeed, we succeed. We make use of every tool at our disposal to aid our dealers. For example, Fountain is dedicated to new technologies that use less fuel while improving speed, stability and safety. The Fountain web site, which provides streaming media of our products in action, gets approximately seven million hits per month. At BoatTrader.Com, which tracks and captures inquiries and requests, Fountain is ranked #2, right in-between Sea-Ray (at #1) and Hatteras (at #3) in the forty to fifty foot powerboat category."

A highlight of the meeting was the award ceremony at the Greenville Convention Center. The Dealer awards presentation highlights individuals and dealers that have attained outstanding results in their Fountain Powerboats dealer program. "At Fountain, we place a great deal of emphasis on our dealers providing current and potential Fountain owners with the best care and customer service," said Knight. "It was our honor to present to Charlene Ollison of Raymond's Boat and Motor Sales in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri -- Fountain's oldest dealership -- the CSI AWARD for customer service for the second year in a row."

Shogren Performance Marine, located in Waukegan, Illinois received the 'Dealer of the Year' Award for 2006 with sales of approximately $8.6 million. "This was the most comprehensive and intensive dealer meeting imaginable," said Shogren Performance Marine owner Scott Shogren. "The itinerary, from dockside demonstrations to David's rousing speech, was inspiring and gave the dealers an understanding of the true commitment from Reggie, David, and everyone at Fountain Powerboats." Bluewater Yacht Sales of Hampton, Virginia won the 'Rookie of the Year' with sales of approximately $5.0 million.

About Fountain Powerboat Industries

Fountain Powerboat Industries has its executive offices and manufacturing facilities along the Pamlico River in Beaufort County, North Carolina. The company designs, manufactures and sells offshore sport boats, sport fishing boats and express cruisers that target the segment of the recreational powerboat market where speed, performance, safety and quality are the main criteria for purchase. These recreational boats are based upon an innovative, award-winning design enabling world class performance while using standard reliable power. There are currently 12 buildings located on 65 acres totaling over 237,000 square feet accommodating 40 to 45 boats in various stages of construction at any one time. The present plant site can also accommodate up to 300,000 square feet of additional manufacturing space. The land and buildings are wholly owned by Fountain Powerboat Industries, Inc. and its subsidiary, Fountain Powerboats, Inc. For more information, visit www.fountainpowerboats.com.

SAFE HARBOR FOR FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

Except for the historical information contained herein, this press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements containing the words "planned," "expects," "believes," "strategy," "opportunity," "anticipates" and similar words. Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties or other factors that may cause the company's actual results to be materially different from historical results or any results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date hereof. The potential risks and uncertainties which could cause actual growth and results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, customer acceptance of the company's services, products and fee structures, the success of the company's brand development efforts, the volatile and competitive nature of the industry, and changes in domestic and international market conditions, and foreign exchange rates. Further information on the factors and risks that could affect Fountain Powerboat Industries, Inc.'s business, financial condition and results of operations are included under the "Risk Factors" or "Factors Affecting our Operating Results" sections of Fountain Powerboat Industries, Inc. public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at (http://www.sec.gov).