I would give Will at Phantom a call. They make a very nice 29 and
has always been very helpful with finding more speed in the bottom. And, if my memory serves me correctly, he has quite a few teams racing in F1, F2, Super V Lite single, and Super V Lite twin that are racing competitive. I have ridden in the 29 and with the single HP500efi it is able to see speeds of 75-80. It was a very comfortable sit-down ride and a solid feel when landing from a wave and not getting wet. But I am also partial to other brands like the Apache 28 and especially the 28 Pantera. All three are good choices. :)

29 warlocks at APBA specs only run about 78,your bat boat should run about the same....under severe conditions the warlock will out run,and out handle that boat.anybody can add extra horsepower to hit the 100 mph mark,but that boat will be left behind in ruff conditions with the right person behind the throttles of a 29 warlock.the simple fact of weight,wetted runnin surface and airtime all come into play at these speeds.please dont get me wrong,those are kick but boats.....but its like sayin my F-1 will outrun and out handle a super-v.....it aint gonna happen!!!!!!even if I put a thousand hoesepower in it.....

Single Power
 

Thanks for all the suggestions. I really should have thrown in a little more info. The wife is definately going to want a finished cabin, a swim deck, and a cussion on the engine compartment. I don't know how to turn a wrench on a motor, so I want a good reliable, low maintenance machine:) any ideas?

if your wife wants a comepleted cabin,youre gonna hafta narrow that down with her a little more,alot of these 29 single boats are totally different and dont have a lot of headroom in them,mainly sitdown room,and as we all know the wifes demands are very important when spending that much money.....as for dependaple power,id reccommend the 496 HO,you should get the best of both worlds with it,dependability and some great speeds....

Single Power
 

Headroom isn't all that important as long as there is a comfortable refuge from the rain and a place for her to take a leak. What do you think about the 500 EFI

I keep seeing BatBoats show up in threads and its seems they always want to compare them to true V-bottoms with cabins & amenities... Wouldn't a better comparison be with a 24 or 28 Skater? I would think then you'd be comparing apples to apples....

The HP500 EFI is a very reliable motor. Many teams have racked up well over 150 race hours on 500s with only general maintenance and replacing the valve springs(Merc recomends replaceing the spring at 150hrs). I have a 27' Factory 1 Warlock with the EFI and love it.

Re: Single Power
 

How about a 25' Active Thunder, with opposing setees' and V-berth in cabin, nice thick padded engine hatch, deep freeboard, and reliable 80mph speed?

See the classifieds for more info.

steve s is right about the 27 world class,great boats,HP 500 is a great motor,beat the hell outta one myself,and the 27 world class is alot better handling boat at high speeds.......