Ok

I have been thinking about racing for way too long now and I think its time to try my kick at the can.
I am not really into the round and round races but the Around The Long Island race is what I would like to try and hopefully there will be more circuits like it in the future and hopefully some on the west coast were I live.If not, then round and round it is. Its not in the cards this year but 2016 is the year so there is a lot of time for prep.

Poker runs is all I have done so needles to say I know nothing about racing a boat, but I am eager to learn.
I have a full fab shop and a tone of fibreglass experience and have owned a boat shop in the past.

My boat is a 2006 y2k, 496, Xr. with full hydro steering and the usual Y2k set up.

I was thinking to install the Raylar 525 kit on the engine as I had good results with past boats.

What do you guys think I need?
Extra fuel tank?
Balast tank?
Bigger Engine?
More Practice?

Thanks in advance

I don't race but I know a enough about it to put my 2 cents in What do you guys think I need?.........Plenty of money
Extra fuel tank?..........NO
Balast tank?............Depends on how your boats attitude is , you probably won't know until your in it . All Y2K's are different
Bigger Engine?.........525 Will get the job done but your probably gonna need 700 hp to be competitive
More Practice?.........Seat time will only make you better

What do you guys think I need? Ditto, plenty of money
Extra fuel tank? No
Balast tank? Ours runs much better with some water in the ballast tank, especially in rough water. I'd recommend it.
Bigger Engine? You will need 650-700hp to be competitive, I doubt a modded 496HO will hold up with that much power at such a high RPM the entire time. We have a 700hp Saris Racing Engine, it runs great.
More Practice? Just go out when it's rough and mess around, practice turning, then your first couple races will be good practice before you really get the hang of it.

This is based off our setup for class 5 OPA, which is an around and round type race.

Remember you have to finish!

I would work on fuel range and
cruise speed. I believe if you could
cruise at 55 to 60 with no fuel stop
you would have a good chance.

Thanks for the replies guys.
I know it won't be cheap but I think I already have sponsors on board so that will help out a bit.

RockyS18
Did you build your water tank or just buy a generic plastic tank? What capacity is it?

myturn
I agree with you Finishing is the most important part for now. No fuel stops should make it somewhat competitive.

Does anybody know how big the water gets around the island?

thanks

I'm not sure the size, probably 20-30 gallons. The ballast tank was done by Superboat when the boat was new. Also, if you intend on doing the around Long Island race, an extra fuel tank would be helpful. But it's 171 miles (if I remember correctly), that still is a long way to go without filling up anywhere when you're running at a competitive speed/RPM. For a short race that's a few laps around a course like OPA, you wouldn't want another fuel tank.

Still no Superboats:
http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/g...nd-race-2.html