Race boats
DAC Race boat
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Construction Materials
The entire boat is manufactured from carbon fibre/kevlar composites and foam core vacuum moulded under high pressure. Different sections of the boat are moulded and the glued together using a very strong adhesive that works esepcially well with composite materials.
F1 racing uses tunnel hull catamarans that are capable of both high speed and exceptional maneuverability. Overall, the boats 390kg, including 118kg of engine. They are about 6 metres long and 2 metres wide, keeping weight low through extensive use of carbon fiber and kevlar. The tunnel hull design creates an air cushion under the hull, so that at speed only a few inches touch the water, leading to the high speed possible with these hulls.
The Engine
The engine is a Electronically Fuel Injectied (EFI) 2.0 litre V6 MERCURY Racing 2 stroke power unit. F1 boats are powered by a Mercury Marine V6 two stroke that runs on Avgas, generating 350 horsepower at a limited 9,250 rpm. This engine can propel the boats to 100 km/h in less than two seconds and to a maximum speed of over 210 km/h.
Safety
Although F1 boats have not changed much in appearance since the start of the event, the construction and safety has been dramatically improved from the original open-cockpit plywood boats.
