The Palm Beach Post

November 13, 1994

They'll Race, Come High Water

Chris Dummit, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Stuart Hayim was controlling his frustrations. Ever since he successfully battled cancer in 1979, he doesn't sweat the small stuff.
Well, most of it. Hayim and his boat, Recovery, finished second Wednesday in the first of two races in the Superboat class of the $100,000 Key West World Championships. He was not kicking over chairs, but he was second-guessing.

``We are the kings of testing. We have folders on everything. We know everything there is to know about this boat,'' Hayim said Friday, while preparing for the final races, which begin at 11 a.m. today. ``But we ran out of time (before the Wednesday race.) We didn't test.''

Hayim's throttleman, Joey Imprescia, had altered a gear and there was no time to check the new setup. Hayim and Imprescia finished 1 minute, 8 seconds behind California newcomer Matt Alcone.

But don't count Hayim out.

The Great Neck, N.Y., racer has had five national or world championships in the Open class. He juiced the boat up this year to compete in Superboat racing, and is expecting equal success.

``It took us until this morning to get it right,'' he said. ``We think the boat will go 10-15 mph faster.''

That was before Hayim heard the weather forecast. The National Weather Service predicts 20-30 knot winds and 6-9 foot seas in the Keys today.

 Race officials said the finals will be run in Key West Harbor unless rescue helicopters cannot fly, something only lightning or heavy rain would cause.

``We're going to race,'' director John Carbonell said. ``We raced in Ocean City, Md., in 6-8 foot seas. They'll just slow down. There's also a possibility we'll reduce the number of laps.''

Carbonell, president of Super Boat Racing Inc., is running this mega-machine race. It is the largest field of vessels - 147 at registration - to ever compete in the 90-year history of offshore powerboating.

That's because Carbonell's organization has joined with squabbling rivals - the American Power Boat Association and the United States Offshore Racing Association - to put on one world championship event.

The reason for so many factions in offshore racing involves disagreements over making money, attracting television coverage and luring sponsorships. It's a sport groveling for acceptance.

Hayim and owners like Hank Harms of North Palm Beach hope to boost that image.

Hayim and Harms have missions.

Hayim has been donating much of his winnings to cancer research. Harms, who owns a company making filtration systems for pools and industrial uses, gives money to the YMCA to teach children to swim.

Hayim was diagnosed with lymphoma in 1979. He underwent surgery and six months of chemotherapy.

Hayim didn't start racing offshore boats until 1984. He said he had always loved the ocean and felt it was a ``last frontier for outdoor lunatics like us.''

Hayim's philosophy is tattooed across the back of his boat. It's a Bruce Springsteen line: ``Tramps like us, baby we were born to run.''

Recovery is 46 feet of muscle driven by twin MerCruisers with a total horsepower of 2,000. Her top speed is 160 mph.

The Superboat class is just one of nine that will race in these world championships including: Open, Modified, Pro I, Sportsman, Offshore C, Stock, Production A, and Factory. But it's the Superboats - some estimated to cost $1.5 million to $2 million - that are the main attraction.

These are the big boys. This is the high wire act.

Taped to the dashboard in Hayim's cockpit is a tiny genie's lamp. It has brought him luck.

``The morning of the race, I have an empty feeling,'' he said. ``I have three children and there is part of me that questions the wisdom of it. But that disappears as soon as the race starts