1994 Offshore Powerboat World Championship in Key West

In November of 1994 I got to photograph the Offshore Powerboat World Championship from the land, a chartered yacht and a helicopter. The championship was sanctioned by four offshore racing associations which attracted over 140 entries, the most assembled at a single site in the entire 90 years of the sport. Pilot/owner Stuart Hayim and throttleman Joey Imprescia won the Superboat Class in "Recovery". Pilot Kimitoshi Hosotani and throttleman Bobby Moore took the Open Class win in "Katana".

The race turned tragic when Tom Gentry rolled his boat while racing with Recovery around the turn in front of the Pier House. While the throttleman Richie Powers escaped without injury, Tom Gentry was trapped inside the boat and was unresponsive when the rescue team reached him. He was admitted to the hospital in critical condition and didn't recover.

This video shows most of my experience covering the event and the thrill I had hanging out of a helicopter taking pictures and video of the race boats just a few feet below while flying at 140 mph. I've done a lot of very cool things as a photographer and this ranks right near the top!

Видео 1994 Offshore Powerboat World Championship in Key West канала One Photographer's Life