Nigel Hook on the UIM GPS season and decisive chance occurrences and meetings
Friday August 27th we had a chance encounter with Nigel Hook, throttle man of the UIM Grand Prix of the Sea #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge Evolution team. This gave us the opportunity to ask Nigel about his analysis of the season so far, his goals for the rest of the season and how he looks towards 2011. Nigel confided in us that getting ready for the 2010 season involved some chance occurrences and meetings that in hindsight proved decisive for the way the team and the championship are developing this season.
Leading up to Nigel´s feedback on how the Vector boat is performing this season, Nigel first takes us to how he came to be driving the Ocke Mannerfelt designed Vector boat in the UIM Grand Prix of the Sea championship. It all started with the 2009 crash of Nigel Hook and Joe Sgro in the Swedish Powerboat P1 race in Gothenburg in September. With the Outerlimits hull in shambles, Nigel wrapped up the season closer with the Skater he raced in 2008 and realized a whole new package was needed to compete in the 2010 season.
Photo credit: Gabriella Williams
Feeling comfortable together in the cockpit, the new #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team was born and work on a race hull based on the 40´ Vector pleasure hull was commissioned. To make sure all deadlines were met and the boat could be entered into the 2010 racing season Janet Wilson, stepped in as project manager for the team. Under Janet´s guidance the work took off and tests in Canada were done in January and the boat was in Florida for testing in February. Nigel stresses that not only Vector Powerboats came through for them but also Ilmor, the engine manufacturer the team chose to supply their naturally aspirated engines.
Nigel has a long standing relationship with Ilmor and raced a 1200 mile boat rally in South America with them as early as 2004. Apart from this testament to durability, the Ilmor engines are also the most fuel economic petrol engines in the UIM GPS field. This green stamp of approval together with the support they get from Ilmor was vital in choosing the engines for both Nigel Hook and Michael Silfverberg.
Starting the 2010 UIM Grand Prix of the Sea series with a whole new package, fourth place in the championship and 2nd as a best result in the races so far, makes Nigel happy. Developing a team and getting the speed needed to take first in racing takes time. As an example Nigel looks at the team currently in the #1 spot in the championship, MetaMarine Corse, to make that point. “The team has been together for a long time and only this year they have found the right package to make it to top spot. To get everything right can take time. But it is great to see it coming together for them and having Diesel engines in the top spot of the championship is certainly an interesting development” Hook says.
Hook obviously hopes his team can take a steep learning curve and he thinks the team is now set on improving performance the rest of the season. #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge has high hopes to end the season on the podium according to Hook. Nigel is also convinced the team now has a good basic package and with some time to make improvements during the off season, the team can have a go at the championship next year.
Whether the boat will stay in Europe to make the planned improvements or gets moved back to the US is not yet clear. If it does get shipped to the USA, Nigel assures us we can expect it to be entered in the Super Boat International Key West World Championships.
Apart from development on the boat, Michael Silfverberg´s ever growing experience in the cockpit will be the key factor in becoming number one in the championship next year. Nigel says he has great admiration for James Sheppard, former back to back champion in this class, with whom he had the privilege of working together. “I like James’ aggressive but clean style of racing. James has a lot of natural ability and the drive to work to improve his skills in the boat. I see the same with Michael. He is prepared to work to improve but is also a natural driver. I see the same thing for instance with Luca Formilli Fendi in the UIM GPS series, aggressive and clean driving. Working with Michael this season, I would say his ability as a driver is up there with James and Luca”.
At the end of our chat, Nigel stresses that he would like to express his gratitude to Jean-Marie van Lancker and Kathy van den Hende for making a racing season in 2010 a reality. Both stepped in after Powerboat P1 decided April 1st of this year that they were not to organize a P1 season in 2010. “The both of them have worked so hard and made such sacrifices to make a 2010 season a reality. We as a racing community are very grateful to them. If they wouldn’t have taken over, I think this racing class would have come to a sudden and preliminary end” Nigel says. “Now that it is almost certain we will do a full 5 race championship this year, I think we look even better for next year. There are already more sponsors who would like to get involved next year and rumors are buzzing that we will even get in a promoter of the series. If this all turns out to become a reality next season, I am sure we can expect a lot of great racing from the series in years to come”
“In hindsight it is really astounding that chance events like our accident in Sweden last year, Michael and I meeting in Brussels and Powerboat P1 backing out of promoting the P1 series let to an all new team and an all new boat performing in an all new championship that looks set to be the strongest package we ever had, both as a team and as a championship. I am really looking forward to the coming races in Bacoli and Sicily and as a team we have real high hopes for 2011”.
Check back regularly as we will keep you updated here on PowerboatPro on the exploits of #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team’s performance in the UIM Grand Prix of the Sea series.
Links:
http://www.vectorpowerboats.com
http://www.mannerfeltdesignteam.com
Article courtesy of Nigel Hook, pictures courtesty of the #77 Lucas Oil Scandinavian Offshore Challenge team.
