It's been a whirlwind since the Miami International Boat Show-following up with all the people we met and traveling to New Jersey for the Offshore Performance Association (OPA) Awards.

I'll start with the latter as it by far the most colorful. The OPA event took place at the beautiful, 100-year-old Seaview Hotel outside of Atlantic City. The hotel looked like something out of the movie “The Shining.” It was good to see the old gang and discuss the future of the GEICO series. A new TV deal was announced by Scotty Colton, and Scotty Begovich was in negotiations with the rest of the Jersey Boyz … as usual at the Lobby Bar. It was a nice event held at a warm and cozy seafood restaurant on Barnegat Bay.

Returning home we were greeted to the arrival of Team Qatar's two amazing Class 1 catamarans, which will be housed at the Riviera Beach race shop in Florida. Work at the shop has picked up pace with the season just three months away and the crew on six days a week now. The Miss GEICO Mystic is undergoing an amazing transformation as she becomes one step closer to the space shuttle. The Powerboat P1 Honey Party Skater and the Supercat Talk 'N Trash Skater are in for safety and canopy upgrades. It's good to see my fellow racers taking safety seriously … another step forward.

Finally, John Haggin took a step forward in age last week … our owner turned 53 last weekend and in his usual crazy way bought two first-class tickets to fly Scotty B and I out to Phoenix to celebrate. With so much going on, it was not to be … however, we promised each other to adjourn to the Tiki Bar next week to plan our next adventure (I'll keep you guys updated on what will surely be a weekend to remember). As nutty as it sounds, Scotty and I have grown accustomed to Haggin and his “hard left turns.” It keeps us on our toes.