Genuine Article

The Skater 388 is everything a big-buck offshore catamaran should be.

The average performance-boat owner doesn’t have a 38-foot Skater catamaran at his dock. Heck, the average performance boater owner doesn’t have a dock, much less an exquisite custom-built catamaran tied to it. More likely, the average performance-boat owner has a single-engine V-bottom. Just as likely, he is not the boat’s first owner. But that doesn’t mean he’s not dreaming of a Skater.

Many go-fast boaters aspire to own a Skater because Peter Hledin and his crew at Douglas Marine have set the bar for performance and quality throughout the years.

An afternoon of testing a delightful Skater 388 this fall reminded us why. Sure, we had the catamaran, which we knew from prior experience was designed for offshore water, on the tame Colorado River. But the 150-plus-mph cat displayed everything we’ve come to know about Skater models.

PERFORMANCE

Owned by former offshore racer and entrepreneur Larry Kramer, our test boat was equipped with 1,200-horsepower Teague Custom Marine fuel-injected supercharged engines and was set up to run at Lake Tahoe, where the lake altitude is more than 6,000 feet. At that altitude, horsepower loss can be dramatic. The setup included 1.29:1 gears in the No. 6 drives and 39"-pitch Mercury CNC five-blade propellers.

With the engines turning 6,060 rpm, a full 500 rpm below their maximum operating range, the boat reached 154.3 mph. Set up for top speed with the same power at sea level, the boat would top 160 mph in the estimation of Powerboat’s lead test driver Bob Teague.

“The way it’s (now), this boat is blistering quick,” said Teague, who was, of course, referring to the Skater’s wicked standing-start and midrange acceleration.

With its Mercury Racing 280S K-Planes up, the 388 came on plane in 3.1 seconds and less than 17 seconds later it was running 108 mph. That’s moving.

Even with its trim tabs all the way down, the 388 came out of the hole with a completely level attitude. That’s uncommon for a full-size offshore boat, even a catamaran.

“You never lose sight of the horizon in this boat coming on plane, even when you’re sitting down,” Teague said. “The only time you’re going to use the tabs is when you take it out in the open ocean and you encounter various sea conditions.”

Also worth noting, the wraparound canopy did a great job of keeping wind off the driver, co-pilot and rear passengers at all speeds.

“One of the other cool things about this boat is that it doesn’t require a lot of trim,” Teague added. “In fact, when you start with the drives all the way down bringing them up a little bit is all it takes to free the sponsons. It actually runs best with the drives a little bit negative.”

Midrange bite was just as sharp—and impressively consistent. The catamaran shot from 40 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds, 40 to 70 mph in 6.1 seconds and 60 to 100 mph in 7.2 seconds.

Per Skater tradition, the 388’s handling manners were simply excellent. It turned flat at low speeds, leaned in at high speeds and held a pure, straight line at any speed. Clearly, Hledin’s design strategy of listening to the best drivers in the performance-boat world comment on his products, and making changes based on those comments, continues to pay off.

INTERIOR

Like most Skaters, the 388 had no cabin. But it did have a perfectly equipped cockpit. The layout included high-back bucket seats for the driver and co-pilot and a four-position, bucket-style bench for the rear passengers.

Each passenger spot on the bench had a vinyl grab handle within easy reach, and as noted before, the wraparound windscreen provided excellent protection. A Tiger Performance headset intercom system allowed passengers to talk when the boat was at speed.

The Skater 388 didn’t have much in the way of stowage options in its cockpit. Then again, not many purpose-built hot rod catamarans do. In terms of gear you take with you, there’s not much you need to bring for an afternoon of blasting across a lake at 150 mph. However, the builder did include large openings for access to the carpeted stowage spaces in the properly padded gunwales.

Though a few of the Livorsi Marine gauges were located on the co-pilot’s dash, most were front and center at the helm command center. In addition to the analog instruments, there was a Garmin 4208 GPSMAP unit, rubber-booted aircraft-quality accessory switches in a Bluewater panel and Latham Marine throttles and shifters. The Latham controls were mounted in a molded podium between the bucket seats.

WORKMANSHIP

Completely constructed with composites including epoxy and carbon fiber, the 388 was a work of art like just about every Skater we’ve seen. Although its in-house paintwork wasn’t as elaborate as that of other Skaters we’ve seen, it was bright and clean. Tooling of the custom deck—Skater has no deck molds so technically every Skater deck is custom—was impeccable.

Hardware was chosen to maintain the lines of the 38-footer. Pieces included retractable cleats, push-pin connector fenders and a telescoping navigation light. The four-section windshield met the deck without seams, and its center angle was adjustable thanks to a gas strut. A tunnel-boat-style mirror was mounted on each side of the cockpit.

Twin power hatches with ventilation scoops covered the engine compartment and stainless-steel pin latches on each hatch provided an extra measure of security.

Skater uses a substantial rail system for securing its engines, and of course, our test boat boasted that stout mounting setup. The engine compartment was rigged in race-boat fashion, meaning clean, uncluttered and properly supported with evenly spaced stainless-steel cushion clamps.

OVERALL

There’s no denying that a few other builders offer top-flight offshore catamarans. There’s also no denying that Skater established—and continues to set—the benchmark by which all other high-performance catamarans are measured. With great looks, exceptional construction and flawless performance, the 388 provided yet another example of why Skater is the boat that many go-fast lovers would like to own.

Click to enlarge.