The Boat

The Bandit is a 34 foot Hunton Rib designed and built by Jeff Hunton of Hunton Powerboats. Hunton Powerboats have a long heritage in offshore powerboat races and have amassed a total of over 100 class wins. Jeff competed in the last Round Britain and plans to compete in the 2008 event. The Bandit is light but designed for speed and smoothness. It is expected that the boat will reach speeds in excess of 90mph.

Our key competition in the RB2 class will be the sister Hunton which is crewed by Iain May (Top Gear), James May (Top Gear) and Nick Knowles (DIY SOS). Their boat will run twin 425bhp diesels which are fine if you planning on running a taxi service. Fares please!

Without engines, the boat weighs only 1100 kilos. The fuel capacity is 1,800 litres. The Bandit is currently having new inboard engines installed. The engines are twin inboard Mercruiser High Performance 425hp engines and XR stern drives. The total engine capacity is 16.2 litres and total power output is 850hp

The work is being completed by MariNautic in Poole, renowned for their experience and expertise in high performance boating. MariNautic is involved with many of the teams in the UK Offshore Powerboat Championships.

In the Round Britain Offshore Race, The Bandit will be competing in the hotly contested RB2 Class in the race. This class is for boats with 33' minimum, 17,000cc maximum inboard capacity and naturally aspirated.