Shawn Butterfield is relishing the opportunity to showcase his talents on the US powerboat racing scene.

The 51-year-old has joined forces with Sarasota-based team Irish Kevin's, where he serves as throttle man on their 22ft Velocity.

“I’ve been hooked up with a couple of friends out here for a few years and been on the racing scene back and forth,” Butterfield told The Royal Gazette.

“The opportunity came up in February and the first race we did was Cocoa Beach. This is the first time getting back in a boat to race in three or four years and it’s fun and pretty good. It’s a lot of work and you are racing against guys that have been doing this for years and are well seeded.

“The class we race is a bracket class, so the fastest you can go is 60mph, but running a boat at 60mph is a lot more difficult than most people think, just to be able maintain without breaking up.

“In Bermuda I raced a 21ft Skater for years but this is definitely a very different atmosphere out here and quite good actually, with the camaraderie

“The guys are more than willing to help to do anything. We had a few problems and had some of the other teams coming over to our shop to bring us something that we needed or help us out, so it’s really good.”

The team rejoined the racing circuit after their boat underwent a major overhaul at last weekend’s Clearwater Offshore Nationals in Clearwater Beach, Florida, where Butterfield and his colleagues endured their share of challenges on the water during the opening day of racing.

“The second race we had an issue. The boat went into guardian mode and we had low voltage, which kind of shut us down but we were not too upset,” Butterfield said.

“That was the first time we had been back in the boat since we put it back together and it was like trial and error. We got a bit of seat time to see how the boat is handling and how everything runs, and had some long nights and days over the last week or so.”

The Warwick resident performed a juggling act at the event as he also served among the inshore crew of Team Bermuda, who clinched the Super Stock National Championship in the season-ending XInsurance Great Lakes Grand Prix the following day in their 32ft Doug Wright twin-engined catamaran, helmed by driver David Selley and boat and throttle man Steven Bridges.

“I’ve been out here travelling with S25 Team Bermuda and helping them when I can,” Butterfield said.

Bermuda powerboats ruled the waves in Florida, with Nuff Said winning the season-finale XInsurance Great Lakes Grand Prix and Team Bermuda finishing third to clinch a maiden Super Stock national title.