It had been raining for days when the Elco Motor Yachts team showed up in Newport, RI, for the Newport International Boat Show. As the crew made their way on an EP-50 powered Grumman pontoon boat from Fort Adams to the docks at Bannisters Wharf on the first morning of the show, the rain tapered off and the sun began to shine through. The team glanced about the boat and figured it was a good sign. It turns out that they were right.
The Newport International Boat Show is the kick-off event of the fall boat show season and one of the nation’s premier boat shows. and the show features new boats of all shapes and sizes from all over the world and the latest in gear and equipment.
Amongst the glistening yachts and new products, the new Elco EP-50 Electric Outboard Motor turned more than a few heads. Traditional on the outside, cutting-edge underneath, the Elco EP-50 won the Newport for New Products Best Green Product Award. Presented by Cruising World, Yachting, and Sailing World magazine, and judged by their expert editors, the Newport for New Products Awards celebrate the most innovative boats and equipment at the show.
“This was a year of true innovation,” said Nancy Piffard, show director of Newport Exhibition Group. “There were so many excellent entries; the judges had a hard task ahead of them. We are honored to have these new and exciting introductions launched at the Newport International Boat Show.”
“We’re really proud of this award,” said Dean Heinemann, Elco’s National Sales Director. “There were a lot of great new products this year and the competition was stiff. Our EP-50 is a game-changer for electric propulsion though. Boaters now have a practical option for electrifying planing hulls and large displacement vessels that want to maximize hull speed with our EP-30 and EP-50 models. Our founders of 1893 would be thrilled.”
The company introduced its new EP-5, EP-30 and EP-50 Electric Outboard Motors at the Newport International Boat Show in celebration of Elco’s 125th anniversary. The new motors double the company’s outboard motor line, which now range from 5HP to 50HP gas motor comparable. For more information on the new outboard motors, along with the rest of the company’s electric propulsion offerings, visit www.elcomotoryachts.com.