Whitewater Boat Corporation, Miami's Guide-Favorite Deep-Vs

The other half of the SeaVee story

The factory sits at 280 Northwest 73rd Street in Miami. Its roots go back to SeaVee, which Salt Water Sportsman says Don McGee started in 1974; that company eventually divided into two independent builders, SeaVee Boats and Whitewater Boats. The year Whitewater began operating under its own banner is something we have not been able to pin down. The company website, still showing a 2008 copyright notice, says two decades and more of feedback from guides, divers and repeat owners have shaped the boats.

Salt Water Sportsman identified Norman Collins as the owner in 2007 and described Whitewater as one of offshore fishing's best-kept secrets, a tiny operation with an outsized following among Key West guides and tournament crews. Public agencies have ordered tailored versions too, among them the Coral Gables Police marine unit, the underwater recovery team at Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, Biscayne National Park and the Florida Institute of Oceanography.

One naming trap to avoid: White Water Marine, a dealership in Sayville, New York, shows up in the same search results but is an unrelated business.

A single hull philosophy in three sizes

Whitewater does not chase trends. Each boat starts from the same construction plan: hand-laid fiberglass over four stringers running the full length, shaped into a deep-V that measures 24 degrees at the transom. Sizes are limited to 25, 28 and 32 feet, and the builder says any of them can be towed legally across the country. Openfish center console and cuddy versions exist for the 28 and 32, while the 25 is Openfish only. Because nothing is built on spec, customers pick the outboard make, bracket or notched transom, livewell setup, tops and, on the two larger boats, even a single diesel. Hulls come in white unless the buyer pays for another color.

The Whitewater 28 is the model we review in full, including its dimensions, power range, tankage and the Salt Water Sportsman sea trial on twin Mercury OptiMax outboards. At the brand level it is the boat that best explains the reputation: light, simple and quick for its size.

Living without a dealer network

There is no dealer layer between buyer and builder, which means service falls to the factory itself and to whichever outboard shop the owner trusts. Hull coverage is a lifetime warranty limited to the first owner, so anyone buying secondhand should plan on having none. We were also unable to verify whether boats are still being built today.

Most used Whitewaters trade hands privately around South Florida and the Keys, frequently out of guide fleets, and repowered 28s with twin four-strokes command the strongest money. Since no two boats left the shop alike, shop by equipment and condition rather than by model year.

• Meter the transom, stringers and deck for moisture, because the builder acknowledges some wood in the structure
• Look closely at bracket attachment points or any repaired notch in the transom
• Inspect the fuel tanks that sit under the deck beside the stringers
• Find out how a four-stroke repower affected running trim on such a light hull
• Request the factory build sheet so the options and tank size can be confirmed