FRENCH TICKLER

photography by Todd Taylor

A relic from Donzi’s stable in the 1990s and early 2000s, the 33' ZX FRENCH TICKLER remains a frequent sight at speedboat events, and Chris French’s personal rocket is a beauty.

The 33' ZX Daytona became part of the Donzi lineup just about 30 years ago, and although it faded out of production after 2005, there are still quite a few of them around. It’s not at all unusual to see them at poker runs all around the country, and their perseverance has been well documented in these pages. “Rip across the water at speeds normally reserved for wide-open empty stretches of asphalt!” was the phrase Donzi once used to lure customers, and by all accounts, she was everything an offshore vessel should be.

Sporting a 9'3" beam and 32'6" overall length, the 33' ZX was, according to the reviews, comfortable and fast for its time. Base power was a pair of Mercury Racing HP500EFI engines, but when upgraded to twin HP575 SCis, one marine publication clocked their tester at 83+ mph at 5,200 rpm nearly two decades ago. According to their staff, the boat excelled in rough water, handling 2- to 5-foot seas very impressively.

Chris French can corroborate the 33’s agility and punch. The brick contractor based in Millstadt, IL, is very fond of his 2004-model Donzi, the imaginatively named French Tickler. French caught the boating bug as a young man, when a neighbor invited him and his family to hang out on their 21-foot Caravelle Interceptor bowrider at their local river. Later, when he bought his first house, part of the overall package was the 1986 26' Scarab XL. Still later, at the behest of his wife, French bought a 2003 25' Baja Outlaw.

“Then we visited a friend at the Lake of the Ozarks and started going down there a lot,” French recalls. “My wife said she wanted to go there more, but told her it

The 33' Donzi ZX came with twin Mercury Racing HP500EFI engines standard; French’s 33' is powered by twin 496HO Mags, which push it to 73 mph.

was a bad idea to go out on the weekend on a 25-footer at the Lake of the Ozarks. We’re going to get our butts kicked.” So, after a lengthy search, French discovered the 33' Donzi, which was located on Lake Mead in Las Vegas, NV. He’s the third owner of the boat, which is powered by a pair of Mercury Racing 496HOs.

Using the 33’ at LOTO takes a certain degree of skill and knowhow. “You have to know what you’re doing and where you gotta be,” French says. “If you’re out there on the Fourth of July or a busy holiday weekend, you’re going to get bounced around a little bit. But the majority of the weekends, we can get out in the middle of the lake and do 50 mph, and it’s a nice, comfortable ride. It handles the water pretty good—the dang thing’s so heavy, it breaks through a lot of the waves.” French reports a top speed of 73 mph.

“The handling of the boat is outstanding,” he says. “It responds when you turn the wheel and it does what you want it to do. It’s really nice.” As for amenities, the Donzi features electric bolster seats, cabin accent lighting, pop-up cleats, sliding Plexiglass door with lock, engine room fire extinguisher, engine room lighting, CMI exhaust, galley with stainless steel sink, top-load refrigerator, glove box, porta potti, sink, shower, K-planes, full external hydraulic steering, swim ladder, tie bar, windscreen and stock Gaffrig gauges. Some recent additions include a depth finder and some underwater LED lights, installed by the previous owner. French says he’d like to upgrade the boat further with some Livorsi gauges and shifters.

“We try to pick a project about once a year,” he says. “This year, we’re adding HydroGrip non-slip marine flooring; next year, we’re talking about putting a new stereo in it. We love being able to stay aboard the boat for a weekend if we want to.”

French, who pilots the French Tickler with his wife Stephanie and their 5-year-old son Lester, regularly attend the BFD (BajaFountain-Donzi) fun run at LOTO, and are hoping to attend the Support Our Troops Poker Run soon as well.