Fountain Powerboats Posts Orders Approaching $17 Million at the Most Successful Miami International Boat Show in Company History

Washington, NC - February 28, 2006 - Fountain Powerboat Industries, Inc. (AMEX:FPB), a leading manufacturer of high performance sport boats, fish boats and express cruisers, announced record orders of nearly $17 million at the 65th Annual Miami International Boat Show, held February 16-20, 2006, in Miami, Florida. This year's sales eclipsed the prior Miami boat show record set by the company in 2005 by approximately 40 percent. With a total order backlog now approaching $54 million, the North Carolina-based manufacturer said sales are on target for the 2006 fiscal year, which ends June 30.

"The Miami boat show was spectacular and the most important show of the year for us. We did the largest volume ever - we've never had it better," said Fountain Powerboats CEO Reggie Fountain, who attributes the company's sales growth to the powerful brand image it has cultivated through 26 years of offshore racing, tournament fishing and aggressive marketing, and to building high-quality, no-compromise boats.

"The company left the show with more than 4,500 leads that will be added to Fountain Powerboats' tracking database and distributed to its dealers worldwide," commented Fountain Powerboat Executive Vice President David Knight. "This show has been outstanding," continued Knight. "The number of people coming through the booth, from the starting bell on Thursday to the very end of the show, has been superior to any in the history of Fountain Powerboats."

While the company mounted three displays within the enormous Miami International Boat Show complex, including in-water demo docks, a constant flow of foot traffic was drawn to its state-of-the-art multimedia booth at the Miami Beach Convention Center. The booth, styled to provide the look and feel of Fountain Powerboats, featured examples of nearly every boat model across the three lines it offers, all sporting eye-catching custom hull graphics. Seventeen domestic and 11 international Fountain dealers staffed the booth, which also offered Fountain Powerboat sportswear for retail sale.

"Everywhere you go in Miami this weekend, they're talking about the Fountain booth," said David M. Cavallaro, Chief Operating Officer of Lighthouse Boat Center Inc., in Key Largo, FL, one of Fountain's largest dealers. His firm carries the entire range of Fountain boats. "The product offerings are in such high demand, we can't keep them in stock," he said. In Lighthouse Boat Center's South Florida territory, Fountain's signature stepped hulls, which improve performance without adding horsepower, offer the sales team an advantage over competitors' products. "The stepped hull gives the boats phenomenal range and fuel economy," added Cavallaro.

Three new 2006 Fountain offshore models made their world debut at the Miami show: The Fountain 38 Open center console fish boat, the 38 Lightning offshore high performance sport boat, and the 42 Lightning, its larger sister, featuring a redesigned cockpit.

The 38 Open is designed to offer anglers an open-bow alternative to the Fountain 38 Tournament Edition, which has a cuddy cabin forward topped by a nonskid casting platform. The Open version removes the cuddy, providing a large, uncluttered forward cockpit for fighting fish. Locking rod storage is provided in nine-foot lockers in the sole.

The new 38 Lightning hits a sizzling top speed of 105 mph with twin 600-hp hand-engineered Mercury Racing sterndrives. Beneath Fountain's hallmark clamshell hatch, the engine configuration is full-stagger, which moves the boat's center of gravity forward, improving performance in rough water. The race-style cockpit includes Fountain's new, roomier Hi-Wrap drop-out bolsters, designed to provide two-tiered ergonomic support in both sitting and standing positions.

The race-style cockpit on the best-selling 42 Lightning offshore sport boat has been redesigned for ultimate comfort at speed. This model now features Fountain's custom Hi-Wrap bolsters, providing more space between the driver and the helm. The single-panel Monster Gauge dash gives the controls a sporty new look. All Fountain powerboats are offered with an array of attention-grabbing, high-end graphics packages from mild to wild. Custom graphics that transfer straight from your imagination to the hull sides are also available.

"When you combine more models of boats, more and better dealers than ever before, and the brand image that we've been building for twenty-six years, all these things together are giving us this big boost," Reggie Fountain said. "Every year I see us gaining speed."