The International Hot Rod Association has named Todd Graham as Lead Diver for its offshore powerboat racing series, bringing more than four decades of public safety diving experience and 15 years of offshore racing rescue to a role that had been publicly advertised since February.
The appointment addresses concerns that surfaced when Powerboat News reported in early February that IHRA had posted public job listings for rescue divers with its first offshore event seven weeks away, following the breakdown of talks with SSR Safety and Rescue Services – the established safety provider across American offshore racing.
Todd Graham
Graham has been a certified diver since 1981 and has held a NAUI Instructor qualification since 1993. He is the owner of Aquaman Diving, based in Dania Beach, Florida, where he operates as chief instructor alongside offering standby rescue and surface water rescue services commercially. He has managed dive operations from New York to Qatar across his career.
After his service in the U.S. Army as a paramedic, Graham spent 15 years with the Florida Department of Fire Services, rising to Lieutenant. He holds current EMT/Paramedic certification and integrates medical response directly into rescue protocols. That background shapes the way Aquaman Diving is structured – its Elite Rescue Diver course and first responder training reflect the same standards Graham has applied throughout his public safety career.
As a NAUI instructor, Graham has trained public safety dive teams across law enforcement and fire rescue agencies across the United States. He has served as Vice-Chair of the NAUI Public Safety Committee and is the author of nationally sanctioned rescue training curriculum used by public safety dive teams across the country. His offshore racing rescue experience spans more than 15 years, operating in the high-speed environments that demand rapid response, capsule extraction, and co-ordination with medical and on-water rescue crews.
The original IHRA job specifications in February had required applicants to hold “SFI Foundation rescue diver certification.” SSR subsequently contacted SFI directly; the Foundation confirmed that no such certification exists. SSR’s statement on the matter described the requirement as deeply concerning to experienced safety professionals. Graham’s appointment is built on NAUI qualification and documented operational experience across two decades of offshore racing.
Harshfield and the team structure
Working alongside Graham will be David Harshfield as Team Training Coordinator, responsible for diver operations, capsule rescue training, and co-ordination between rescue teams and race management. The team has already been training together ahead of the season.
Graham will work directly with IHRA safety leadership and on-water rescue teams, with the Lead Diver role covering diver co-ordination, operational readiness, and rescue training protocols. The appointment follows IHRA’s earlier safety hires: Bob Teague as Chief Referee and Gary Stray as Technical Director, announced in February.
Bergamo Scuba Angels
IHRA has also announced a collaboration with Bergamo Scuba Angels (BSA), an Italian organisation that has been operating in water rescue for more than 18 years and which holds one of the most extensive track records in international powerboat racing safety.
BSA is the official rescue team for the Italian powerboat federation (FIM – Federazione Italiana Motonautica), the UIM XCAT World Series, the Class 1 Offshore World Championship, UIM F2, and the America’s Cup. The organisation is led by Fabrizio Boffi, a former Italian paratrooper and paratrooper instructor with more than 35 years of diving experience, 25 of those as an instructor, and more than 100 rescue missions to his name.
BSA’s helicopter rescue capability has been developed through a long-term operational partnership with Italy’s military helicopter unit, the Nucleo Elicotteri Carabinieri di Orio al Serio. The team has trained a select number of personnel specifically for helicopter-based rescue and recovery operations – a discipline that requires a different set of skills and reaction times from in-water rescue alone.
BSA is officially recognised by the International Powerboat Organization as the certifying authority for the turtle test – the mandatory cockpit extraction qualification required of all drivers competing in enclosed-cockpit powerboat formulas. Drivers must pass the test, which involves being strapped into a mock cockpit that is submerged and inverted, every 14 months. The test has been administered by BSA at XCAT and Class 1 events worldwide.
The organisation has responded in live incidents at the highest level of international offshore racing. In 2013 at the XCAT World Championship in Fujairah, a collision between two Australian boats left driver Ross Willaton upside down and submerged. BSA divers extracted him after he became unable to exit through the main hatch unaided. The incident is documented in detail and stands as one of the clearest demonstrations of why helicopter-deployed rescue divers are central to the modern offshore safety model.
Through the collaboration with IHRA, BSA leadership will work alongside IHRA safety officials and the diver team on rescue auditing, training protocols, and operational standards for offshore racing.
Training under way
Capsule certification sessions and rescue exercises are scheduled this weekend, with the first IHRA Offshore round in St. Petersburg, Florida on March 27. IHRA has committed to highly trained rescue divers at every course, standardised capsule rescue training, and continued review through external expertise and auditing.
Safety remains the foundation of offshore racing. With experienced leadership and continued training, IHRA events will be supported by professional rescue teams prepared to respond immediately in the most demanding racing environments.IHRA
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
