Captain Torrance and his daughter Jean build a new motorboat, the Lady Torrance , with Speed Morrow, a young mechanic who wants to become a racer. With Speed driving, the boat performs well during a trial spin, much to the dismay of racketeers Langard and Lefty, who have been hired to protect the interests of a big boat manufacturer and insure that his driver, Pete Stenner, wins the race. Knowing that Speed's racing skills are superior to Pete's, Langard and Lefty buy Speed a couple of drinks on the day of the championship and then try to bribe him to throw the race. Speed refuses and proceeds to the course, where he makes an excellent showing. At the climax of the race Speed shares the lead with Pete, who pulls an underhanded maneuver that results in a collision. It appears as if Speed has caused the accident, in which another driver dies, and he is disqualified for driving while intoxicated. The furious Jean and Torrance then refuse to associate with him, and Speed goes on a heavy drinking binge. He then decides to board a ship bound for South America and, during the voyage, rescues Catfish Jones, a ten-year-old orphan who has run away from an asylum. Speed happily cares for the youngster and, needing money, accepts a job smuggling liquor supplied by Langard. Later, Speed's tender affection toward Catfish effects a reconciliation between himself and Jean, who then convinces her father to give Speed another chance in an upcoming race. Langard tries to prevent him from entering the race, but Speed eludes him. Langard then kidnaps Catfish, and Speed's search for the boy causes him to be late for the race. Jean begins the race herself and is trailing at the end of the first lap. When Speed arrives, he takes over, and has soon passed everyone but Pete. Pete tries to pull another dirty trick, but this time he hits a buoy and his boat explodes. Speed wins and immediately pursues Langard to his yacht, from which he rescues Catfish. Soon after, the Torrances sell their boat for a large profit, and Speed, who has been declared the champion speedboat racer, marries Jean.