You may have seen them breathing fire, performing at raunchy car and FMX stunt-shows or displaying wild behavior that would even make rockers such as The Rolling Stones look on in shock. Now the Fuel Girls can add a competitive motorsports team to its growing list of achievements.
Racing away from their more familiar extreme car and FMX show arenas, the Fuel Girls have turned their attentions to conquering the seas in the Powerboat P1 SuperStock Championship.
Competing in the UK's most exciting new motorsport, Vanessa and Sam Fuel have managed to go from complete powerboat amateurs to fully fledged seadogs, or rather sea goddesses, in the space of three weeks.
A fifth place finish at the season-opening Penzance Grand Prix of the Sea proved they do not look out of place amongst their more experienced peers on the water. Even with only a few hours of training under the tutelage of race expert Neil Holmes at his powerboating training school in Southampton, both Vanessa and Sam, are commandeering as much conversation in the pits for their execution around the tight turns as much as their bikini-clad apparel.
"Attentive and safe" may not be words normally associated with the Fuel Girls but after picking up skills in three weeks that it takes most pilots several months to master, Holmes believes the girls have "gelled very well together and have shown massive potential to move up the rankings quicker than expected."
The change in attitude and easing the foot off the throttle was a substantial adjustment to the fast and furious lifestyle of a Fuel Girl but this routine pit stop is "not part of the long-term plan," according to Sam. She said: "Everything Neil taught us made perfect sense. As soon as the green flag went, it was go-go-go! It was perfect. We've spent a lot of time learning the theory so we understood that in our first race it was important to complete the race."
Having set a three-month target of topping the podium, Vanessa concedes it was difficult to fight off her natural instincts to "give it some." She said: "I'm a perfectionist. It was hard accepting fifth place in Penzance because neither of us is here to race half-hearted. We'll be pushing ourselves and the boat in future to make sure we get on that podium before the end-of-the-year."
The Fuel brand has moved on from its original days as a record label making twisted breakbeat music for car sound systems. Pumping party anthems out of customised PA Systems powered by hydraulics fixed into the boots of 1970s dodge challengers, DJ Hero, Fat Boy Slim, once played to huge crowds at Glastonbury from on top of a Fuel Girl motor.
Their fanbase is huge. Some 40,000 are signed up to their official website with 5000 linked into their Facebook page. Built up from attendances at the Gumball Rally, Masters of Dirt, Modball and almost every European Car show where the girls would cause complete mayhem with their on-stage high octane antics, the Fuel Girls is a phenomenon that refuses to conform to social protocol.
With 100s of girls applying every week to join the team, international press coverage for tearing up 5* hotels and being thrown out of Vegas nightclubs, as well as being the pied piper for many wandering male eyes, those who follow the Fuel Girls buy into the dream.
"We have an amazing group of die hard female fans that follow us on facebook and comment on everything we do. The girls appreciate what we're doing and realise the important messages we send out." said Vanessa.
Often seen traveling around the world the Fuel Girls ensure they leave their trademark at each party. Sometimes taking in three countries in 24 hours, their work hard, party hard lifestyle isn't for a girly girly.
Vanessa said: "Instead of just standing around, I wanted to do what the guys were doing. I didn't want to be another boring blonde promo girl that gives out flyers.
"If you can't carry your own suitcase, moan all of the time, and don't know how to have fun, you wouldn't stand a chance. We like girls that know how to have a laugh, love to party and isn't intimidated to try new things.
Sam only recently joined the group and instantly took up the challenge of powerboat racing. Having first applied to become a fuel girl in 2009 and after months of persistence she eventually got the call after an approach from Powerboat P1.
It's a measure of the dedication of the group and its fans that even warnings carrying life-and-death consequences did not put Sam off her assault on the British powerboat racing series. She said: "I literally got the phone call on Tuesday asking if I would be interested in powerboat racing and an explanation of the risks involved but the danger and challenge sounded wicked."