P1 SuperStock Bournemouth - IFX Racing get season off to flying start

by P1 SuperStock on 3 Jun 2014 ‘Catch us if you can’ was the clear message from IFX Racing in the opening round of the 2014 SuperStock race series. But it wasn't all plain sailing for the Buckinghamshire-based crew of Nick Williams and Martin Robinson. After losing all communications in the first race, they were forced to navigate with just hand signals.

Their biggest challenge came from the second-placed Pertemps crew of John Wilson and Daisy Coleman who stormed from sixth to second in the second race of the weekend and then finished third in the final race to get their season off to a solid start.

'We have had a fantastic weekend' said Williams. 'This elusive first Grand Prix victory has been a long time coming for us and is the result of a lot of hard work and testing with the boat, and there is more work to be done'.

John Wilson commented: 'We are much more confident going into the rest of the season after this weekend. We thought it was going to be much tougher competition from some of the new teams.'

The Bournemouth boat of Stuart and Sara Cureton was cheered on by local fans to finish the weekend in third position overall. The husband and wife crew from Hampshire rekindled their rivalry with Pertemps. A delighted Sara Cureton said: 'We have surprised even ourselves in our first championship outing in the P1 Panther and enjoyed some great battles today.'

The Typhoo boat piloted by Miles Jennings and navigator Kevin Hunt finished fourth overall, with the Class 1 pilot displaying superb racing skills after rounding the first pin in the opening race in eighth position before carefully picking his way through the field to finish in third.

There were close battles all the way down the field in Sunday’s racing, and new teams Gallagher and Lycamobile Racing both had brief spells at the front of the pack.

Manager of Bournemouth Coastal BID, Alun Williams said 'Watching the powerboat racers and jet ski riders in competitive, close-to-shore race action produced a fantastic spectacle from the pier, the beach and the overcliff. Huge thanks to P1 for putting on a great sporting weekend.'

The P1 SuperStock crews and AquaX riders move on to Hull in three weeks’ time for Round 2 of the P1 championships.

Final results: IFX Racing 60pts, Pertemps 49pts, Team Bournemouth 45pts, Typhoo 42 pts, Lycamobile Racing 37pts, Team Gallagher 36pts, Visit Wales 36pts, GD Environmental 29pts, Allam Marine 27pts, Hull Speed Ahead P1 SuperStock website