NZ offshore powerboats head for round three at Maraetai

by Kate Gordon on 19 Feb 2009 An open sea race course set off Maraetai Beach on the Pohutukawa Coast south-east of Auckland will be contested by competitors in the 2009 Rayglass New Zealand Offshore Powerboat Racing Championship on Saturday 28 February.

The scheduled second round of the offshore powerboat series at Gulf Harbour on 14 February was cancelled due to deteriorating weather conditions, so competitors are keener than ever to get out on the water and race at Maraetai, says Cary Gleeson, vice-president of the New Zealand Offshore Powerboat Association (NZOPA) and throttle-man for ‘Doosan’, current leader of the superboat lite class.

“It was most unusual to have to cancel the Gulf Harbour round – it’s the first time in about five years that we haven’t been able to race, but it’s essential that our safety helicopter with an emergency medical crew onboard can fly throughout the race,” says Gleeson. “Poor visibility in low cloud and rain at Gulf Harbour meant the helicopter couldn’t go up and therefore we couldn’t race. Disappointing, but we have Maraetai to look forward to very soon.

“We’ve raced at Maraetai for a number of years and look forward to seeing the usual large crowd of spectators enjoying the powerboat action. As competitors, it’s fantastic to have this support onshore and the atmosphere at Maraetai really buzzes with enthusiasm,” adds Gleeson.

The Maraetai course is positioned in the channel between the mainland and Waiheke Island and Gleeson says the conditions can vary enormously from really rough to smooth and calm, depending on wind and tide. “If the wind is against the tide, conditions can certainly become very testing, but that’s the challenge of this form of powerboat racing.”

Two races start at midday on 28 February with a 100-mile race contested by the superboat and superboat lite classes. The 60-mile race is contested by the super 60, classic, sports 60 restricted, sports 60 and popular formula Honda competitors. Between 25 and 30 boats are expected in total.

The 2009 series has a few less competitors than last year, but NZOPA president Wayne Valder denies there’s any loss of glamour or intensity of competition in this spectacular class of motorsport.

“We have some fantastic new talent in the series again this season,” says Valder. “Last year’s newcomer Tony Coleman, in ‘Cure Kids’, has already shown he’s fully competitive after a brilliant run in Taupo. Coleman, from Auckland, has seasoned campaigner Tauranga-based Chris Hanley alongside doing the vital job of managing the Skater 35’s throttles.

“The real challenge upfront in the superboat class is between ‘Cure Kids’ and the brand new Skater 34 ‘Fairview Windows and Doors’ of Auckland brothers Warren and Scott Lewis. This boat is the latest design off the Douglas Skater drawing board and arrived from the United States just before the opening round. ‘Fairview Windows and Doors’ has already taken its first race win in Taupo’s close-fought 100-mile race, but only after an intense side-by-side tussle with ‘Cure Kids’ during which ‘Cure Kids’ was just seconds away from going over. So there’s no lessening in intensity of the racing!”

In the superboat lite class, defending champion ‘Rayglass Boats’ only managed second in Taupo. Wellington driver Kelly Smith is aiming to defend her title with father Grant alongside, but has already faced a serious challenge from last season’s newcomer ‘Doosan’. Aucklanders Cary Gleeson and Sam Fillmore have repowered ‘Doosan’ with two of the new Mercury 300XS Eco friendly engines and finished way ahead of ‘Rayglass’ and ‘Barracuda Kayaks’ to take third in the 100-mile race.

Taupo’s 60-mile race was won by the Super 60 ‘Mark Diggelman Car Sales’, formerly ‘Financepoint.co.nz’ and driven by Tauranga’s Mark Diggelman and Grant Rowe, but only after early leader ‘Konica Minolta’ suffered a power steering failure. As Diggelman is not entering the whole championship this year, the points go to the recently repowered Super 60 class Force F19x ‘Konica Minolta’ with the Auckland-based crew of Greg Brinck and Eldon Archer able to overcome the mechanical issues to finish second.

“The Formula Honda class looks to be as competitive as ever with seven to ten boats confirmed for each round of the series,” adds Valder.

“With defending champion Wellingtonian Mikey Smith away on his ‘OE’, Aucklander’s Mike Knight and Shannon Thickpenny in ‘Building Solutions’ took the first Honda class win in Taupo. Whangaparaoa’s Mike and Debbie Urqhart came home second in ‘Auckland District Collections 2’. Expect the battle between these top runners to intensify as the season progresses.

Maraetai’s powerboat races start at 12:00pm with the boat crews setting up camp for the day on the main Maraetei Beach park. Depending on conditions, the race is normally completed within one to one-and-a-half hours.

“It’s a very family-oriented event with the Fun Event Company and Onsite Caterers helping make this a fun day out,” adds Gleeson. “If the weather isn’t right for racing on Saturday, we do have a rain-date for the Sunday. Viewing from the shore is fabulous as the boats come in very close at the Maraetai Beach, so we hope people will make the most of the opportunity to enjoy our racing – there’s no charge to watch or spend time around the boats on the beach.”

NZOPA officials advise that the Maraetai Beach boat ramp will be closed for public use while the race is running from midday to approximately 1:30pm and recommend other boat users find an alternative ramp in the area if they wish to launch during this time. No one is allowed to swim off Maraetai Beach in the immediate vicinity of the powerboat racing while the race is taking place.

More events details will be posted on the NZOPA website, www.nzoffshore.co.nz, as are the race results and current championship standings. Highlights packages from each round of the 2009 Rayglass New Zealand Offshore Powerboat Racing Championship will screen on Sky Sport and Prime at a future time to be confirmed within the next few weeks.

The Rayglass NZ Offshore Powerboat Championship continues in Napier on 7 March, Wellington on 21 March, Whitianga on 4 April, Whangarei on 18 April and ends on Auckland Harbour on 2 May.


Rayglass NZ Offshore Powerboat Championship standings after Round 1, Taupo, 24 January 2009

100-mile championship points (Classes: Superboats, Superboats Lite)
Boat, Driver, Points
Fairview Windows, Scott Lewis, 475
Cure Kids, Tony Coleman, 375
Doosan, Sam Fillmore, 300
Rayglass, Kelly Smith, 244
Barracuda Kayaks, Gordon Robinson, 202

60-mile championship points (Classes: Super 60, Classic Class, Sports 60 Restricted, Sports 60, Formula Honda)
Boat, Drive, Points
Konica Minolta, Greg Brinck, 475
Expresso Engineers, Mike Gerbic, 375
Auckland District Collections #1, Simon Freeman, 300
Building Solutions, Mike Knight, 244
Back to Bay6, Glen Powell, 170