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‘The Beast’ takes the Rollo’s Marine Yamaha N.Z. Bridge to Bridge Title

The 28th running of the Rollo’s Marine Yamaha Bridge to Bridge Water Ski Classic was again a fantastic and popular event in 2011.

The country’s best Water ski racers, powerboaters, jetskiers and Thundercats gathered in Hamilton for the annual event.

There was also a good contingent of Australian’s out to offer strong competition.

The weekend was full of drama with 3 out of the top 8 boats in the main race on Sunday with drawing after Saturdays race day.

It all started on Saturday morning with the Waikato Security Novice and Masters race from Hamilton to Taupiri return. The competitors in the Masters class were competing for the Tony van Deursen Memorial Cup. Tony was tragically killed in a ski racing accident just 5 weeks prior to the Bridge to Bridge and he was a well respected and popular man. This mean that everyone wanted to win it and win it for Tony. Warlord did an impressively quick first leg time down to Taupiri with Kevin Vahtrik of Australia on the back. They looked as though they would take it out with ease in a new record time but blew one of the engines in the return leg just out of Taupiri. This left the door open to Rick Powell of Taupo skiing behind newly imported rig out of the USA ‘The Beast Racing’ and ‘Messiah’ towing Mark Luxford of Auckland. The Beast had a 9 second lead at the turn around point only to find the wrong river on the way home at the fork in Ngaruawahia. This let Messiah through to take the title and make Mark Luxford the first winner of the Tony van Deursen Memorial Cup. Brett Seabrook of Auckland was 2nd, John Main of Hamilton 3rd. Not only did Warlord do damage in this race but Hawkes Bay rig ‘Attitude’ also withdrew from the main race after blowing an engine towing a skier in the novice race.

Social class was taken out by 2009 Long Race winner Force Fed, towing Australian Rhys Duggan. This was where the winning stopped for Force Fed though – they also blew an engine in the Time Trial on Saturday afternoon. This meant the big contenders for the race were dropping like flies and scrambling to find other boats to run behind for Sundays event. Messiah took out the Time Trial without too much problem a clear 2mins ahead of 2nd place, Stinga, and 3rd place, Muscle Milk. So that was the starting order for Sunday’s main event. The 82km sprint from Cambridge to Taupiri and back to Hamilton.

The first 12 boats all had perfect starts which is very unusual for the difficult starting area down in Cambridge. Disaster struck early on for the Messiah team towing Bevan Turksma and Vaughan Hyde – both previous winners of the race. They blew their engine coming through the Narrows, 5 mins south of Hamilton on the run down stream to Taupiri. This left the door wide open for the next 5 boats to battle it out for line honours. When the teams arrived in Taupiri they were in the following order; Stinga, Mayfair Pools, Hoofit, Muscle Milk and The Beast. The 5 boats spread by just 19 seconds.Mayfair Pools a new rig for 2011 with the skiers of B Jammin from previous years – Rick Powell and Mark Preistly. Hoofit was leant to the Attitude team of Dave & Tracey Hanks and skiing broths Logan & Jaaron Fritz. Muscle Milk had Bevan Scott and Aussie Chris Vigenser on the back.

The run back, was all or nothing and the horsepower shone through in the end with The Beast managing to turn a 19 second deficit into a 23 second win. The team of Colin Eagles (driver/owner), Jack Horan (observer, Cambridge), Mitch Horan, 15 (Skier, Cambridge) and Will Groves, 16 (Skier, Victoria, Aus) were as surprised as anyone when their names were read out at prizegiving, being the first Under 19 team in over 10 years to win the event. The big 21ft Nordic hull out of the USA with the Mercury Racing 1075HP and 6 Drive getting the job done.

The twin rig Bullet ‘Stinga’ was 2nd with Matt Hodson, Adam Smale, Paul Mitchell and Andy Cardno and 3rd and first MOC boat was ‘Mayfair Pools’ with Grant van de Vegte driving, Brendan Macpherson, and Rick Powell and Mark Preistly skiing. Attitude were 4th overall and 2nd in MOC.

5th Overall and 1st in Formula 2 with a new record time was the Yamaha powered rig Smokin, driven by Sam Fenwick with observer Chris Wilkins and young skiers Kane Carter and Daniel Tuffin. They were also 2nd in Under 19’s to The Beast. 2nd in F2 and 1st in Ladies was the team of Sleaze with Jeff Weake and Mike Dunstall towing Jordan Bradley and Adelaide Cox . The Sleaze team also took out the King of the Rivers overall title for the combination of times between the Bridge to Bridge and the Twin Rivers held 2 weeks previous over in Thames.

SMOC class was extremely tight with 10 seconds covering the top 3 with the Force Fed using their Back up boat ‘Phantom’ as a spare taking it out after jumping in the boat just minutes before race start.

All in all, with the exception of the weather the event ran very smoothly with several records broken and plenty of fun had by all. The competitors and the New Zealand Water Ski Racing would like to thank all the generous sponsors, organisers and volunteers for making it all happen,

For more details or full results check out www.skirace.co.nz

Superman dominates at the Mercury Marine H120




In idyllic Sydney weather, the Mercury Marine Hawkesbury 120 water ski race, has been run and won, in a spectacular and dominant display.
Darren McGuire’s big black Force, Superman, dominated the race on both days, taking out the Sackville Sprint for pole positions on Saturday, as well as the main race on the Sunday, towing Superstar Daniel Graziano and last year’s outright winner Daniel Campbell.
Second on both days, nipping at the heels of Superman, was Darren Stewart and the crew of Agitator, racing in the Unlimited Inboard Class. Birthday boy Kris Knights, partnered by Justin Cadden, really had the ever reliable Superclass boat screaming up the river.

Third place went to the Robertson family crew in Firebird, with Steven and Paul on the skis out the back and Barry & John really making the big Nordic hull get up and boogie on their home water.

Leo Welch, proud owner of the brand new Mistress, did a great job in making it home 4th Outright, while putting the boat to it’s first test in a major river race. He said that he had a great time in a straight line, trimming the boat out and sitting it on it’s tail, but the corners were a constant learning curve.

Last year’s Outright winner, Stinga, took out the Under 19 Boys class, with Greg Houston towing his son Jack, the current, defending Junior World Champion and his regular partner in crime in the 2 ups, Ben Hackett, to a fantastic 5th outright. The guys have stepped up out of F2 this year and are sure to be climbing that outright ladder in the not to distant future..

Special mention must go to the huge amount of support shown over the weekend and indeed the previous 3 weeks, for Hawkesbury 3 year old Misty Colwill, who is bravely fighting Cancer. Kevin Boylan, Lumpy and Wade Bennett, joined forces and raised a small fortune to help the family get through this hard battle and to let them know that they are not alone.
Along with presenting Misty’s Dad with a huge cheque to go towards her Chemotherapy and the bills that come with that, the crowd were then treated to watch both Coldy and Ozzie have their heads shaved as people bid for further action from the guys.

Hawkesbury 120 Show and Shine

The action kicked off on Friday, when Ski Racing NSW conducted a ‘Show & Shine’ of competing boats at McDonalds, McGraths Hill, from 3-5pm.
There were big crowds and tonnes of polish being dished out, on both Boats and Cars, with the huge grass area along the front of the complex being utilised to show off these entrants in the afternoon Sun.
There were some fantastic prizes on offer, sponsored by both McDonalds and Coldy’s of McGraths Hill.
The winner of the Best Inboard prize was the crew from What Inheritance. The twin legged boat is spectacular on its own, but teamed up with an enormous Black F350 Tow Truck, it really was a jaw dropping display.

The Best Outboard prize went to the Stout Family, with their slick Bernico, Still Kid’n.

The Under 16 Boys was won by Big Loll, which arrived towed by a matching yellow Hot Rod and tonnes of Balloons.

The top Junior Girls prize winner went to the crew from Knackers.

All winning crews were presented with bags absolutely chock full of fantastic prizes, kindly donated by the likes of DC Waterskis, Mercury Australia, HiTec Oils, Force boats, Wizard Wetsuits and many more and all were received very warmly. The Junior Boys and Girls also had prizes awarded to the 2nd and 3rd placegetters too. A huge thanks to all that donated gear for the packs.

Saturday’s Events

The Sackville Sprint and President’s Invitational, proved to be a great race, with Superman taking line honours, towing Daniel Graziano and Daniel ‘Boonie’ Campbell, in a race that will be remembered for big crowds and exciting, high speed, quality ski racing action.
Motor Gremlins saw a huge number of Super Class crews not make the start or finish line. This included Burnin’, Blown Cash, Elm Street, Gassa, Temper and What Inheritance. HellRazor wasn’t there either due to Zig Walmsley’s World Title bid ending, Collar Bone fracture.
One of the most talked about new rigs this season, 99 Psycho Clowns F1, didn’t even make it to the event when the boat jumped off it’s trailer on the way to Sydney and scraped the brand new Velocity hull and Leg along the road.
It really left the race open to all challengers and Superman came charging across the line to post a time 3 seconds quicker than Stinga’s, in last years Sprint.
Commentator Tim Dubois had a radar gun measuring the speed of all of the crews along the home straight and U.S. team, Sudden Force was recorded as the quickest, at 115mph.
Sudden Force 115mph

In other exciting racing action earlier in the day, the Mercedes Benz sponsored Unlimited Social Class was taken out by Temper, towing Gerard Atkins & Robbie Skennerton home in a scorching time of 22:46mins. Only 18 seconds behind them, was Kryptonite with Luke Watts & Stuart Cox & 3rd placing went to Superman 2 towing Chris Schneider & Glenn Kennedy.
The Social Class skiers raced from Windsor Stadium to Sackville and return, the perfect distance for some athletic sprint racing on the silly sticks.

In MOC Social, Showtime, towing Dane Kemp & Jarryd Tannenberg, won by over 2 minutes from Shane Bru and Jason Summers, behind Running Riot.

SMOC Social was one of the largest fields in the morning’s racing. Michael Burke’s flying Force hull, Alien Force, towing Phil Muratore and Ben Pearse, came home with the quickest time out of the MOC, SMOC and Formula 2 Outboards, in 25.55mins.

Agent Orange was over a minute behind, taking the 2nd placing towing Ben Coghlan and Robert Lee. Peter Lewis’s quick little green Lab boat Mercury Pro XS rounded out the top 3, towing Trevor Bray and Susan Cartwright.

The F2 Social Class was next on the course and Brendan Stout drove Still Kiddin’ to victory, towing Andrew Teal and Dale Jamison. Showtime F2 was home next, almost 2 minutes behind, with Justin Hood and Ryan Burke doing the hard work out the back. Sidewinder grabbed 3rd place, towing Mason Vaughan and Mitch Williams.

The Mercury sponsored 200hp Class saw the Noosa Heads Team, No Fear, take the win in a quick time for the little white bullet of 29:35mins. Gregory Reason and Peter Harmer did a fantastic job out the back to record the time.
70mph Social saw Pumped up make up an outstanding 2 minute lead on their opponents by race end. Robert Wilkes and Craig Penney must be wrapped in the team’s Driver, Brad Collins and the way that he shaved the edges of the course to have such a big gap to second placed Resident Evil, in this GPS speed limited class. The big new White Force hull towed Shannon Lewry and Kellie Tiege. Third place in 70mph Social went to the One Vision crew, towing Scott Dixon and Scott Tyrrell.

The always close, Cassell Marine sponsored, 60mph Class, was the last of the Social classes to run for the morning and Nailed came home victorious towing Courtney & Melanie Grech to the win, only 6 seconds in front of Harassment towing Brayden & Aaron Harris. 3rd in this huge class was Bullseye with Ryan Dubios and Craig Dodge.

Once the sweep boat had cleared the course, the Veteran, Disabled and Junior Social classes were the next on the program and didn’t disappoint.
Running in just one direction, from Sackville to Windsor, the Superman crew were first across the line towing super stars Danny Cropper and Kevin Vahtrik, taking 8 seconds off the previous record. Tania Teelow and Rory Brown teamed up behind Twenty Four to take out the second place, just nudging out the twin legged What Inheritance, towing Peter Hunter and Christopher Bennett.
Senior Social is a new class introduced this year and the quick Racecraft Double Trouble, towing Matthew & Paul Wetsteyn, set the standard with a time of 13:29mins.
Wade Bennett teamed up with the Queensland crew of the twin rig 2Wild to take out the Disabled class in 14:13mins. He treated the crowd to a drag race to the finish line with Junior Social class skiers Mitch Mulcahy and Jake Vanzetta behind 99 Psycho Clowns F2, who had caught up to Wade over the length of the course, challenging the former Super Class skier as they entered the last straight.

Mitch and Jake won their class in a time of 13:42 from Rush towing Jack Harrison and Shantelle King and Critta, in 3rd placing, towing Neneh Long and Rachael Stapleton.
Class 36 was the Under 13yrs Social class and the win went to Coldy’s, towing Jack Coaldrake and Ben Moret. 2nd went to LabDance towing Curtis Horbury and Cooper Robertson and 3rd placing went to Brooke Langham and Ellen Jones.
Last to hit the course were the super stars of the future in the Under 10 years class. Carter Robertson took the win and the record by 17 seconds behind Robertson Racing, from Grace Jones, behind Out Numbered and Reefway towing Hayden Atkins. Tuff e Nuff came home in 4th place with Daniel Cotton observing for his son Race.

The scene was now set for Sunday’s racing and after the Presentation, crew’s retired to map out their race plans for the following day and soak up some Hawkesbury River Regional hospitality.

Sunday

With the fog lifting early on the Hawkesbury, revealing a Sunny, windless waterway, the main race of the H120 kicked off right on time at 9am, with Superman first boat to leave, in the HiTec Oils sponsored Super Class, thanks to their win in the Sackville Sprint. By the end of the first straight they were already pulling 100mph, as if to taunt the other competitors to ‘..Catch us if you can!’

Superman starting Sunday

The rest of the large field of boats from all classes filed off one by one, with most getting away cleanly.
When the times came back from the halfway mark at Wisemans Ferry, it was Superman with a 32 second lead over Agitator, with Mistress, Firebird and Sudden Force from the USA, all nipping at their heels.

They increased that lead by another 22 seconds coming home and as the large crowd rose excitedly to their feet, Superman appeared around the final corner on full racing trim, pulling over 112mph. They stormed up the home straight and claimed their prize as 2011 Hawkesbury 120 Champions.
Superman wins the 2011 H120

2nd in Super Class was the Mistress, notching up a 4th outright time on the boat’s first major race. It’s so great to have the Welch’s back in the mix again, after losing the old Everingham hull at the Barry Carne Memorial at Wagga Wagga in 2010.
Firebird and The Mistress finishing the 2011 H120

First in Unlimited Inboard and 2nd outright was Agitator, with Justin Cadden and Kris Knights looking pretty stoked with the result. The Robertson Family, raced the super quick and super reliable Firebird into 2nd place and 3rd outright in this class. Prima Donna and Nick Feros made a bit of a guest appearance in the Unlimited Class, driving his big F21 Force hard. Nick towed Zac Burns and Kevin Vahtrik, with Hawkesbury legend himself Danny Cropper doing the observing, into 3rd place.
Agitator finishing the 2011 H120


In the B.A.W. Transport sponsored Under 19 Boys Class, it was Ben Hackett and current Junior boys World Champion Jack Houston all of the way, behind Jack’s Dad Greg’s boat Stinga. These two superstars won the class by a staggering 10 minutes, from Smellit and came in to record the 5th fastest time of the day. Strictly Marine came in in third place in this class, towing Sam Handley and Ryan Campbell.
Team Stinga Racing finishing the 2011 H120

Nothin’ But took out the 6 Litre Inboard class, sponsored by the Hawkesbury Hotel. Chris Bennett and Peter Hunter can really hang on behind this little rocket. Kryptonite followed them home towing Luke Watts and Stuart Cox again, after a 2nd outright result in Unlimited Social the day before. 3rd place went to the Racecraft team towing Matthew Wetsteyn and Nicholas Davoll.

DC Waterskis sponsored the Unlimited Outboard class. Joel Massey and Adam Schmidt skied brilliantly to take the win behind Andy Smith’s twin rig 2Wild.Tuff-N-Up grabbed the 2nd place with Delinquent Racing rounding out the top 3.

The 8 Litre Expert class saw Aiden Cuff and James ‘Ringo’ Hogben reunited as partners and taking the win behind Blastn’, with Kyle Mansfield and Wade Stratton close behind them with XS Cash. Double Trouble rounded out the top 3 in 8 Litre, with a top ski by Kayne Partridge and Paul Wetsteyn.
Evinrude BRP sponsored the MOC Class and the winner was Running Riot with some really consistent times. With Adam Kruse and Stewart Tobin skiing, they managed to record each-way times with just 5 seconds difference. 2nd in MOC was Cyclone Raicey followed by Showtime.

One of the largest classes of the weekend was the Mercury Marine sponsored SMOC class. Peter Lewis is always a fierce driver and he also managed to record almost identical times both up and back with just a 9 second difference. 2nd went to the crew of Alien Force from Victoria, and 3rd place in this hotly contested class went to Adrian Royston and Alex Handley behind the brand new Bustin’ Out.
In the F2 Class, two of our brightest hopes at the 2011 World Championships, Lauren Eagle and Leanne Campbell, skied behind Brent Wisemantel’s Tuff-e-Nuff, helping him and Fyfie to go back to back in this class after a top win the year before. Second place in this huge class went to Mason Vaughn and Mitch Williams behind Sidewinder. With Envy also towed another Aussie F2 Womens World Title skier in Tania Teelow, accompanied by Paul Bruton to a great 3rd place.

In the 5.2 Litre class it was Culprit towing Brad Worsley and Shannon Gane all the way and in the Stock 6 Litre Class the winning team of The Sting 2 towed Clayton Witney and Dale Hally had a similar trouble free run.
Coldy’s sponsored the Expert Under 16 boys and just breaking the hour, by under a second was the crew from Underbelly, towing Ben Atkins and Jesse Burns. 2nd place went to The Edge, towing Codey Wood and Cameron Osbourne and in 3rd place was the Victorian crew from 99 Psycho Clowns F2 with Mitch Mulcahy and Jake Vanzetta rounding out a successful weekend’s racing for the guys.

The Open Womens class saw dramas at the start line for Trudi Stout and Sarah Teelow after they sent the Prime Time Trailer off to the half way at Wisemans… with both of their race skis inside ! The girls made the start line in the end thanks to some generous racers offering their skis, posting an almost 3 minute lead at the half way mark. Alas, Lady luck really wasn’t smiling on them on the way home either, but they still managed a great 4th place.

The winners in the open Womens Class were Madeleine Brien and Jessica Tidswell behind Billy Brien’s twin rig, Ring of Fire. 2nd went to Precision towing Ashlee Debakker and Tayla Luhrmann and 3rd placing was secured by Rapid Pulse, towing Seanne Kelly and Latasha Gane.

Cowper Smash Repairs sponsored the Under 19 girls division and the winner there was Smack That, towing Jessica Wood and Sarah Brooks, followed home by Shot Gun with Kelsey Feros and Dani Coyte out the back.

In the Under 16 Girls class Crystal Gordon and Jessica Smith came home miles in front of 2nd placed Knackers, towing Bree Turner and Kaitlin Harrigan. A big thanks to McDonalds, McGraths Hill for sponsoring this and many other classes, as well as hosting the Show and Shine on Friday.
200hp Class saw the Queensland crew from No Fear, scrape in by just 4/100ths of a second from Tantrum towing Mike Dart and Shane Russo.
The ever popular 70mph class was won by Team Hercules, towing Luke Nixon and Allen Morris. 2nd place went to Big Smoke Racing, with the big Everingham hull towing Joshua Hargraves and Mitchell Emery. In 3rd place was the crew from Kaoed.

The Under 13 Boys class saw Jack Coaldrake and Ben Moret backing up their win the previous day, in a great display of ski racing. 2nd place went to Wyatt Horbury and Sam Perry behind LabDance F2 and 3rd went to Big Loll towing Michael Boylan and Luke Harrison.

In the Under 13 Girls class the win went to Tripple 666 towing Brooke Langham and Ellen Jones in a quick time, taking a massive amount off the previous record. Korrupt was next with Brooke Hammond and Emma Barnes, with their Dads Steve and Neville driving and observing for them and in 3rd place was Out Numbered towing Grace Jones and Milana Long.

60mph Class was the last class to race home and as usual it was a close race. When the spray settled it was Bullseye with a 30 second advantage, towing Ryan Dubois and Craig Dodge across for the win. They were followed by Peter Frankland and Ashley Mortel behind Too Ezy and Burn N Wood towing Caroline Linden and Craig Ashworth claimed 3rd place.

The Presentation included some side entertainment as both Dave Coldy and Darren Osmotherly lost their locks for charity, raising even more money for Misty and her battle with Cancer. All up over $10,600 was raised. Thank you to everyone that contributed, you’ve definitely made a difference taking a massive burden from her Family’s medical and care bills.

Pink Finns were also fund raising for Women and Breast Cancer, with a charity BBQ operating all day and raising over $2000.

Thank you to the event’s major sponsors, Mercury Marine and HiTec Oils and to all business that held trade displays and sponsored the various classes.

Thank you also to everyone involved in staging, judging, officiating and of course competing, making this, the first of the 2011-2012 Super Series river race classics, an outstanding success.
We hope to see you all back for the Feros Hotels 50th Bridge to Bridge water ski race in November ! It’s going to be huge !

Photography c./ Julie Tegart, Michael Geddes, Wade Bennett

Prestige and wackiness at Catalina Water Ski Race – LA Times

Link to LA Times story from Catalina 2011

Link to LA Times Pics from Catalina 2011

Hi Tec Oils 2011 Australian Speed & Marathon Championships Story

2011 HI TEC OILS AUSTRALIAN SPEED AND MARATHON CHAMPIONSHIPS
– WISEMANS FERRY 9TH – 12TH APRIL

With some fantastic skiing and idyllic Sydney weather to greet the running of the Hi-Tec Oils 2011 Australian Ski Racing Championships, crews really turned up the heat throughout the 4 days of competition.

The most successful and dominant skiers of the Championships were World Champions Anne Procter (Kennedy) and Jack Houston.

Anne won 4 National titles, whilst Jack won 3 and the World Selection race in Junior Boys.

Brent Wisemantel and Andrew Fyfe were stand-outs winning F2, MOC and Unlimited Outboard, as well as the F2 Selection Race, with Tuff-e-Nuff.

Applauded as a great success by Competitors, Spectators, Judges and Coordinators and Officials, the Wisemans Ferry Ski Grounds were alive with activity all weekend.

FRIDAY

Proceedings occurred on the Friday before the beginning of the National Titles, with skiers and crews vying to increase their coveted World Title Team Selection points.

With this being at the pointy end of the Selection Events for the 17th World Championships in September on Moreton Bay, they were to make and break some dreams.

Perfect racing conditions saw firstly, the Open and F2 Women hit the water.

Lauryn Eagle reverted to the ‘catch me if you can’ race approach behind Darren McGuire’s Superman and it paid off big time. Eventually, by race end, Lauryn had lapped all but 2nd placed Strictly Business, towing Maddi Boyer.
Leanne Halligan, behind Hellbent, just nudged out Kylee Jones & Merc Force from the 3rd placing, one lap down, but by just 6 seconds.

In the F2 Women’s class it was tight, race long, between Trudi Stout (Shooter) and Leanne Campbell (Atomic Boats).
By race end the results were Shooter 1st, Atomic Boats 2nd and Tania Teelow skied brilliantly, whilst recovering from injury, to come in 3rd behind With Envy.
Chelsea Blight, behind the Victorian crew of Smoke & Mirrors rounded out the top 4 finishers.

There was a great duel by Jack Houston, Jack Whitton and Jamie Moret, on the Wisemans course in the Junior Boys Selection race.
Jack Houston, behind his Dad’s Stinga F1, really ran a well calculated race & showed his drive to take out another Junior Boys World Selection race, with his finish time showing a greater than 1 second a lap difference in speed.
Superman, towed Jack Whitton to a 2nd placing, followed by Jamie Moret, behind Seven and Andrew Griffin behind his Dad Noel’s boat Burnin’.

Junior Girls was won convincingly by Tayla Wright behind Neville Freeman’s ORSM, despite a starting infringement penalty. Tayla went on to make up a lap on the whole field.

Kelsey Feros behind Prima Donna held off Rachael Stapleton and Still Sparken’ for the minor placings.

In the Open Men’s race, there was disaster for the team of Hellbent, towing Peter Procter.

With the race starting in a 4 man duel between Peter, Chris Stout, Jason Walmsley and Stephen Robertson, Peter was leading by an ever increasing margin and the guys were really wearing down the competition and dictating the race, when Hellbent’s motor gave up the ghost nearing the last minutes of the race. This moved both Christopher Stout and Jason Walmsley up in contention, to start fighting for the lead, instead of what appeared to be accepted minor placings, such was Peter’s lead to that point.

Stephen Robertson & Firebird, as well as Ben Gulley & Merc Force, soon also succumbed to motor gremlins, with Merc Force left sitting in a huge, expensive, cloud of smoke at the top turn.

It was left to Stouty and Zig to fight it out to the end, with Stouty grabbing the initiative on the last few laps and building up an 8 second lead that he carried to the line, with Jason 2nd.

The F2 Men’s race attracted a field of 21 entrants and they didn’t disappoint.
Daniel Cotton, behind the Brent Wisemantel driven Atomic Boats, really showed their class in this race in some very sloppy water. Team Weaver Racing, towing Mark Weaver and Shooter, with Grant Turner, fought hard, but couldn’t catch this champion crew and were left to fill the minor placings. Pure Velocity, towing Grant Patterson and With Envy, towing Daniel Graziano, were placed next.

SATURDAY

Saturday 9th April, saw the beginning of the Hi Tec Oils National Titles and who better to start with than our pint sized Aussie ski racers, in Under 10 Boys and Girls.

With a start Chute speed that would scare a lot of adult skiers, the boys all raced to the top turn buoy on the smoother water at lightning speed.

The girls were next away and most got away cleanly and hit the course ready to race. Some kids were having their first ski at a National Titles and they gave it their all and then some, with anxious Parents cheering them on, on the bank, or out in boats on the course.

After a race long duel in the Under 10 Boys, it was Luke Harrison behind Big Loll that came in for the win. Luke was just 14 seconds clear of Pop and Me towing Carter Robertson. Kevin Boylan, in Stinga F2, towed his son Michael to a great 3rd place.

In the Under 10 Girls, Critta towing Milana Long, with her Mum and Dad crewing, had a great win. 2nd place went to Grace Jones; behind Out Numbered and 3rd went to Rachelle King, behind Triple 666 F2.

All of these kids deserved the big cheer from the crowd, for their gutsy skiing and for the effort each and every one of them put into their own races. They are all winners to us, just for giving it a go.

The next race saw 13 pumped up F2 boats hit the water, for some seat of your pants action.
First across the line comfortably, in this star studded race, was Brent Wisemantel’s Tuff e Nuff, towing Daniel Cotton, fresh from his win in F2 the previous day in the World Selection race.
Grant Wastle, behind Craig Boswell’s With Envy was 2nd and Target, driven by Peter Lewis, towed Grant Turner to a 3rd placing. Chris Stout and Sacrifice & Peter Procter with Pure Velocity filled the next couple of places, in this always close and exciting race.

Race 3 was Junior Boys, 13-16yrs, sponsored by Kerway Asphalting. Try as he may, behind the new Thundernuts, Lloyd Woolman couldn’t catch a flying Jamie Moret and Seven. 3rd placing went to Tru Blue towing Clinton Stratton.

The DC Skis sponsored Open Women were next to hit the water and multiple World Champion Anne Procter, showed why she is just that. Skiing behind Greg Houston’s Stinga F1, Anne won by over a minute from Leanne Campbell with the Hazy crew and Noizworks with Cara Jochinke.

Chris Stout was the next to hold a National Title aloft, when he won the Heartland Motors sponsored Men’s 19-25yrs. Stouty skied behind Noel Griffin’s Blazen’ …always a lethal combination. They won this race by over 2 minutes from Elm Street towing Kane Howard and Firebird towing Steven Robertson.

Firebird came out for the next race towing former World Champion Paul Robertson to victory in the 40-50 Men’s. Filling the minor placings were Mark Boyer and Chris Bennett, behind Strictly Business and Filthy respectively.

Run within the same race were the Permagard Marine sponsored 50+ Men. Colin Senior behind Greg Gunther’s Blown Cash took the win, followed by Rob Williams behind Big Loll.

Race 7, sponsored by Impact Electrical, was a chance for Peter Procter to flex some muscle after the previous day’s disappointment in the World Selection event. He won the 25-30 Men’s race convincingly behind Mark Cranny’s Tru Blue, coming home over 2 minutes ahead of Blazen’, towing Grant Turner and Elm Street towing Chris Mansfield.

Jack Harrison won the 10-13 Boys National Title behind Seven, by 15 seconds, leaving in his wake a strong field of boys. 2nd place went to Sean Stevens behind Noizworks and Elm Street towing Jackson Hammond came in for a 3rd placing.

Shantelle King, showing some great form behind Rush won the 10-13 Girls race. Ellen Jones & Out Numbered raced Brooke Langham & Triple 666 for the minor placings, just pipping them at the post by 4 seconds.

There were 15 starters in the Wizard Wetsuits sponsored 16-19 Boys race and the guys really raced hard for the Title. Tru Blue, towing Jake Tegart really ran a great race with Stinga F1 and Jack Houston, with each in different starting grids. Jake took the win by just 2 seconds from Jack at the chequered flag. Coming in for a 3rd placing in this class was Ben Hackett, behind Darren Stewart’s Agitator, with his Dad, ski racing legend Murray observing.

Race 10 saw the final race of the first day, the Blue Pacific Marine, 30-40 Men and what a line up this was. Two times World Champion, Stephen Robertson, took home the National Title after a race long battle. Mick Kelly ditched the Observer’s Jacket & strapped on his Rail behind Blazen’ and came in for 2nd place. Blown Cash, towing Nathan Glynn, fought hard to hold off Steven Rowe, behind Chief, beating Steven’s time by just 2 seconds to take 3rd.

SUNDAY

Another beautiful sunny Sydney Autumn day greeted crews, in the first race of Sunday’s competition, the Men’s marathon.

Peter Procter really showed the way in the Open Men’s class, racing Jason Walmsley for the lead the whole way, with the changeovers becoming the area that was to see the seconds made up by Peter. Alex Ross came in for a great 3rd place in this race, behind Out Numbered, skiing very consistently to achieve it.

In the Under 19 Boys Marathon, Jack Houston was to claim yet another National Title behind Stinga F2. Jack really cleaned up in this race, to be followed home by almost 2 minutes later by Aaron Sheath behind Storm’n and Brendan Tidswell behind Showbiz.

The Under 16 Boys Marathon was won convincingly by Jayden Sheath behind Coldys, from Reefway Racing towing Jesse Burns and 4 the Boys towing Joel Whitton.

Darren Patterson was the lone finisher in the Under 40 Men’s Marathon and put in a fantastic time behind Shot Gun.

Under 50 Men’s National Title holder Andy Wallington put in some great changes behind Big Loll, to come in for the win.

Race 12, which included both the 25-U30 Women and the 19 – U25 Women, was a super quick race.

Stinga F1 towed Anne Procter to yet another National Title in the 25-30 Women.

Chelsea Blight teamed up with Blown Cash to win by over a minute from Liquid Force towing Jordan Brad in the 19 – U25 Women’s class, with the quick twin rig Tuff-N-Up bringing home Sarah Eagle for a great 3rd placing.

In race 13, 3 classes were combined 30-U40 Women, 40-U45 Women and Women 50+.

Leanne Campbell won the 30-U40 Women behind the superbly driven, Garry Hayes owned, Hazy.

Prime Time towed Tania Teelow to a great 2 minute victory in 40-U45 Women, followed by Terri Rigg behind Liquid Force and Out 4 Revenge towing Suzanne Cuff.

Wendy Feros won the 50 + Women’s National Title behind Hubbie Nick, driving Play Dirty for the win.

16 – U19 Girls was the next race to hit the water, with a big, star studded field. Trudi Stout skied brilliantly in this race to win behind Seven, just 28 seconds ahead of Sarah Teelow and Prime Time. A further 6 seconds behind, was Danielle Coyte behind Shot Gun.

Race 16, the Nova Pool Renovations sponsored 13 – U16 Girls Class, saw a great tussle between Rachael Stapleton, behind Stinga and Tayla Wright, behind ORSM.

Rachael came out on top at race end by 39 seconds, with 3rd placing going to Neneh Long behind Pop and Me.

The Social Men’s class was always going to be a great race, with a field of 7 super stars of the sport out to earn a National Title. Jack Houston skied brilliantly yet again to come out victor behind Stinga F1 on his home water. A big boat and ballast in the sloppy conditions made it less tricky to ski on the smaller skis and shorter ropes and was essential to success in the class on this water.
2nd place went to Aiden Cuff behind Out for Revenge and Triple 666 towed Dale Jamison into a great 3rd after edging out a tenacious Shaun Atkins behind 4 the Boys.

MONDAY

Monday’s racing started with a little more wind than previous days, promising some great ski racing.

The first event was the JMJ Plant Hire sponsored Women’s and U10 & U13 Boys Marathon.

In the Open Women’s class, Anne Procter added another Aussie Title to her collection, winning convincingly from Trudi Stout and Melissa Tidswell.

The winner of the U19 Girls was Kelsey Feros behind Play Dirty.

In an even quicker time, Rachael Stapleton, behind Still Sparken, took home the U16 Girls Marathon Title with some excellent skiing. Following Rachael was Neneh Long and Critta, followed by Jessica Smith and Team Smithy 2 Racing.

Skiing behind Out Numbered, Ellen Jones won the U13 Girls marathon class.

Under 13 Boys was a great win for Jack Harrison, behind Big Loll. He held off Korrupt with the family team of Steven, Janine and Jackson Hammond in a great race.

Showing what incredible potential they both have, Grace Jones and Michael Boylan each took home an Australian Title in the Under 10 Girls and Boys.

One of the Champagne races at the Hi Tec Oils National Titles was the DC Skis sponsored Open Men’s event. Jason Walmsley easily backed up from his World Selection event on Friday, taking the title behind Pure Velocity. Tuff e Nuff was next home towing Brayden Jameson after some very consistent skiing, followed by Trent Eastgate behind Out Numbered.

Race 21 saw the combining of 6 & 8 Litre Inboard in the one race, guaranteeing some spectacular viewing for spectators. They weren’t let down either.

8 Litre saw an on tune Jamie Oliver, racing behind The Enforcer, taking an early lead, which they slowly built on lap after lap. Eventually they were to go on to take the title, followed very closely, just 7 seconds behind, by Nothin’ But with Chris Bennett keeping them honest and Matthew Wetsteyn behind Racecraft.

Stock 6 Litre was won by Greg Whitelaw’s super quick Brute Force. He towed Brent Whitelaw home, under the watchful eye of Geoff Hewitt, to take the 2011 Title.

60 mph Expert had no winner, with Itchin to Go, towing Wade Bennett, retiring due to a sciatic nerve spasm in Wade’s paralyzed leg and Kaoed breaking out of the speed limit.

70 Mph Expert saw Still Kiddin’ and Andrew Teal flying around the sloppy course and taking the crown. Home next was Reefway Racing with Brooke Gray, followed by Jack Burns behind Play Dirty.
2 boats broke out in this race trying to balance the correct speed on the rough water.

TUESDAY

Tuesday morning saw a complete change in wind direction and it was now blowing up the Hawkesbury strongly.

The first class for the final day’s racing was the Social Women’s race.

Anne Procter had to fight for this one behind Pure Velocity, coming home victorious with only 21 seconds up her sleeve by race end. Reefway Racing towed Tayla Luhrmann to a hard fought 2nd place, followed by Still Sparken’ with Jordan Bradley.

Zig’s Marine sponsored Class 24 saw the combined running of the SMOC, Under 6 Litre and Unlimited Inboard.

Labdance showed that the new hull shape was a winner, taking the SMOC class with Glenn Kennedy on the back, from Team Evinrude with Trevor Bray and Crash Lab towing James Walker coming in for minor placings.

The Under 6 Litre class was won convincingly by The Enforcer, towing Simon Handley. They came home 1 lap up on LightN, towing Jesse Robinson.

Unlimited Inboard saw Adrian Heffernan’s super quick Gotta Go, tow Cheyne Allison to a National Title, just 10 seconds ahead of What Inheritance and Craig Greentree.

After some brilliant driving by Brent Wisemantel in Tuff-e-Nuff, he went on to dominate the MOC race, towing Jack Houston to yet another National Title. Jack was chased race long by Anne Procter behind Pure Velocity, but came out at the end 29 seconds in front. Crash Lab towed Craig Gordon into 3rd place.

Brent came out again in the Unlimited Outboard, this time with Ben Hackett doing the hard work out the back, to take the National Title. This meant the treble for Tuff-e-Nuff, taking out F2 earlier in the titles too, for a clean sweep of the 3 quickest Outboard classes. 2nd in the Unlimited Outboard class went to Matthew Wastle, behind Crash Lab, driven by LabSport legend Jeff Stubbs. 3rd went to Labdance and Ryan Trevillion.

Although numbers reduced the closer the Southern 80 got, the Titles were yet another success story for SRNSW.

The Wisemans Ferry and Hawkesbury River location were enjoyed by all and the titles were held in near perfect ski racing conditions throughout.

Congratulations to all of those crews out there that can now brag that they have won an Australian National Title and to all others that competed and made these Nationals so memorable.

Congratulations go to all Judges and helpers for running such a safe and friendly National Championships.

Thank you to all sponsors, especially the event’s Major sponsor, Hi-Tec Oils Australia, for your support of the event.

(Author, Wade Bennett)

Racer of the Fortnight – Michael Kelly

This fortnight’s featured ‘Racer of the Fortnight’ is Queensland ski racer Michael ( Mick ) Kelly.

Mick is exceptionally talented in all aspects of skiing, driving and observing.

Recently, as part of Noel Griffin Racing (NGR) Mick has shown his versatility on many occasions, taking numerous outright placing trophies from races all over Australia in Super Class skiing behind Burnin’.

There have also been many others in crew  positions, in this boat and many others, all over Australia, and indeed the World.

In events like the 2009 Belgium World Titles, Mick donned the Observers jacket, helping Chris Stout to a fantastic 3rd placing in F1 Mens,  just behind Wayne Mawer and Todd Haig on points.

The guys are focused on making the Aussie Team again in F1 for the 2011 World Ski Racing Titles, to be held near his hometown of Brisbane.

During the 2010 – 11 season he has also been driving NGR’s Burnin’ to wins in Junior Boys and in Veterans @ the H120, towing Shane ‘Japs’ Helson and Darren Apps. The guys grabbed a great 2nd placing,  just seconds behind the winner.

He jumped on the ski again to take out Unlimited Outboard with Joel Massey at the 2010 Sydney Bridge to Bridge behind 2 Wild.

Mick sat down and tackled a few questions for SkiRace.Net, as our ‘Racer of the Fortnight’.

  • Biggest influence on your ski racing career?

Noel Griffin without a doubt. From his humble beginnings, to the force he now is in ski racing, his love of the sport has never waned, which has been great to be around. He’s also helped me out more than I can begin to mention.

  • What team?

Technically I’m a freelancer now, just skiing with whoever will tow me, but I’d say my primary position is observer/driver/skier/trailer biatch/ rope put’er’on’a’rer /Pidge’s ski carrier  for NGR. Whatever needs doing.

  • Where are you from?

Ipswich, Queensland.

  • When did you start ski racing ?

I think my first real race was Under 16 Social at the Southern 80 in 95’.

  • What classes do you compete in?

Whatever I can ! I have skied in everything from Social to Super Class, and continue to drive and observe in whatever boat has a spare seat.

  • Supporters / Sponsors?

My Wife.

NGR. (Noel Griffin Racing)

Prop Industries. http://www.propindustries.com

http://www.letstalkskiracing.com.au

DK Disc’s and Ski Fabrication.

  • Which race / venue do you enjoy racing the most?

Hard to pass up the Victorian river races, they’re always fun races, but I’ve always got a soft spot for Moogerah Dam in Qld. Nothing like a home ground advantage.

  • What titles / championships do you have under your belt?

Have won a few here and there, skiing and observing.

I have held a MOC Australian Title, and had a few Qld ones in Mens and Marathon under the belt in years gone by.

3rd in F1 Mens at Belgium Worlds observing for Chris Stout, would have to rank pretty highly though.

  • What is a memorable moment, ski racing, that you would like to share?

Any Qld Title race against Pidge (Grant Turner) springs up. They’re always a bit too close for my liking.

Towing ‘Special’ (Seanne Kelly) to a Qld Marathon Title win over some good competition comes to mind.

Also having to sit around for hours after the final race in Belgium to find out if we’d taken third or not is something I won’t forget.

Driving Burnin at the H120 and winning with the kids was pretty sweet too.

  • What are the challenges for you each race?

Biggest problem is that there are too many other talented ski racers out there to compete with.

Each race is different and the challenges vary depending on which position in the team I’m in at the time.

I have had a lot of ups and downs in skiing, and overcoming injuries or getting yourself back to the right standard for races after slacking is always difficult.

  • How do you prepare for each race?

I try and get as much on water work as I can, social skiing, the occasional bay run. Gym.

Again, it depends what job I’m doing. I like to have a clear picture in my head about the job at hand, the course and competition.

Observing wise I like to do a bit of research about upcoming races, who we’re competing against, the venue etc.

Then if I’m skiing … there’s nothing wrong with a few nerves.

  • If a younger or newer competitor was coming through the ranks what piece of advice would you offer?

Get your technique right, be prepared, take your time to develop your skiing skills and think about what you’re doing.

Don’t try and do it all straight away, you won’t get to be as good as Pidgeon overnight.

  • Do you have a hidden talent ?

Disc’n. Not sure it’s much of a talent, but will give myself and Pidge a wrap as some of the original gangsters of disc riding – far too much spare time’s been spent on them.

  • What are your goals for 2011 ?

The posts keep changing ! A month ago I would have said Grafton Bridge to Bridge, but that’s gone by the wayside for now. Probably getting Chris Stout to the Worlds is the main one, not that he’ll need much of my help, that man is a machine! Other than that just stay safe on the ski.

  • What other ways do you help promote or organize ski racing ?

I’m the Vice Captain of Ski Racing Queensland, and a ‘reporter’ for www.letstalkskiracing.com.au , just trying to get ski racing out to as many people as possible.

Some movies of Mick in action ..

Mick skiing behind 2Wild @ the 2010 Sydney Bridge to Bridge

Mick behind Burnin\’ 2010 Qld State Titles

Mick and Pidge do battle 2010 Qld State Titles

Behind Burnin with Tom Smith – Robinvale 2010

Mick and Tom finishing 2010 Southern 80 (3rd Outright)

2009 Barrie Beehag – Behind Burnin\’

Driving Burnin\’, Qld Series Day, Moogerah Dam

Burnins start Mildura 100 2010 with Mick & Tom skiing

* Thanks to contributing photographers,

http://www.robstorum.com.au

http://www.guy594photography.com

Wade Bennett

Wade Bennett- Walking on water and other miracles ‘ from the  2010 Southern 80 Program

Wade Bennett and his family have been involved with the Southern 80 since 1981, when Wade (9), having skied since the age of 4, skied with his sister Nicole (11) in their first ever ski race, in Social Sub Juniors. They placed 3rd after their Dad Terry’s boat ‘Fleetwood’ ran out of fuel on the last corner. Luckily a kind soul on the river bank had a jerry can of fuel and they got Fleetwood fired up again to record a finish, much to the delight of spectators at the finish line.

In the years following, both Wade and Nicole skied in river races in various age and motor divisions, whilst their Dad took on the job of the Chief starter of the great race.

1st World Championships – Great Britain 1979

Diamond Race (By Gary Trotter 1998)

Diamond Race (1998)

The History of Water Ski Racing in Britain

Wrapped on Adrenalin

Water Ski Racing – what’s it all about?

Girl Power

The Bridge-to-Bridge

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