Written by Fleur Tytheridge,

FORMULA 1 OFFSHORE CIRCUIT POWERBOAT RACING

ROUND 5 RYA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

14^th & 15^th July 2007 – Ilfracombe

Teams…

No: Boat Name: Driver: Navigator:

A2 Black N Blue Steve Allan Alison Fairman

A7 Vital Spark Matt Humby Robbie Mould

A9 Bernico Racing Bob McCarthy Nigel Couch

A10 The Black Pearl Phil Bennett Nicki Groves

A11 The Rock Mark Walker Jason Walker

A13 Team Voodoo Graham Lawton Craig Lawton

A19 Y-Knot Jeremy Gibson Ben Ward

A29 Racing Green Richard Mason Jake Julian

A30 Aquaholics Stuart Williams Steve Yabsley

Future Events…

Date: Venue:

August 4 & 5 Stewartby (BASIC RACE ONLY)

August 11 & 12 Dover

September 8 & 9 Salcombe

September 29 & 30 NATIONAL FINALS (Venue TBC)

Saturday 14^th…

It was yet another eventful 2 days of racing for the A class powerboat teams in Ilfracombe this weekend. Saturdays racing commenced with good weather conditions which was a well received bonus for both racers and spectators as we saw Ilfracombe’s pier packed with a welcoming crowd.

Heat 1 had Aquaholics and The Rock leading the way for the 9 participating boats, each powerboat battling the waves to gain water. The Lawton brothers (Team Voodoo) decided to go for a swim as they stuffed their boat into a wave at one of the turnbuoys, seeing navigator Craig dunked and driver Graham hanging from the boat by the steering wheel! However, they managed to keep their position in the race and carried on although very wet! Vital Spark retired from the race as his new navigator couldn’t hack the pace but rejoined the second heat with a replacement! The Black Pearl also had to retire from the first heat due to an engine fault but did not rejoin that day. The rest of the heat went smoothly with just the few normal occasions of missed turnbuoys and near-on collisions!

Heat 2 gave the eager crowd yet something else to keep them entertained as we saw Y-Knot’s driver Jeremy and navigator Big Ben roll their boat, leaving them swimming and their boat sinking! Fortunately, the boat was towed to safety and both were fine – except for 2 wounded egos! The heat went just as well as the first after Y-Knot’s stunt, giving spectators an amazing performance.

In both heats Aquaholics won 1^st place, The Rock came 2^nd and Racing Green got 3^rd place.

Social…

All teams and their supporters spent Saturday evening in Ilfracombe’s Yacht Club enjoying a BBQ and drinks aplenty! As the beer started flowing so did the testosterone as the lads started competing in strength! We won’t announce who won and who lost! Jeremy and Big Ben (Y-Knot) danced their worries away to a night of soul disco, ensuring everyone joined in on the dance floor! Once the bar was dry, the gang returned to the pits for an infamous “Pit Party”!

Sunday 15^th…

A late start for Sundays heats due to weather conditions not permitting. We had little rain but it was rough waters that postponed the racing and it now seems to be a regular occurrence to dive for the trailers! However, the weather did not deter our spectators who showed in full force again. The course layout was adjusted, removing the chicane, to ensure a safe race and, in a bid to still compete, the heats were shortened to just 1 lasting 32 minutes plus 1 lap instead of the usual 25 minutes. Unfortunately, Team Voodoo did not race in this heat due to an engine failure.

All boats had a great start with close competition throughout. The Rock was taking the lead this time but with Aquaholics on their tails. Racing Green, performing very well at this event, were holding 3^rd place and were not budging. It was a great race throughout, although very choppy, ensuring all the boats were in the air more than they were in the water! Aquaholics decided to give the spectators something to talk about when following the footsteps of Y-Knot in Saturdays racing. After hitting some rough water they too ended up taking a swim as they flipped their boat which was left bobbing in the sea! Luckily enough both were fine and the boat was recovered. There were some hairy moments throughout the race but the remaining boats successfully completed the heat giving 1^st place to The Rock, 2^nd place to Racing Green and 3^rd place to Bernico Racing..

The Results…

1^st – A11 The Rock

2^nd – A29 Racing Green

3^rd – A9 Bernico Racing

For full results, photos and all the action, visit www.ocrda.org to check out the latest.

We hope to see you at the next event for truly adrenaline fuelled, fast fun and free for all the family. And if you’re interested in taking part, why not get in touch and you could be driving or navigating in the next National event in OCR’s “Avago Racing” powerboat.