NZ Offshore Powerboats create "Thunder on the Coast"
PRESS RELEASE
Rayglass New Zealand Offshore
Powerboat Series
Round Three - Maraetai - "Thunder on
the Coast"
Saturday 12th February 2011
NZ
Offshore Powerboats create "Thunder on the
Coast"
Round Three of the Rayglass New Zealand
Offshore Powerboats takes place on Saturday 12th February
off the coast of Maraetai on South Auckland's East Coast.
Wind and tide have a huge impact on this area known as the
Tamaki Strait as it is a relatively narrow stretch of water,
running between the mainland and several islands of the
Hauraki Gulf, and often acts as a funnel as the tide pours
in toward Auckland.
After two races in the 2011
series, some teams are starting to look like they have a
strong chance of dominating the racing in their class.
Several of their competitors ran into difficulty with their
equipment at Gisborne and with only one week between the
races, they may struggle to get back in top shape for this
weeks event.
In the Superboats, 'Fairview' driven
by Warren Lewis and Chris Hanley leads with two straight
wins, and the team will be looking to get their hat trick
with a win at Maraetai. 'Schick Hydro' with Scott Lewis and
Murray Tuffin in the cockpit looked extremely impressive at
Gisborne and seemed intent on leading the field until they
lost one of their drives and were unable to remain
competitive. They, and the team of Cary Gleeson and Sam
Fillmore from 'Doosan', who have had to deal with ballast
issues, will be determined to prevent 'Fairview 'from
dominating the season any further. 'Profloors' driven by
Wayne Valder and Richard Shores will be looking to improve
on their third place at Gisborne and are currently even with
Schick Hydro on the points table.
'NZ Blokes' looks
set for a hat trick after winning at Taupo and Gisborne.
Cathy Vercoe LuvMyBoat.com
'NZ Blokes' driven by
Bob Smith and Andrew "Flea" Koolen will also be looking for
their hat trick after winning at both Taupo and Gisborne.
This boat dominated the Superboat Lite class in 2010 and
looks set on a repeat performance. 'Red Steel' looked
competitive but has run into problems which have affected
the boats performance. They along with 'Barracuda Kayaks'
have a lot of work to do to reel in the leading
boat.
The Honda Class provided an exciting battle
at Gisborne with three of the boats racing within easy reach
of eachother, and at times seemed only inches apart. Mike
Urquhart in 'Auckland District Collections' has two wins
under his belt, but will face some serious competition this
week from James Taylor in 'Total Oil' and Colin Dunn in 'CRD
Automotive' who were so close to getting the top spot at the
Gisborne race.
Auckland District Collections,
Total Oil and CRD Automotive had a close fought battle at
Gisborne. Cathy Vercoe LuvMyBoat.com
A similar
battle continues in the Sports Restricted with 'Auckland
District Collections 1' and 'Marineworkz' racing for the
title. Mikey Knight of 'Auckland District Collections 1'
continues to lead the class with two wins. Racing over the
last two events has however been close and Jono Hanley of
'Marineworkz' will be keen to get his share of the wins over
the season.
In the Super 60 Colin and Glenn Powell
of 'Back2Bay6' have exploded into the class with two fast
and convincing wins after their move from Hondas last
season. The 2010 champions in 'Espresso Engineers' have been
hard pressed to get the boat speed they need to close the
gap, and will no doubt have been working hard to further
refine their setup and regain control of the
class.
We hope to see the return of 'Topaz' in the
classic class after their dramatic smoke display at Taupo
when problems with their turbo prevented them from
finishing. 'Konica Minolta' will be looking to cruise to
their third victory, while Haaka Le Seur and Gavin McGrath
in 'Gull Force 10' may have to wait to show what their
Scarab can do in really heavy sea
conditions.
Forecasts for the area indicate a
fairly brisk nor easterly breeze of 16 knots with gusts up
to 25. This combined with an incoming tide could see a short
but choppy sea state with a north east swell of .3 metres
and 3 second wave interval predicted. This could make the
run from C to D interesting as the boats will be running
against both wind and tide which should provide plenty of
lift and spray.
A map of the race course
The race
can be viewed best from the foreshore at Maraetai Beach. The
race usually takes one hour and starts at
1.00pm.
The NZOPA would like to thank the Maraetai
Beach Boating Club, Maraetai Coastguard, Pine Harbour
Marina, Energizer, AB Marine, Marine Paramedical Services
and MarineWorkz for their support in making the Maraetai
Race possible.
They also acknowledge the ongoing
support of the series sponsors Rayglass.
More
information and updated championship points table can be
found on the New Zealand Offshore Powerboat Association
website
www.nzoffshore.co.nz.
END