High-adrenaline surf-boat racing hits Waipu Cove this weekend as Thundercats race along the shoreline in the fourth round of the national surf-cross championships.
Thundercat Racing Association president Steve Frogley said the Thundercats last raced at Waipu seven years ago and decided to return because of the good surf conditions.
But Saturday's weather
outlook might not replicate those conditions.
"I've been looking at the forecast and it isn't the best," Frogley said.
"It's always exciting, but definitely more exciting when there's surf."
There are no Northland entries racing and Frogley admitted part of the reason for bringing the event to Waipu was to encourage more interest in the sport in Northland.
Instead, 28 boats from Auckland, Tauranga, Waikato and Wellington will be racing a 300m course marked in a square from the shoreline. Boats begin on the sand and race out, across the top of the square and back, for six laps.
There will be 12 heats, which will whittle entries down for a grand final in the afternoon.
Frogley said it was a relatively cheap motorsport. A second-hand race boat will set you back about $10,000 and only use about $30 of petrol during an event.
Racing starts at 11am and continues until about 3pm.
