Jet Sprints: Spectacular and scary stuff

Leighton Minnell made the Top 3 eliminator of the Superboat class yesterday evening at Shelter View. Photo/Stuart Munro

The opening round of 2014 NZ Jet Sprint Championships at Shelter View developed into a wild and wet battle

The local hero, the Aussie champion and the outsider from Wanaka were all left to fight it out in the Top 3 eliminator after a spectacular and scary opening round of 2014 NZ Jet Sprint Championships at Shelter View yesterday afternoon.

On a day when there were casualties, the rescue crews were called to work overtime throughout a wet and wild afternoon among the big V8 boats after a host of wrong turns, bangs, beachings and two scary accidents left a large holiday crowd holding their breaths.

The biggest wreck was not even part of competition as Wanganui veteran Pat Dillon, previously eliminated from the Superboat class after beaching, was giving one of the event sponsors Ryan Thomas a hot lap during a lull between the Top 8 eliminators.

Striking a bank at the southern island at the end of the track, Dillon's PPG Hulk flew upside down through the air and barrel-rolled eight times into the finishing bay where it was submerged fortunately sitting the right way up in the deepest water on the course.

Tough as old boots, Dillon walked away but Thomas had to be helped to an ambulance from where he was taken to hospital to be checked out, the g-forces from the crash bursting blood vessels in the men's faces and leaving them looking like they had gone 12 rounds with Joseph Parker.

That crash followed another close call in the Superboats when Wanganui's Rob Coley, in contention during the Top 12 eliminators, rapidly changed direction and charged up the bank right on to the catch fence in front of spectators and the nearby rescue crew.

He and navigator Tony Coley were extracted unhurt, while one young woman was taken to be checked out after being sprayed by a burst fire extinguisher during the smash.

"I honestly just think the steering went," said Rob Coley afterwards.

"I came up the middle of the channel and it just went up the bank."

The crashes and a host of other beachings and engine problems caused considerable delays, so the winners of the three classes Superboat, Group A and 400s were not known at press time.

These close calls threatened to overshadow what had been a great day of racing in the signature superboats as Wanganui's Leighton Minnell had a fight on his hands to claim the top points from hot Australian V8 jet sprints and V8 utes driver Phonsy Mullan, who was pouring it on in the latter stages of the day alongside defending champion Peter Caughey of Canterbury.

However, Caughey made a big error in the Top 5 eliminator and went the wrong way, correcting himself but posting a disappointing 55.085 second time.

Meanwhile, with navigator wife Kelli franticly pointing the way, Minnell glided through the corners to get through in a 46.813 finish, which was not his quickest of the day and left Mullan the favourite in the final after powering his way to a 45.164 finish.

The three men Caughey, Minnell and Mullan had been playing "can you top this?" with each other all afternoon, going out after the other competitors in their grade had a bad run and blitzing through to another quickest lap of the day.

However, Caughey's mistake opened the door for Wanaka's Dave Hoskins, who had been quietly tip-toeing through the tulips all afternoon, and his Top 5 time of 48.706 was his best effort of the day and proved enough to make the final.

It can also be said none of the Top 5 or even Top 8 drivers went back out there with any hesitations despite what they had seen happen to Coley and Dillon as times around the 50-second mark were all left behind at the business end of the competition.

Final results on Monday.