Suzi Katavich (left) and Reuben Hoeksema won the Southern Jet Superboat final in round two of the New Zealand Jetsprint Championship at Shelter View Park near Whanganui. Photo / Jeremy Ward, Shot 360 Photography
Suzi Katavich (left) and Reuben Hoeksema won the Southern Jet Superboat final in round two of the New Zealand Jetsprint Championship at Shelter View Park near Whanganui. Photo / Jeremy Ward, Shot 360 Photography
Round two of the NZ Jetsprint Championship at Shelter View, near Whanganui, showcased surprising results despite disruptive rain.
More than 2000 spectators were in attendance for round two of the New Zealand Jetsprint Championship at Shelter View Park in Upokongaro on December 27.
Early afternoon showers stopped racing and dampenedbrollies for about an hour, before it resumed shortly after 3pm.
New Zealand Jetsprint Association president Julia Murray said the day went well after quick problem-solving.
“We still managed to get four qualifying runs, and only dropped Top 6 to help with the time blow out,” Murray said.
“There were very few crashes and close exciting racing from all classes.”
Reuben Hoeksema and navigator Suzi Katavich pinched the Southern Jet Superboat final, after finishing 0.1 seconds ahead of Sam Newdick and navigator Shama Putaranui.
Group A driver Matt Hareb and navigator Hayden George (45.671 seconds) repeated their round one victory over defending New Zealand, Australian and World Champions Ollie Silverton and Amanda Kittow (46.153).
Matt Hareb and navigator Hayden George won in the Group A class in round two of the New Zealand Jetsprint Championship. Photo / Jeremy Ward, Shot 360 Photography
Paddy and Jay Hayden returned to the winner’s circle after seven years with a victory in the MTW LS class, crossing the line in 49.061 seconds in the final run.
In the MTW Group B, Hamish Clarke and Lisa Seator squeezed rookie Gemma Johnson and navigator Richard Currie out of first place with a 53.292-second finish.
The meeting also featured a training session for the NextGen class, where Cooper Silverton recorded the quickest time and won the right to practice a victory lap, flying the chequered flag.
Murray said the Championship’s unpredictability this season has resulted in an enthralling watch each round.
“It’s making the racing really exciting because now you don’t know who is going to win,” she said.
“I really love that because sometimes you can have years where you have got Sam Newdick and Ollie Silverton who just win, win, win but now it’s changing.”
The next round of the NZ Jetsprint Championship will run on January 17 in Wānaka.
The NZ Jetsprint Championship returns to Whanganui in round five on March 5.
Fin Ocheduszko Brown is a multimedia journalist based in Whanganui.
