Nearly half the field in the Jetpro 400s series marked down Did Not Finish for their first efforts while others were content to drive a sedate lap over one minute when times would be nearly half that by the end of the night.
It was the same in the PSP Group A event when Taupo's Ricky Shaw pushed his luck harder than he was pushing the boat and ended up rolling through the finishing line timer loop, getting it tangled upside down in the wiring.
Shaw and navigator Rown Pilbrow had to wait a few minutes before they could be freed. "My emotions are hurt, my confidence is dented. Apart from that I'm okay," said Shaw.
Only six Group A boats out of 18 posted a first-up qualifying time and by the end of the night only four of them had managed to get through without either beaching or taking a wrong turn.
Time had to be taken to make the technical adjustments so racing went straight from the third qualifying round to the Top 8 eliminator.
Adjusting the rotation may have given a smoother ride, but one or two teams were a little confused by this and made navigational errors.
Wanganui's Donna Thomson (Two A Breast), Taupo's Warren Farr, Owhango's Tim Edhouse and Hamilton's season rookie Ollie Silverton all ended up parked on the grass in the 400s.
But perhaps the new track meant new drivers - who are already living on their nerves - could prosper, as two Wanganui teams finished first and second in this class.
Hayden Wilson, navigator for last season's champion Gerry Linklater, took White Noize on a blistering 39.19 second run, more than making up for his Top 5 navigational error that put him out of round 1 at Shelter View.
Wilson celebrated by hosing down JSA president Eric Hoeksema as he took off on his victory lap.
Wanganui rookie Paul Tulloch (Bad Boyz) was hot on Wilson's heels and in his first full season of racing New Plymouth's Neil Marshall took third podium spot.
In the Group As, doyen announcer Tim "Caveman" Barrot put the "commentator's curse" into full swing as Auckland's Baden Gray, Hamilton's Ric Burke and Australian Brooke Dixon all crashed out spectacularly after being praised for great driving.
But the big story is the enduring rivalry between Wanganui's defending national champion Richard Murray (Mean Machine) and last season's runner-up Sam Newdick, as once again the Hamilton driver finished the round on top. However, after Newdick dominated at Shelter View, this time Murray closed the winning margin to a heartbeat - 0.8 seconds - so it appears the fight is not over yet.
It was an identical podium to Shelter View as Australian Paul Gaston finished third.
But the usual suspects were all out of contention in the headline Suzuki Superboats as the constant delays meant the Top 5 and Top 8 formats had to be abandoned in favour of a 12-boat shoot-out.
"We had to be finished by 10pm so we had 40 minutes," said Wanganui's world champion Leighton Minnell. "We had a 'zero or hero' competition. All of the big names dropped out. It was like racing in the coliseum."
Feilding's Steve Bron lost his steering chain and launched into the air, landing up against some hay bales, while former Australian champion and expat Kiwi Darryl Hutton ended his comeback after four years by parking in the middle of an Enzed banner on one island during the qualifiers.
Thankfully, Wanganui's Rob Coley (Poison Ivy) and Pat Dillon (The Hulk 3) were both back in the water after their dramatic crashes in round 1.
Round 1 winner Phonsy Mullan had the fastest qualifying time at 36.93 but then his starter motor packed up and the other Aussie contender Greg "Crusty" Mercier bettered it.
But with a level playing field of 12 going all out, the conditions were right for an upset, and so it proved as Hastings' Graeme Hill earned his first winner's flag in 10 years with a 36.81 drive.
Wanaka's Dave Hopkins continues to impress as he claimed his second straight runner-up placing, while Mercier settled for third after he overshot a corner and ended up on the other side of Baypark's speedway track.
The next round will be held at Meremere on February 9.
