Hard work behind the scenes has also paid off for the Formula 3 category with the final 2 rounds also seeing a jump in numbers.

SATURDAY
saw plenty of action and that was just in the qualifying sessions for the Formula boats….

The day kicked of a racing start with both the Sports Monos (minus Greg Adams) and the Formula Futures demonstrating why they’ve quickly become a popular support category. With 17 entrants for the Futures, it was, by far, the biggest field for the year, with the group broken into 2 groups - J1/J2 (the smaller engines) and the J3 (15 horsepower).

Harrison Brereton, the sole entry in the J1, hit out with the J2s while the J3s saw a great tussle between Kieren Cave and Luke Madill.

Sports Mono Races 1 and 2 saw two drivers spin out – David Ainley spun on the western end of the track while Corey Smith lost the lead (and the potential win) when his boat snapped out from beneath him. Although quick to recover, Smith was forced to renegotiate the turn buoys losing him plenty of time. In the end smith finished well behind Tim Fenwick, who closed out the rest of the field to take the two wins.

QUALIFYING for the Formula 2 category saw Trevor Hodder come unstuck and flip at the top turn. As it turned out...this was an ominous sign of things to come! The #35 craft had been looking progressively untidy until, finally, heading east down the KIM HAULAGE back straight, Hodder and gravity parted ways. Finding himself upside down Hodder was forced to make a quick exit. Divers and safety crews were on hand but were not needed with Hodder making his way back to the dock a little shaken but unharmed. Damage appeared to be minimal but it was expected the engine may have suffered some issues from immersion. Unfortunately the roof mounted camera was also ripped from its mounting, depriving everyone of a bird’s eye view of the flip. Sunday will tell the story if Hodder returns.

In the F1 category…it was pole for Shane Vella, finally getting the tactical advantage over his point’s nemesis - Damien McKenzie. Vella was more than wrapped with his qualifying time and stated that prop choice had been crucial in gaining the vital edge.

The first Formula 3 RACE for the weekend saw a titanic struggle between Corey Davoll and Geoff Bollins - continuing the battle from Round 5 Port Macquarie. While Dave Connolly ultimately took out the win, Davoll hunted Bollins throughout the laps closing in to be within a boat length in the final turns. The finish saw Bollins shake his younger rival once again! Returnee to the series, Andrew King, suffered trim pump failure before race start and Greg Banks finished fourth.

After a great start there was drama for Dave Wedlock in the first F2 race with one of his team’s holding poles getting stuck on the steering cables at the stern. After a full lap Wedlock was forced to slow before entering the Commentary Dogleg – this maneuver successfully dislodged it but he had lost valuable time that in the end, he was unable to recover from. Coming out from the final turn before the CHANCE BOATS front straight, there looked to be contact between Tim Bollins and Chris Kuznetsoff, but with no damage nor further indication of such, it appeared to be electrical issues that beached the #28 Sportsfilm.com craft. A bemused Kuznetsoff was at a loss later to pinpoint the lack of energy from the engine. Bollins said later that a substantial amount of post Port Macquarie R & D was responsible for the #27 Watersports Marine boat taking the win and looking substantially more stable. Matt Smith came home for second with Wedlock eventually securing third ahead of another returnee, Brian Armstrong.

Expectations were high for an electric race in the F1s but no one could have foreseen what was about to unfold.

Boats were set P1 Vella, P2 McEnnally, P3 McKenzie….the flag dropped and they were off! Hitting the top turn at top speed, Anthony McEnnally’s #52 Watersports Marine craft failed to turn rolling him up and over the top of McKenzie and landing directly in front of the pole 3 boat leaving McKenzie nowhere to go but into and over him!

It was a HUGE incident and the event was immediately red flagged.

McKenzie beached his entry fearing it was sinking with the nosecone and both pickle forks completely ripped off. Damien himself was ok and walked away with only bruises. McEnally’s craft was destroyed but his cell was intact – a testament to the safety of formula boat racing. Both ambulance and police attended with a concussed McEnally being helilifted to Sydney’s Westmead hospital for precautionary scans. Event organisors were very pleased to hear he got the “all clear” later on that night.

Given the time it took to manage the incident, race organizers called it “a day” and rescheduled the race to be re-run first thing Sunday. The other 2 races scheduled to run after the F1 race on Saturday were cancelled.

SUNDAY

After the drama of Saturday had cleared, day two for the Formula Powerboats and the grand finale round was greeted by more sensational weather and the promise of even better racing.

The Sports Monos once again made the most of the glassy water, flying along the front and back straights with the characteristic slap slap of water on hull at around 150 kilometres per hour.

Jason Reynolds in “Menace” was off to a flyer, downing Tim Fenwick in the first two races. Dave Ainley battled handling issues in the first race for the day finally being trumped by a smiling Corey Smith. In the end Ainley needed “time out” to sort these and didn’t come out for the day’s second race.

For race three the first turn saw Tim Fenwick somehow shrink “Southern Cross” and slide his way through the leaders. Miraculously he came through unscathed to hold off Ainley while Smith and Reynolds had some close moments to finish third and fourth respectively.

The final race saw a more sorted boat for Ainley take the chequered flag ahead of a determined Fenwick while Reynolds managed to keep out a non-stop charge from Corey Smith.

A good run was had from Dave Connolly is his F3, with his craft seemingly powered by a shuttle booster rocket! The battle between Corey Davoll and Geoff Bollins continued with honours split for the day. Davoll found the edge in the first race while Bollins showed his younger rival how it’s done for the second. On the final lap in R1 for Sunday, after Davoll had passed the flag and was into the final turns making his way back to dock when his boat stopped. The cause….Davoll’s hard work to catch Connolly had seen the engine working overtime and had drained the fuel tank dry. Greg Banks and Andrew King had no answer, wrapping up the minor placings.

Drama once again for the likeable Townsville based Dave Wedlock in the F2 group, with the Kroymans Development boat rotating through a full 360 degrees flip heading into top turn on the last lap of the race. Keen to secure any points he could, Wedlock was quick to kick over his engine and drive to the finish line however unfortunately the race had been red flagged and his efforts went unrewarded! Amazingly, the only damage was to the pickle fork on the left sponson, allowing a wry Wedlock to muster a quick repair and return for the next race. Matt Smith, in his ex American championship winning boat, had Tim Bollins sniffing at his heels in the turns, but had the quicker straight line speed to hold him out. Brian Armstrong rounded out the weekend with a smile.

The final round for the F1 boys was a bit of a fizzer with McKenzie & McEnally both out of the field early and engine demons striking Truslove & Bailey’s entries throughout the weekend. Geelong based Dean Trickie had battery problems with a possible dead cell stopping him from taking to the water and Jamie Butler was also plagued with engine gremlins.
A combined F1 and F2 race saw Truslove retire (with another blown engine) and Vella take out 2010 championship in a manner that, although he accepted, would have preferred to have won under battle conditions. A gracious Shane Vella made sure that Damien McKenzie was aware of his respect for him and his efforts for the year.

With the first season now completed, it now lies before all competitors to take the proverbial “bull by the horns” and ensure that 2010/2011 season is even bigger and better than ever!!

Dave Conole
Series Commentator
Australian Formula Powerboat Grand Prix