N.Z. power-boat regatta

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32801, 29 December 1971, Page 20

N.Z. power-boat regatta

About 100 power boats from 18 clubs will compete for 18 national titles at Lake Rotoiti when the second New Zealand power-boat championship regatta is held on New Year’s Day and January 2. New Brighton and Auckland boats are expected to be to the fore, as they won 12 of the titles when the first national regatta was held on Lake Karapiro last New Year. The New Brighton club

will have by far the strongest team numerically in the regatta—almost a third of the boats taking part. J. Stokes, a Waikuku farmer, will defend the three titles he won last year in his 1650 c.c. racing runabout Juella 11, and New Brighton will be hoping he can complete a treble again. P. R. Knight will defend two titles in two hydroplanes, Bel Air and Miss Latimer Lodge. He could be hard pressed by Temptress (F. McLeod, Auckland) but has a new Alfa Romeo engine in Miss Latimer Lodge. New Brighton won eight - titles at the first national regatta. W. L. Stokes in Voodoo IV, G. Cooke in Miss Glasskraft, and D. Parker in Panic were the other titlewinners. Stokes will be hard i pushed in the open class by |J. McGregor (Auckland) in : Air New Zealand and D. ’ Cameron (Rotoiti) in Miss Print IV, both 150 m.p.h. i craft. But Stokes now has a ; fuel injected engine and is a '• bold driver.

Auckland won four titles at the last regatta, Air New Zealand taking two and Miss Coventry (G, and P. Urquhart) two. Auckland again has a small team—only four, and Miss Coventry is understood to be a late entry—but has quality. But the smaller clubs are expected to provide much stiffer opposition this time, particularly Rotoiti, the host

club, with D. Cameron (Miss Print IV) and W. McCaa (Ajay II and Ajay III). Miss Print and Ajay 111 are both 140 m.p.h. hydroplanes. New Brighton, with strong representation in both the hydroplanes and racing runabout (V-bottom) divisions must be favoured to retain the fine trophy awarded, to the club scoring most points at the regatta.