REGATTA SPLENDID SUCCESS

Putaruru Press, Volume XXVII, Issue 1363, 26 January 1950, Page 4

REGATTA SPLENDID SUCCESS

PUT ARURU- ARAPUNI SPEEDBOAT CLUB

CHAMPIONSHIP TO MITE B Arapuni Lake provided an attractive setting for the Putaruru-Ara-puni Speedboat Club’s first annual championship regatta held on Saturday. It was a splendid success with 23 boats competing before an estimated attendance of 1250 to 1500 spectators. A stiff two-buoy course provided plenty of thrills with sharp turns necessitating great skill and long straight stretches where the drivers opened out churning the placid waters of the lake into flying foam. Competitors from as far north as Whangarei and as far south as Wellington proved conclusively that speedboat racing is the sport of true sportsmen, the prizes being only a minor consideration, the sport the important factor. The Programme The programme comprised 10 events for V-bottoms, hydroplanes and outboards, the public receiving more than full value for its money as one exciting race followed another. Highlight of the day was the North Island unlimited auto engine championship for V-bottom boats which drew eight starters. It was a great race with Mite B’s superior manoeuvrability at the buoys proving the winning element. Next in popularity was the hydroplane lake championship won by Mr J. Richardson's Surprise. It was possibly the most popular win on the day, being no surprise, despite the boat’s name. Good Organisation Good organisation, which will be 100 per cent, next time, after the experience gained,' resulted in events being run off smartly once the programme got under way. Unfortunately, the programme ran an hour behind schedule as one of the buoys sank, necessitating the repetition of all time trials. A host of officials and voluntary workers worked well throughout • the day, some of them having commenced their duties at a very early hdtxr in the morning. Altogether it was a remarkable performance considering the amount of detailed work involved. Special credit was due the handicappers, Messrs N. Robinson (Putaruru) and C. J. Fleming (Matamata), who were kept hard at it, their marks providing several close finishes. If there was any criticism it was earned by drivers of boats who failed to keep off the course during the running of events or time trials. Several local members' qualified as the worst offenders. Local Boats Unlucky No hard luck stories were told or excuses offered for the defeat of local boats although several appeared unlucky. Biggest disappointment was the defection of Salome early in the day as a result of leaks. Next casualty was Restless which sprang a plank, which was unfortunate as it was the same plank recently repaired after 1 a similar occurrence. Jack Moore had trouble with his steering, admittedly tough luck, when he gained so much ground on the straights, but Hopalong just could not make the turns on the day. Only local placing was Rover’s third for N. Blain. Tremendous Crowd

Facilities for the tremendous attendance were excellent as the lake basin provides a natural grandstand on either lakeside. A rough estimate of the number of cars there was between 400 and 500. Refreshments were available and during the day the lady helpers, who worked so well, sold 15 gallons of ice cream and 82 dozen bottles of soft drink, as well as numerous pies and sandwiches. The weather which was brilliantly fine in the morning became dull towards late afternoon, hut nothing could detract from the unqualified success of the regatta. Early in the morning, to lessen the possibility of fire in the fields of dry grass used for parking, water from the lake was played upon them by the Putaruru Volunteer Fire Brigade, whose service and. co-operation was much appreciated by the club. Particularly pleasing and noticeable about the day’s sport was the friendly picnic atmosphere which prevailed. Visiting drivers commented upon that as well as their general satisfaction with the course, handicapping and judges’ decisions.

Club Officials Club officials are as follows: Patron, Mr H. L. Martin, Mayor of Putaruru; president, Mr C. R. Robinson; commodore. Mr G. Radd; club captain, Mr W. E Kivel; vice-presi-dent, Mr R. H. Goodall; committee: Messrs A. P. Young, A. D. Forster, A. J. Robinson, L. Ellis, E. Pegler; hon. auditor, Mr W. H. Somerville; hon. surgeons, Drs. R. C. Doherty and P. W. Conlon; hon. solicitor, Mr J. Grahame; judges, Messrs W. E. Kivell, A. P. Young, A. G. Robinson;

handicappers, Messrs A. D. Forster, N. Robinson; timekeepers, Messrs A. H. Leggatt, J. Sim, N. Lord; starter, Mr R. Tipping; rescue, Messrs G. Radd (water), Marshall, A. Forster; boat inspector, Mr. A. H. Leggatt; protest committee, Messrs W. Kivel, G. Radd, A. P. Young, A. H. Leggatt, A. Forster; secretaries, Messrs J. Moore, L. Ellis. Mr D. C. Freeman acted as announcer and commentator. Time Trials The following are the time trials recorded by each boat in its time trial: Surprise 64 seconds, Hopalong 73, Hi Barbaree 75, Miss Waikato 76, Falcon 76, Miss Hamilton 76, The Ace 76, Scram 78, Salome 79, Sea Devil 79, Silver Wraith 79, Miss Conduct 80, Mite B 81, Golden Nebula 81, Rover 82, Cracker Jack 82, Restless 83, Tamahine 83, Lilli Marlene 85, Zip 93, Wacko 96. Details of Results Abbreviations of owners’ addresses are as follows: Auckland (A), Hamilton (H), Hinuera (Hin), Matamata (M), Papakura (P), Putaruru (Fu), Rotorua (R), Taupo (T), Te Awamutu (TA), Tokoroa (Tok), Waitara (W), Whangarei (Wh), Wellington (Wgtn). Putaruru V-Bottom Handicap.—First £4 and cup donated by Ginger Robinson, second £2 10s, third £1; six laps: Cracker Jack, ownerdriver J. T. Hogan (Wgtn), 1; Lilli Marlene, owner-driver A. Godfrey (H), 2; Miss Conduct, owner-driver J. J. Wilson (TA), 3. From the limit mark Zip made the most of its lack of handicap to lead for the first five laps, with Scram and Mite B chasing it along as they made up their handicaps. In a.' fairly close finish Scram went away in the straight to beat Zip, with Mite B third. Then came Cracker Jack, Lilli Marlene, Miss Conduct, Salome and Tamahine. Hopalong withdrew during the fourth lap. Unfortunately, the first three boats exceeded their time trials and were disqualified. Scram subsequently did another trial, recording 76 seconds, two seconds less than its first trial.

Arapuni Outboard Handicap. First £5, second £3, third £1; four laps: Sea Devil, owner-driver K. Vickery (H), 1; Falcon, ownerdriver G. Byrne (H), 2; Phantom, owner-driver R. B. Thompson (W), 3. Miss Hamilton, off 435, finished magnificently to win this race only to be disqualified for exceeding its time trial. Phantom led early but at the end of the second lap was passed by Sea Devil, with Miss Hamilton gaining ground in third position, with Falcon well to the rear. By the commencement of the last lap Miss Hamilton had sped into second place behind Sea Devil, Phantom fading and Falcon vainiy trying to make up its handicap. Racing for the final buoy Miss Hamilton drew level with Sea Devil which made a good turn to lead into the straight. Miss Hamilton turned wide out but in a close finish fl'ashed across the line ahead of Sea Devil, then came Falcon, with Phantom a long way back. Farmers’ Trading Company Hydroplane Handicap.—First £4 and cup donated by Farmers’ Trading Company, Putaruru, second £2 10s, third £1; six laps: Hi Barbaree, owner-driver C. E. Home (H), 1; The Ace, owner-driver B. G. White (Wh), 2; Golden Nebula, ownerdriver A. J. Buckleigh (T), 3. There was another disqualification when The Ace finished second, but the owner-driver protested, his protest being upheld. Wacko, the limit boat, had a long start, but Hi Barbaree had caught and passed it by the end of the third lap, with Golden Nebula and The Ace next, with Surprise, which started a lap behind the others, well in the rear. Turning for the final lap Hi Barbaree led with The Ace which moved through fast making up leeway. First into the straight, Hi Barbaree went on for a comfortable win, with The Ace an equally easy second. Then came Golden Nebula, Surprise, which made up a large portion of its handicap, and Wacko last. Waotu V-Bottom Handicap. ■— First £5, second £3, third £1; six laps: Lilli Marlene, owner-driver A. Godfrey (H) 1; Zip, owner-driver R. J. Clifton (A), 2; Rover, ownerdriver N. Blain (Tok), 3. Well strung out at the end of the first lap, Miss Tokoroa led Restless, Lilli Marlene, Silver Wraith, with the back-markers well back. There was no alteration until the third lap when Silver Wraith retired, as did Restless during the fifth. Into the last lap Miss Tokoroa went with a commanding lead, Lilli Marlene in second place, with Zip and Rover - following. Across the finishing line the order remained the same. Also started: Cracker Jack, Mi3S Conduct and Scram.

Lichfield Outboard Handicap. First £5, second £2 10s, third £1; four laps: Phantom, owner-driver

R. B. Thompson (W), 1; Falcon, owner-driver G. Byrne (H), 2; Miss Hamilton, owner-driver W. Walker (H), 3. A procession resulted in this event, Phantom off the limit leading Sea Devil (555), Falcon (im 2s) and Miss Hamilton (lm 13s). Except for Sea Devil losing control and dropping out at the last turn, the order remained uni hanged. G. L. Martin Hydroplane Handicap.—First £4 and cup donated by G. L. Martin, Ltd., second £2 10s, third £1; six laps: Golden Nebula, owner-driver A. J. Buckleigh (T), 1; Surprise, owner-driver J. Richardson (P), 2; Hi Barbaree, ownerdriver C. E. Home (H), 3. Superb skill and superior speed almost gave Surprise this race. Handicapped 3m, conceding over a minute to a minute and a half to the other competitors, Surprise roared down the straight, just failing to catch Golden Nebula. She was magnificent in defeat, providing the most stirring finish of the day. Hi Barbaree' was third, The Ace having retired with three laps to go.

North Island Unlimited Auto Engine Championship for V-Bottom Boats.—First £7 7s and trophy valued £7, second £4 4s, third £2 2s; eight laps: Mite B, owner J. Booth, driver E. Holmes (T), 1; Scram, owner O. W. Smith, driver Knowles (R), 2; Cracker Jack, owner-driver J. T. Hogan (Wgtn), 3. Nothing during the day was more impressive than the eight boats for the championship as they swept into view from the upper reaches of the lake for a 'rolling start. Lined abreast across the lake they proceeded slowly until the starter, satisfied with the line, dropped the flag, and that which had been a picture of beauty, line and movement, roared into life with terx-ific acceleration and the race was on. Scram swept round the first buoy with a slight lead from Mite B, Cracker Jack, Rover, Miss Conduct, Hopalong, Lilli Marlene, and Zip. With three' laps covered Scram held a clear lead from Mite B, Cracker Jack handy, Miss Conduct fourth, the others still within striking distance. Commencing the fifth lap Mite B went after Scram, wresting the lead from it before starting on the sixth. These two were clear of Cracker Jack, Miss Conduct, Hopalong, which lost ground by twice making turns on the wrong side of the buoy, Rover and Zip, Lilli Marlene having dropped out some laps back. Into' the seventh lap Scram made an effort to bridge the gap and although making up leeway on the straights lost it on the turns, where Mite B

showed vastly superior manoeuvrability. Nothing short of an accident could have stopped Mite B in the last lap, although Scram would have been harder to beat if it had not suffered damage to its propeller. Cracker Jack battled on for third, just keeping Miss Conduct out of that position. Then came Hopalong and Rover, Zip failing to complete the course. The time of the winning boat was lOmin lOsecs, and that of the second lOmin 19secs.

Putaruru Hotel Hydroplane Lake Championship.—First £4 and cup donated by Putaruru Hotel, second £2 10s, third £1; six laps: Surprise, owner-driver J. ’ Richardson (P), 1; Golden Nebula, owner-driver A. J. Buckleigh (T), 2; Hi Barbaree, owner-driver, C. E. Home (H). 3. Most popular win of the day was that of Surprise in this event. It was a foregone conclusions and Surprise just played with the opposition. Golden Nebula put up an excellent performance to finish second after chasing the winner all the way, with Hi Barbaree third. The Ace failing to complete the course.. Time, 7min 27secs.‘

Salome Outboard Handicap.— First £4 and cup donated by C. R. Robinson, second £2 10s, third £1; four laps: Miss Hamilton, ownerdriver W. Walker (H), 1; Sea Devil, owner-driver K. Vickery (H), 2; Falcon, owner-driver G. Byrne (H), 3. Excellent handicapping in this race made the finish. The backmarker, Miss Hamilton, made up her handicap beautifully, although . she ran about a bit at the turns, to take the' lead with half a lap to go. Sea Devil and Faison hung on for the minor olacings. D.H.C. V-Bottom Handicap. First £4 and cup donated by Distributors Hardware, Ltd., second £2 10s, third £1; six laps: Cracker Jack, owner-driver J. T. Hogan (Wgtn), 1; Mite B. owner J. Booth, driver E. Holmes (T), 2: Lilli Marlene, ownerdriver A. Godfrey (H), 3. Six starters lined up for the last event, Lilli Marlene leading for the first two laps from Cracker Jack, Silver Wraith; Mite B, Miss Waikato, and Hopalong. From there on Cracker Jack took command from Lilli Marlene and Mite B. Lilli Marlene dropped back and Mite B went after Cracker Jack but failed to catch it. Silver Wraith and Hopalong failed to complete the course.