A jetboat crash during a race in the US could have had a much worse outcome if the crowd weren't paying attention
A Canadian jetboat got it spectacularly wrong during a race meeting in Tangent, Oregon, on Saturday afternoon when it crashed through a fence where spectators were sat.
The 13ft 5in Jetco boat named Fat Buddy failed to negotiate one of the turns on the course, hit an earth embankment, and launched itself, James Bond style, into the air.
The boat landed the right way up but slid at speed through a wire fence and into part of the 3000-strong crowd of spectators before finally coming to a halt. Luckily those watching the race at the Field of Dreams were paying attention and managed to get out of the way in time and nobody was seriously hurt in the incident.
“We were surprised that it went through the fence,” said the track’s owner, Kyle Patrick, “A kid got a scrape, maybe from the boat or getting out the way”.
Sprint boats race round a track laid out rather like a motor racing circuit but comprising narrow water channels dug into the ground, and their 1000hp V8 engines allow them to reach speeds of up to 80mph.
WATCH VIDEO OF THE CRASH
