On the Humber, just off Hull Marina on Sat and Sun
The Zapcat fleet is revving up for the first ever Hull & Humber Grand Prix this weekend.
Rounds 7 and 8 of the 2007 National Championship will be one of the highlights of the water-based action in the Wilberforce Weekender. (For more on the weekender, click here .)
Racing will take place on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 July on the Humber just off Hull Marina, providing spectators with an excellent view of the Zapcats speeding round the course at up to 50mph.
Thirty-two teams are registered for the inaugural Zapcat National Championships Hull & Humber Grand Prix, including current championship leaders Zapcat 8 Pegasus Vortex Racing, piloted by Mick Pritchard with co-pilot Baz Minns. They’ll race over 16 heats in packs of ten boats at a time, trying to qualify for the finals at the end of each day and amass all-important championship points.
Zapcat National Championships have never raced on the Humber before so the conditions will be a novelty for all the teams taking part and promise some unpredictable and thrilling racing. The combination of tide and wind will provide the teams, a mixture of seasoned veterans and rookies, with something to think about as they battle to be first to take the chequered flag.
Yorkshire supporters can cheer on Zapcat 15, ISP Developments driven by the father and son pairing of Chris and Ian Wilkinson, racing in their second Championship season. Chris, a company director from Doncaster, says: “It’s a pleasure to be racing in Yorkshire. Competing in the Zapcat National Championship has given us the opportunity to see a lot of the country we wouldn’t normally have seen, but it’s always nice to race in front of a home crowd.”
15 ISP Developments had a nightmare start to this season when they popped one of the two inflatable tubes of their catamaran in only their second heat and had to retire, unable to compete for the all-important championship points. Since then they’ve fought hard to claw their way up the table and are looking for a good performance in front of a Yorkshire crowd at the 2007 Zapcats National Championship Hull & Humber Grand Prix.
Ian captained the GB team in the Kneeboard Rider Cup success in 2003 against the USA and again in the re-match the following year. Chris was active on the tournament ski circuit in the mid-to-late 1970s. Each year they water ski from the Trent to the Humber Bridge and back – about 120 miles – to raise money for charity.
For spectators who want to get a close up view of the action on the Humber, practice sessions start at 10.30am on both Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 July, with racing proper starting at 11.30am and continuing until approximately 4pm.
