Powerboat Champions & Record Holders announced
2009 has once again been a phenomenal season for RYA Powerboat Racing with around 800 people taking to the water this summer.
With the UK National season now over the JSRA Winter Championship has begun bringing new Jet Skiers to the Race Circuit and International competition continues with several racers competing in the Middle East including defending F2 World Champion Colin Jelf and Brother Owen and with Malcolm Goodman replacing an injured Andy Elliott in team Qatar in the F1 World Championships.
Offshore Racing has been fast and frenzied as always with some racers battling it out in over 100 races throughout the season for their individual titles. The RYA has helped around 500 people be involved with Offshore Powerboat racing this year at around 50 individual events and had over 35 teams compete in the UK�s largest class; Zapcat Racing.
Shelley Jory was driver of the first ever all female team to take a Grand Prix title in the amazing Powerboat P1 Supersport World Championship and Team Silverline�s Drew Langdon and Jan Falkowski narrowly missed out on the top spot in the P1 Evolution World Championship Overall.
With the season now over the following championships have been decided and the 2009 RYA National Championship Winners are;
2009 Offshore Champions
| Class | Driver | Navigator |
| National Class 3B 1.3Litre | Matt Webb | Stuart Lawrence��� |
| National Class 3C 2 Litre | Ian Stirling | Alex Watson |
| V24 Drivers� Championship�(Non National)� | Lance Selby | Peter Phillipson |
| National OCR A | Richard Mason | David Ayre |
| National Zapcat | Craig Davis | Robert Martin |
| National Honda F4SA 150 | Jak Cockman | Andy Phipps� |
| National Honda F4SA 225 | David Cowley | Paul Barkshire� |
| National UKFFORC F400 | Ben Pocknell | Jamie Kendall |
| National��UKFFORC E900 | Camilla Pascoe | Carolina Sandbrook� |
| National UKFFORC E1500 | Jake Swann�� | Ben Kendall�� |
| National Thundercat P750 Standard�� | Bligh Julius | Simon Butters� |
| National Thundercat��P750 Blueprint�� | Darryn Harrison�� | Sam Lane� |
| National Offshore�Marathon Class B | Tim Grimshaw�� | Markus Hendricks� |
| National Offshore�Marathon Class C� | Darren Hook� | Kevin Marshall |
| National Offshore�Marathon Class D | Dave Deacon� | Mike Deacon�� |
| National Offshore Marathon Class E | Gordon Compton�� | Nicole Bailey���� |
Circuit has also had a an extremely busy year that saw the Circuit racers show motorsport fanatics at the Cholmondeley Pageant of Power back in July exactly what Powerboat racing was all about as they battled it out on the water to the thousands of spectators that visited the show that weekend.
Circuit Racing also saw Midlands Powerboat Racing Club host the first ever Junior European Championships in UK in the JT250 Class at Kingsbury Waterpark, Bodymoor; A somewhat controversial event saw the RYA�s UK officials excel in their roles and proving just how formidable the UK�s Powerboat fraternity is as a nation. And the UK�s Ben Morse take the Bronze Medal in the competition in what will be his last year of Junior Competition.
Around 150 racers have battled it out on the lakes of Britain at a staggering 60+ events. With 4 National Rounds hosted by each of the major Circuit Clubs to determine the 2009 National Champions. In addition to this Stewartby Watersports Club hosted the annual Sprint Championships to find the Circuit Sprint Champions for this year.
2009 Circuit Champions
| Class | Driver |
| National�Outboard� | Wayne Turner |
| National Outboard�Sprint O:125 | Wayne Turner |
| National Outboard Sprint O:250� | Julian Codling |
| National Outboard� Sprint O:350 | Nigel Edwards |
| National Sprint SL250 | John Puddifoot� |
| National�OSY400� | Craig Speller� |
| National Sprint OSY400�� | Craig Speller� |
| National Sprint J250�� | Ben Morse� |
| National J250 | Ben Morse� |
| National T850� | Thomas Gilderdale���� |
| National Sprint T850�� | Thomas Gilderdale� |
| National Sprint T750�� | Alex Gilbert� |
| National��S850 | Stephen Batch� |
| National Sprint S850�� | Stephen Batch� |
| National NS2000 | TBC� |
| National Sprint NS2000�� | Paul Balfour |
| World F4 Champion | Scott Curtis� |
The nomadic group known as the JSRA (Jet Sport Racing Association) have had a busy season introducing more people to the water in both their Club and National Championships over 200 people took to their Jet Ski�s to try their hand at Racing.
Meanwhile at the Cholmondeley Pageant of Power whilst the Circuit racers wowed the crowds with their speed and skill legendary freestyle jet skiers Lee Stone and Dan Ashcroft showed why their top of the game performing triple back flips and inverted jumps over each other that had the crowds watching with baited breath.�
With the JSRA British Championships complete a team of the UKs Jet Skiers headed to Lake Havasu, Arizona in the US this week for the IJSBA� World Finals where they always return with a plethora of silverware and titles doing their country proud. This year they returned with 8 Individual World titles and the Nations Cup beating 31 other nations.
2009 RYA Jetsport Champions
| Class | Driver |
| National Runabout GP������ | James Bushell |
| National Runabout Stock 4- Stroke | James Bushell |
| National Ski GP | Renaud Urbain |
| National FREESTYLE � AMATEUR | Jack Moule |
| National FREESTYLE � PRO� | Lee Stone� |
| National VETERAN RUNABOUT�� | Paul Richardson� |
| National NOVICE SKI STOCK�� | Danny Mace� |
| National SPORT OPEN�� | Ray Purkiss� |
| National NOVICE SPORT OPEN�� | Glen Marshall� |
| National RUNABOUT LIMITED�� | Perry Field� |
| National EXPERT JUNIOR SKI 2 STROKE | Michael Perrin� |
| National EXPERT JUNIOR SKI 4-STROKE�� | Joseph Edwards� |
| National Novice Runabout Stock 4 �Stroke�� | Edward Thory� |
| National Novice Runabout 2-Stroke� | Ryan O'Connor� |
| National Runabout 2- Stroke�� | Andy Rich� |
| National Ski Stock� | Kevin Pope� |
| National Ski Veteran | Jim Goodchild� |
| National Ski Limited�� | Lewis Goodchild� |
| World Veteran Ski Limited�� | Lisa Barsby� |
| World Masters Stock | Lisa Barsby� |
| World Amateur Ski Open�� | Anya Colley�� |
| World Expert Ski Limited� | Anya Colley� |
| World Ski Veteran�� | Jim Goodchild� |
| World Ski Masters Open�� | Jim Goodchild� |
| World Junior 10-12 Lites�� | Joseph Edwards� |
| World Junior Stock Ski | Joseph Edwards� |
In addition to National and World Champions 23 competitors headed to a very blustery Records week at Coniston in attempt to obtain further glory in the history books as Record Breakers.
Here�s how they got on;��
| World Records 2009 | ||||
| Date | Class | Driver's Name | Nationality | MPH |
| 04/11/09� | �T:750 E� | ALEX GILBERT� | UK | 49.21��� |
| 06/11/09� | ELECTRIC 72V HYDRO E | HELEN LONEY | UK� | 21.08 |
| �National Records 2009��� | ||||
| Date� | Class���� | Driver's Name | Nationality | MPH |
| 04/11/09�� | T:750 E� | ALEX GILBERT�� | UK� | 49.21� |
| 04/11/09�� | GAS TURBINE�� | JULIAN CLEGG�� | UK�� | 88.91����� |
| �04/11/09�� | CLUBMAN 1500 MONO�� | WILLIAM WOOD�� | UK� | 67.68����� |
| 05/11/09�� | IMMERSED PROP O/B MONO�� | BOB MCCARTHY�� | UK | 103.02����� |
| 05/11/09�� | CLUBMAN 2000 MONO E� | HELEN LONEY�� | UK� | 61.23����� |
| 05/11/09�� | GT30 E� | BEN MORSE�� | UK�� | �51.91��� |
| 05/11/09�� | E900 UKFFORC E� | DAVID WEBBER�� | UK� | 49.56����� |
| 05/11/09�� | OCR B EPA E� | DAVID WEBBER�� | UK�� | 47.55����� |
| 06/11/09�� | ELECTRIC 72V HYDRO�� | HELEN LONEY�� | UK� | 21.08����� |
| 06/11/09�� | SL:250�� | KEITH WHITTLE�� | UK� | 128.71����� |
| 06/11/09�� | O:125�� | WAYNE TURNER�� | UK | 83.41����� |
| All World Records are subject to ratification by the UIM � ratification pending All National Records are subject to ratification by the RYA � ratification pending� E = established | ||||
Good luck to all those representing their country in international competition and a huge congratulations to those champions� already crowned and those record breakers amongst you.
Preparations are already underway by many of the clubs for the 2010 season which will see the 50th Anniversary of the Cowes Torquay Cowes race, The 10th Anniversary of Zapcat Racing the Worlds Largest One Design Championship and the Round Ireland Race as just some of the events already on the calendar.