Britain’s newest form of watersport, AquaX, got off to a successful start in Southampton Water at the annual Sports Boat and RIB Show at the end of May. Promoter Powerboat P1 introduced personal watercraft racing at sea in a bid to create a new arena for jet ski racers and a crowd pleasing spectacle for fans, and so far the riders love it and it is taking the UK racing scene by storm. Riders will be competing for a share of an impressive £11,000 potential prize fund depending upon entry numbers, with the Elite and both Amateur class riders each having an equal chance to pocket some prize money.

The fun has only just begun

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Russell MaRMon wins elite 300 ClassRussell Marmon used his many years of experience racing abroad to win the first ever AquaX Series race on his Kawasaki Ultra 300X. The 47-year old won both races and

believes the series has a great future. “We now have

a good first step to build upon and I am sure all the riders who

raced are bitten by the bug. I hope they will spread the word as we need

to raise awareness of endurance racing in the sea as this format is great fun and a real challenge for most amateur riders.”

Maximum points in the Elite 300 Class was Russell’s reward for two cracking starts and some fast early laps. “I only ever race as fast as I have to, so once in front I made sure I maintained clear water to the chasing pack.

The standard of riding out there was really high and it felt safe even when I started lapping the lower-powered craft”, Marmon added.

Marmon’s nearest challenger was four-time world close course champion James Bushell, who briefly got ahead in race two but then saw the race win slip from his grasp as conditions got significantly tougher. Amateur racer Hudlestone takes third overallThe biggest surprise of the race came from the excellent performance from third placed Dave Huddlestone, who came third overall beating several Elite riders on his way to victory in the AM300 Class. “I’m really surprised to have been third overall as it is a very different experience racing in the sea for the first time when you are used to flat water and tight courses on lakes. I found judging the height of the waves really challenging but rewarding and I am sure AquaX is going to appeal to amateur riders like me as it’s definitely not about the power of your ski but the skill of the rider.”

Event 1

Southampton

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Local rider wins first ever race A local rider, Duncan Johnstone from Fareham, won the AM200 Class despite the AquaX event being his first ever race. ”It was physically quite tough, which I liked, and with one lap to go I was really just hanging on until the chequered flag. The racing was really good, better than I expected, but I think local knowledge of how to cope with the choppy seas really helped me to win.”

Racing on the sea is a huge sport for personal water craft outside the UK and Powerboat P1 has high hopes its initiative will attract new riders into racing. P1’s Chief Operating Officer, Robert Wicks was in Southampton to witness the birth of AquaX and commented: “It was great to see such a successful start to the Aqua X series and to hear the support from the riders for the concept of racing in the sea. I am convinced we have started something which will have a very big future.”

Former Jet Ski champion Lisa Barsby is now the AquaX Championship Manager and she was delighted with the inaugural event: “Starting something new is never easy but the months of hard work really paid off today as all the riders had big smiles on their faces after the races. We now need to spread the word about how much fun it is to race on the sea and get more riders involved.”

Riders had just three weeks to prepare for the next event, which took place at the Peters & May Jersey Grand Prix of the Sea in St Aubin’s Bay on June 11/12.

Event 2 JerseyMaRMon and Johnstone win again in JeRseyChampionship leader Marmon extended his advantage at the top of the points table following two more wins at the second AquaX round. But is wasn’t all plain sailing for the Kawasaki rider: “The start of moto one was a disaster as I got caught in the dip of a wave and dropped to fifth place and it then took me until half way through the race until I was in the lead. Moto two was much better and I made a clean getaway and led from start to

finish but James (Bushell) was getting closer so I couldn’t back off for one second.”

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Bushell held the lead in moto one for much of the race before the recovering Marmon got past but the 158 Performance rider was still happy with his day’s work, commenting: “It’s

been a very good day for me as I’m much closer to Russell now and am really getting to grips with racing in the sea. I led moto one for about 10 laps and was also not far behind him in the second race so know I have the pace to take him on .”

giRl poweRAnya Colley became the first woman to race in AquaX and the former Junior World Champion was immediately competitive on her sea-racing debut. “I really enjoyed the race but it’s much more challenging than racing on lakes so I’m delighted with third place in Elite,”

Star of the race was Huddleston who took the fight to Marmon and Bushell despite riding a lower- powered ski. The three riders enjoyed an epic battle in the first race when there was a bigger swell on the sea. “I got a really good start in moto one and went really hard racing Russell and James but then had some problems with bits falling off my ski and my throttle breaking, however I still won the class and was third overall.” Huddleston said. “ I patched the ski up during the break between the two races and the flatter water in the second race helped me keep it in one piece to win Am 300

again and come fourth overall.” Solent Skiers rider Duncan Johnstone (Faraham) enjoyed another competitive outing on his Yamaha FX160, winning the Am 200 class for the second consecutive race. “It was choppy out there and I got some big air jumping off the waves in moto one and was even catching some of the Elite riders.” He said. “There was flatter water for second race so I just opened up the throttle and went for it. I still can’t

believe I’m winning races and leading the championship but I’m showing the way for other club riders.”

Local Jersey riders Mark Chadwick (St Helier) and Dave Gauden also enjoyed their first ever races and got in the thick of the AquaX action. “They had not raced before so we gave them the necessary safety training on Saturday morning , lent some helmets and they had a great time”, said

Event 3 Plymouth

Russell Marmon won Moto One, and chalked up his fifth consecutive win in the series. Behind the dominant Marmon came Richard Cable’s Kawasaki, while Paul Attiwell came third overall as he took the Am300 Class win to give Kawasaki a podium lock-out. Nick Beer steered his Sea-doo into third place in Elite 300.

Behind Attiwell Mat Shipley came second in Am300 followed by newcomer Stuart Steel. Championship leader Dave Huddleston suffered engine failure during Friday’s practice session and was unable to start.

Championship leader Duncan Johnstone had a memorable race after leading a closely fought Am200 battle only to be

thrown off on lap 6, when he hooked a corner. He recovered and got back on and managed to stay ahead of nearest challenger Steve Robinson, who was making his AquaX debut.A wind change half way through the race caused riders to have to change their racing line and some ran low on fuel towards the end of the race, most notably Nick Beer who had to nurse his ski home in the closing laps.

MaRMon hot on day twoOn day two Marmon took an early lead in both races and was then never headed as he powered to victory. The wins further extends Russell’s lead in the Elite Class to 36 points and took full advantage of the absence of closest rival James Bushell who

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missed AquaX round three as he was away racing in Europe.

Russell commented : “It was definitely rougher this afternoon, it always seems quicker in the afternoon race. I could have done another hour out there, I am used to races which are about two or three hours at a time, I just imagine James Bushell is on my tail that’s all, so I keep on it all the time.”

Behind the dominant Marmon came Richard Cable’s Kawasaki, who also had the same result in both races and now moves ahead of Bushell into second place in the Elite 300 points table. The Yorkshire rider said: “I have solved my problem with the grips from the last race, and I think with James Bushell not being here, it helped my cause today. I need to get my fitness up and ride more, it’s a different style riding in the cross winds and rough seas than I am used to more closed course racing.”Kawasaki take all podiums positions

Serving soldier Nick Beer scooped the third place points on his Sea-Doo in Elite 300 and now also moved ahead of the absent Bushell.

The Am300 Class fell to Paul Attiwell who also rode into third overall to give Kawasaki a podium lock-out. “That was good”, he said after the second moto, “the weather was really unpredictable, it didn’t allow you to get complacent and I had to be constantly alert and aware. I need more fitness, as I have been a short course racer and I realise the physical fitness needs to be higher in AquaX.”

P1 AQUAX CHAMPIONSHIP 2011 - ELITE 300 CLASSSKI NO. RIDERS MAN/MODEL ROUND 1 ROUND 2 ROUND 3 OVERALL POINTS OVERALL POSITION666 RUSSELL MARMON K Kawasaki Ultra 300X 40 40 40 120 192 RICHARD CABLE K Kawasaki Ultra 300X 28 22 34 84 298 NICK BEER Sea-Doo RXP-X 255 RS 26 26 30 82 3158 JAMES BUSHELL Sea-Doo RXT-X 260 RS 34 34 0 68 452 ANYA COLLEY Sea-Doo RXT-X 260 AS 0 30 0 30 575 BEN VINE Kawasaki Ultra 250 24 0 0 24 6

P1 AQUAX CHAMPIONSHIP 2011 - AMATEUR 300 CLASSSKI NO. RIDERS MAN/MODEL ROUND 1 ROUND 2 ROUND 3 OVERALL POINTS OVERALL POSITION70 DAVE HUDDLESTON K Kawasaki Ultra 250 40 40 0 80 166 PAUL ATTIWELL Kawasaki Ultra 250 0 34 40 74 244 MAT SHIPLEY Kawasaki Ultra 250 34 0 34 68 327 STUART STEEL SEA-DOO RXP 215 0 0 30 30 477 MARK CHADWICK Yamaha FXHO 0 30 0 30 526 TIM COPE Yamaha FXR 0 0 13 13 6

P1 AQUAX CHAMPIONSHIP 2011 - AMATEUR 200 CLASSSKI NO. RIDERS MAN/MODEL ROUND 1 ROUND 2 ROUND 3 OVERALL POINTS OVERALL POSITION42 DUNCAN JOHNSTONE Yamaha FX160 40 40 40 120 135 DAVE LEE Kawasaki 15F 32 0 15 47 2323 STEVE ROBINSON Yamaha GP1300R 0 0 34 34 355 DAVE GAUDIN Yamaha FX160 0 34 0 34 466 PAUL ATTIWELL Kawasaki Ultra LX 32 0 0 32 562 RON BURGOYNE Yamaha GP1300R 0 0 13 13 6

Mat Shipley came second in Am300 followed by newcomer Stuart Steel, whilst erstwhile championship leader Huddleston suffered engine failure during Friday’s practice session and was unable to start.In the Am200 Class Championship leader Johnstone had a memorable pair of races. After leading a closely fought Am200 battle in moto one he was thrown off when he hooked a corner. He recovered and got back on and managed to stay ahead of nearest challenger Steve Robinson. In moto two Duncan won the class again, reveling in the rougher conditions as he came fourth overall.

“Brilliant!”, was how he summed up yet another eventful AquaX weekend. “ I caught a wave coming sideways in moto one which knocked me off my ski when I was trying to throttle through the rough bits to keep up with the fast boys. I like the longer courses and the rough water makes it more of a level playing field, and it’s not so much about horse power but more fitness levels and technique. “

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