Clean circuit laps, sharp class winners and a reshuffled leaderboard set up a tense Day 2 on the river.
Day 1 of the Golden Homes Waimakariri River Race Weekend 2025 delivered a sharp start to the event, with fast circuit laps at the SH1 Bridge and a series of DNFs across multiple classes that will shape today’s running of the Stuart Blanchard Memorial Race. The opening circuit format gave a clear picture of early pace and highlighted the four boats currently defining the outright leaderboard.
At the front, Andrew Scott (NZ1) set the benchmark with a 23:00 lap to take the overall win. His pace was smooth and controlled, but the margin was razor thin. Richard Foster (185) stopped the clock at 23:02, just two seconds back, reinforcing how closely matched the Unlimited front-runners remain this season.
As a side note, Andrew Scott carries the race number NZ1 after winning the Unlimited Class at the 2024 New Zealand Jet Boat Marathon Racing Championships. He and co-driver Hamish Tovey mastered the Southland rivers over four days of racing before Labour Weekend, taking out the top class in turbine-powered boats capable of reaching speeds in excess of 200 kph.
Third overall went to Justin Hill (248), whose 25:00 lap delivered one of the standout drives of the day. Running an A Class boat, Hill not only dominated his category but finished ahead of several Unlimited entries, confirming the form he carried into the weekend. Byron Campbell (121) completed the top four with 25:20, maintaining a solid foothold in the overall standings as the pace shifts to the river proper.
| Placing | Race No. | Name | Class | Circuit Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NZ1 | Andrew Scott | U | 23:00 |
| 2 | 185 | Richard Foster | U | 23:02 |
| 3 | 248 | Justin Hill | A | 25:00 |
| 4 | 121 | Byron Campbell | U | 25:20 |
| 5 | 307 | Joseph Kelly | A | 26:44 |
| 6 | 166 | Riley Smith | CX | 27:13 |
| 7 | 32 | Damian Pulley | CX | 28:16 |
| 8 | 28 | Craig Robinson | CX | 29:30 |
| 9 | 520 | Garth Campbell | A | 30:38 |
| 10 | 24 | Shane Christie | FX-Evo | 34:55 |
Class results behind the top four were equally decisive.
In A Class, Hill led home Joseph Kelly (26:44) and Garth Campbell (30:38).
DNF: Graeme Patterson.
In CX Class, Riley Smith (27:13) set the pace ahead of Damian Pulley (28:16) and Craig Robinson (29:30).
DNF: Brad Monk, Mike Pooley.
FX-Evo saw the highest attrition rate of the day, with Shane Christie (34:55) the sole finisher in the class.
DNF: Aidan Flett, Regan Howley, Nick Sullivan.
Weather for Sunday 23 November is forecast to be mainly fine with cloudy periods, with light westerlies around 14 km/h in the racing zone and southeasterlies developing in the afternoon. Isolated showers may form later, but overall conditions remain favourable for racing.
Boats depart the SH1 Bridge at 10am for the upstream leg to the Gorge Bridge, returning downstream from 1pm. With the Unlimited field separated by seconds, standout pace from Hill in A Class, and multiple DNFs reshaping CX and FX-Evo, the Golden Homes Waimakariri River Race Weekend 2025 remains wide open as the river becomes the deciding factor.
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