Otago Rivers Race opens River Racing NZ title chase in style

A world champion, a capable Kiwi navigator, and a weekend of changing river conditions produced a clear and informative opening round of the 2026 River Racing NZ season.

The 2026 Golden Homes Otago Rivers Race did what an opening round should. It established the early pecking order and highlighted where the championship will be decided.

Run across the Dart, Shotover and Kawarau, and Matukituki rivers, the event was the first of four rounds in River Racing NZ’s new National Championship Series. This year, overall New Zealand titles will be decided on accumulated time across all four events.

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That format places immediate pressure on every leg. Small losses add up quickly.

Canadian world champion Gord Humphrey, racing with Kiwi navigator Mike Pooley, won the event overall in Unnatural Disaster. The result was built on consistency rather than outright speed.

The opening stages were tight. After the Dart River runs, only seconds separated the leading boats. Roger Preston and Ben Preston showed strong early pace, while Andrew Scott remained firmly in contention.

The race shifted on the second day.

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With Legs 5 and 6 on the Shotover and Kawarau cancelled, the remaining runs carried more weight. From Leg 7 onwards, the Matukituki River became decisive.

Humphrey and Pooley did not post the fastest individual times, but they avoided the large time losses seen elsewhere. Their Matukituki sequence, 17:52, 11:19, 11:35, and 11:12, was controlled and consistent.

By contrast, Roger Preston’s 34:58 on Leg 9 and Andrew Scott’s time losses in the same section removed both from contention.

Humphrey’s winning total of 1:30:22 reflects that difference. No major errors, no recovery drives required.

A similar pattern was evident in A Class.

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Justin Hill and Josh Hamilton secured the class win through consistent runs across all rivers. They were not dominant in any single leg, but they avoided penalties and large time swings.

Tom Kelly remained competitive throughout, but Hill’s overall spread proved stronger.

Joseph Kelly showed front running speed early, including a 13:12 on Leg 1, but penalty legs impacted his result. Hamish Wright and Ben Baxter also produced competitive individual runs, though neither maintained consistency across the full programme.

The outright podium, however, tells a bigger story than the Unlimited battle alone.

Riley Smith and Scott Smith finished second overall and won CX Class with a total time of 1:39:50. A standout performance. It reflects not only class dominance, but outright competitiveness across the entire field. For a CX crew to split the Unlimited field and finish second outright is one of the key takeaways from the weekend.

Their result followed the same pattern seen at the front. Clean runs, no major errors, and consistent delivery across all rivers.

Damian Pulley remained close in CX, while Brad Monk showed competitive pace across several legs. Smith’s consistency across the full event proved decisive.

In FX Evo, Regan Howley and Ollie Sharp took the class win. The results reflected a wider spread of times, with several crews impacted by individual legs. The class reinforced the importance of completing each run cleanly.

Across all classes, the event was not decided by peak speed, but by avoiding losses.

The series now moves to the Canterbury Rivers Race on 30 and 31 May, incorporating the Waimakariri and Rakaia rivers.