The return of powerboat racing brought smiles to competitors and spectators alike. However, some smiled more, and for good reason, after the first day of Round One of the 2023 Offshore Superboat Championship at Wyndham Harbour in Melbourne. Yes, there were some sad tales, like broken alternators, but even this could not cast a negative spell over the day.

Hary Bakkr from Razorcraft Boats drove his virtually brand new vessel, Nut Case, to an emphatic win in the first race, which meant a lot to he and Shane Paton. Put simply, you could tell by the arms in the air and fist pumps, before they had even completely crossed the finish line, such was their winning margin.

Maiden race, maiden win. Nice.

They climbed to the front of this super-close class, where the speed is limited to 65mph, and the GPS is checked afterwards. “I just couldn’t have anyone come up on the inside of me. So I thought, as soon as I had the lead, I have to keep it, and if that happens, we’ll get the win. So it was my aim to just stay in front, and it worked”, said Bakkr.

“In the second race we were over by two miles per hour, at 67mph. So that’s it, we were disqualified in that one. We saw it, and we were like, well, we’ve broken out already, so let’s just go have fun and punch it. Tomorrow? Well, tomorrow’s a new day!”

(See the full report on the two day’s exciting racing in March-April Australian Boating #302)