Round-Britain 2008

[Ben Mazur]

Dec. 06 Newsletter from Round-Britain 2008 Event Director Mike Lloyd

The good news is we now have well over sixty “Intend to race” competitors and rising. The Classes are tightening down to only six or possibly seven which for us is interesting. The breakdown so far is as follows.

12 Round Britain 2008 Class C1’s.
3 Round Britain 2008 Class T2
6. Round Britain 2008 Class S1.
8 Round Britain 2008 Class S2.
17 Round Britain 2008 Class RIB “Open”.
4 Round Britain 2008 Classic Class.

15 Teams registered are playing their cards close to their chests and have yet to confirm what boat they will be running. If we look back at the other two races of 1969 & 1984 we know we will need close to a hundred teams registered to get fifty over the start line. The fall out rate can be quite high when the race looms close for all sorts of reasons.

The UIM in its infinite wisdom have deleted the Tourism Class rules. Don’t panic though, we have determined that we can continue these rules in our own format for this race with the approval of our governing body the RYA and the offshore racing committee (ORC). We are trying to clarify the rules for all classes right now and will post these on our web site after the Christmas break.

It’s the number of C1’s that is amazing everyone. Where have they all been hiding and could this be a new class after the race? A number of new boats are being built for the race but there are Cigarettes, Buzzi boats, Sunseeker, Apache, Panatec, Fountains, Velocity’s and even 12M Ribs all coming out to run. And we have yet to hear from the Italians.

We have to say a big thank you to several people. Without their help this race would not even be on the drawing board. So we are making these guys GOLD members of The 2008 Round Britain Powerboat Race team. We would like to extend out thanks for their help and support, it is very much appreciated.

Gold members: Steve Ansell – Airwaves Media. Produced our Race Promo.
Jon Fuller Boatmad.com. Produced our web site.
Drew Langdon )
Vee Ganjavian ) Event Partners.
Matt Yorke )
Tony Davis Offering a Trophy.
Barry Deacon Offering a Trophy.
Brian Peters: Offering a Trophy and Boat Show support.

We also have some very keen supporters abroad who are doing their best to help us find a sponsor and to encourage international competitors to take part in the race. In particular we have Sarah Donohue working on our behalf in Florida, Derek Lloyd spreading the word out in Dubai and also Ben Mazur working away on various marine web sites and teams in the USA. Thanks guys for your help, keep at it, we need those international teams on board.

Membership of The 2008 Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race will be open as from 1st January. Membership will be £250 for a year and proceeds will go towards financing the office during the on going search for a major sponsor. This £250 will also be regarded as part of your entry deposit if you wish to be a participant in the race and also entitles you to a years subscription to COPOC (Classic Offshore Powerboat Owners Club). It looks as though COPOC will be heavily involved in one or two offshore races next year. Decals, and membership cards will be provided to members. We are also working on producing a few pre race Round Britain 2008 Shirts (With the British Isles circled in red and 2008 underneath). A Membership form will be put on our web site in early January 2007 plus a listing of the benefits of joining. Alternatively you can email me for a form!

With thanks to Brian Peters OBE we should be having a very small presence at the London Boat Show from January 5th and will hopefully be on stand S334 opposite the “Azimut” stand. Come along and introduce yourselves.

We have had a few enquiries from young people about the race. One young man in particular who is a student is very keen and has asked me when we are going to put on the next Round Britain Race as he can’t afford to take part in this one!! I think his enthusiasm and keenness deserves a ride by someone in this race. Who is prepared to offer this young man a seat all the way round or maybe on just one leg?

Brian Peters, CEO of Peters-Opal, one of the biggest retailers of Powerboats in this country, (Sealine, Azimut etc) took part in the 1969 race (at just 27 years of age) coming 9th overall in a 24ft Coronet with twin 140hp Volvo engines on outdrives called Miss Smirnoff. He has some amazing stories to tell (including hitting a shark on the way to the Isle of Man) which I hope to post on the web site soon in a “history of the race” section. Brian is offering a special Trophy for the 1st Production Motor Cruiser home as well as some help at the London Boat Show. He did say that there were some “big holes” out there in the North Sea.

In the 1969 Round Britain Race several Fairey Huntsmen took part and did extremely well. The Fairey range of boats are well known for their fantastic sea keeping abilities and when it gets rough they just keep going. In the Ford film “Ride The White Horses” they showed just how good they where. They are still lovingly looked after and in superb condition after all these years. Having talked to them on their forum several (four actually) are very keen to take part and why not? They are part of the British Offshore Powerboat Racing heritage. With this in mind we shall be including a “Classic Class” element to the race in the hope that more will turn out. There is talk of Telstar possibly putting in an appearance, now that would really be something.

Thanks to the article in the January edition of Motor Boat & Yachting, we have had our first Production Cruiser entries, a Failrline Targa 40 and a Sunseeker Tomahawk 37. Good luck to them and may many more come on board.

The Beaverbrook Trophy will be awarded to the first boat home in the race. We have yet to determine whether the beautiful gold “Duke of York” trophy should be awarded to the first foreign boat home or for the first International Team. We are also in talks with the Trustees of the Harmsworth Trophy which is the oldest trophy of all at over 105 years. This too could be awarded to either of the above. We are very keen to promote the International side of this event in the hope that teams from Italy, America, the Middle East and others will wish to take part in what is now generally recognised as the Toughest Offshore Powerboat Race to be held anywhere for years.

We have said many times before but it is important to repeat that without sufficient sponsorship in place it will be difficult for the 2008 Round Britain International Offshore Powerboat Race to take place in the format that we would wish. To help us achieve the necessary sponsorship we have appointed a TV production company (Cheerleader Productions Ltd) to approach the major TV channels and companies etc. to obtain extensive high profile TV coverage of the event. It is hoped that when this is in place we can attract the appropriate investor/sponsor to help us turn this dream of an event into a reality. You too can help us achieve this by contacting us with any leads, names, companies etc. that you think would be interested in joining us as partners in this exciting and historic international race. Contact me with any names and contact numbers you think might be helpful and we will follow it through.

In the meantime, from all members of the 2008 Round Britain Race Team, we wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

ML.

[Ben Mazur]

1969 Round Britain
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5453113165904715948&q=offshore+powerboat+racing&hl=en

1984 Round Britain
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjF14pZi-gU

[Ben Mazur]

The latest course.

[Ben Mazur]

News from the Round Britain 2008 website.

http://www.derwentmarine.net/rb/news.htm

[ciao]

Hi there I have also added RSS news feeds to the site http://www.derwentmarine.net/rb/feed.xml
Obviously will not update too much but I should think nearer to the race there will always be something going on!
RSS is new to me but it seems to work very well I listed it on Google yesterday and Google "crawled" us last night, and listed today.

(webmuppet Round Britain Site)

[ciao]

If anyone out there has some photos of boats racing in the 1969 or 1984 event I would be very happy to put them on the site.

I have managed to "cobble together" pictures, info re the last two events from various sources but we are still "thin on the ground".

Thanks in advance.

[Ben Mazur]

Welcome to Proprider ciao!

How are the entries from our side of the pond coming along?

[ciao]

Not too sure Ben, and as Mike Lloyd is away for a few days not sure if he"wants to go to press" yet. What has amazed me is that since we set up an online payment system for new entries, how active it has been!

I admit to being skeptical about the race in the early days, but Mike has being working flat out, and the results are very encouraging, looks like it will be a great success.

If anyone wants to join as a supporter member (GBP 25) to "aid the cause" they can sign up here http://www.derwentmarine.net/rb/membership.htm

Thanks for the welcome!

[Rupert Munro]

Ciao,
Unfortunately a student loan budget doesnt stretch to the RB Race :( but I see on the Bronze package that you are doing race logo decal stickers, can non members get hold of one somehow???
Good Luck with the entrants and race.

Rupert

[ciao]

I have set up a board on the RB website.

The purpose of this is not to take away posts from any other boat racing forums, but to give those guys who are going to race, are involved etc a "local" soapbox.

Would be good Ben if you could sign up, and then relay some of the more interesting posts on here.

Many Thanks

[Ben Mazur]

Done.

[Dragon]

Hi Ben

I have to admit that you guys have done a great job of pulling the Round Britain class together ... I'm sure it will be fantastic.

[ciao]

From Mike Lloyd RB Website follows....

"At last I have a few moments to welcome everyone to the 2008 Round Britain Forum.

I want say right now that Boatmad have done us a great service over the last months since we started this project and the majority of entries have come from that site so the Round Britain Race Team owe them a great vote of thanks. As a matter of courtesy to them I will continue to put information out on Boatmad and on Pontoon Talk as they have been such a great help.

This project has been quite the most exhausting but interesting thing I have ever done. It really has been like starting a business from scratch. From the initial phone call to Tim Powell (The real face of powerboat racing in this country as far as I am concerned) back in September to the first tentative moves in October it has been a roller coaster ride moving from just a few hours a day to almost a 24/7 situation.

Firstly getting together the team who will actually run the event according to RYA rules and conditions once the button GO is pressed was paramount and we have got the very best people that’s available. If you will be taking part you will soon get to know Viv Williams who is the Officer of the Day and will do the briefing every morning of the race together with Richard Salaman the Safety Officer who is responsible for keeping an eye on every boat during every race leg. Both of these guys are highly experienced and capable people. Anne Beakhurst, who many of you will know if you have raced at all, will be responsible for Race Control at every venue together with her team of Ladies. Don’t mess with Anne, she takes no prisoners so I would advise you to get all your paperwork right first time! You will probably all know her husband Rob Beakhust as well, he is our Chief Scruitineer and will have a team of guys checking your boats out before and at the end of every race leg. Don’t try to fool Rob, he will suss you out in double quick time. Tony Fiddy will be responsible for ALL logistics, that’s ensuring the fuel is in the right place at the right time, the movement of the whole team every day by plane and by coach and all carnage, I mean cranage at every venue. He is going to have his hands full that’s for sure. And so it goes on.

The rules are in place, that has been a huge project on it’s own. We have had to write our own rules according to the boats interested, as there is nothing in the RYA or UIM rule book that now covers long distance endurance racing such as our race. That shows the type of sport that has now developed in the UK and mainland Europe. Every race is now run round the bouys and is finished within an hour or so. No Cowes-Torquay-Cowes, no Needles no Round The Island and so it goes on. Without a shadow of doubt we have, by accident, hit a button and you guys out there have responded in huge numbers, more about that in a moment.

The venues are in place and the map is on the web site. I am talking to them every week as they are all trying to find the money to fund us coming in. I am asking for quite a lot of help one way and another especially with moorings, cranes, dry standing for boat repairs the list is endless but most of all I have asked for a reception by the local Council for you guys at every port. There you will get some food, drink and conversation with other competitors on how everyone’s day has gone. After that you will want to crash and get yourselves ready for the next days 200 mile run at 7.30am in the morning!

We have more competitors than we can handle. The race team informed me from day one that we could only handle a max of sixty boats at a time. The logistics of all that don’t bear thinking about but it can and will be done. At this point in time on the 28th March 2007 we are at maximum entry!! We have hit the limit today. After this anyone wanting to take part will go on a RESERVE list and as some people drop out, and there will be people who will drop out, people on the reserve list will take their place. We have a fantastic variety of boats taking part from 7.5m RIB’s with a single 250hp on the back to 40 year old Fairey Huntsmen’s (all sorts of ancient boats in the Classic Class) to conventional Cruisers Sunseekers, Searay’s Hunton’s etc etc to serious RIB’s with twin Yanmars (loads of those) to even more serious high powered Sunseekers, Cougars, Cigarettes, Formulas etc to the really BIG fast boats such as Apache’s, Cigarettes, Buzzi hulls, Fountain and Panatec and others but who have paid and who have yet to decide on their boat which will come online shortly.

The last thing to fall in place is the overall sponsor and we have some pretty hot ones all up in the air at the moment, the first to make up their mind and sign gets the honour and that won’t be too far away.

Several points of interest, as yet no manufacturer of either Marine products or Boat Builder except for Hunton and Scorpion has shown interest. No one company except for the above has shown enthusiasm or vision as to how this race could be used to show off their products which first is a shame and second is extremely short sighted.

Secondly I have had an enormous amount of help from many many people. I won’t list them all here because they know who they are but without them this race would not be a starter. One day I will embarrass them by mentioning them all by name but now is not the time.

My personal vision for this race is for everyone taking part to have a great time. To race hard and to build friendships and memories that will last a lifetime as in the last two Round Britain Races. But this time we will have a Club to use to have a reunion every other year or so. Also, one way or another, I am determined to get a really good film made of this race for everyone taking part to be able to look at occasionally in the future and think, “that was a really great two weeks”. Therefore, anyone missing out on taking part will REALLY regret it!!.

More later as things progress.

Mike Lloyd."

[ciao]

Hi everyone,

Due to heavy traffic on a shared server we have had to move the Round Britain site to its own dedicated space.

New address is http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk

Thanks john

[OldMan]

Welcome to Proprider ciao!

How are the entries from our side of the pond coming along?

Hi Ben, Just picked up this thread. Only two enquiries one of which is AMF racing but nothing firm. The problem is, if it is a problem, we have hit capacity on entries (60) and anyone new coming on the scene will have to go on the reserve listing. Interestingly enough there are a couple of BIG boys who I haven't heard a pip from and certainly very few Italians. We have a German, a Norweigen, a Swede, Fabio of course ("I will win again") a couple of Scotsmen, (well they are different country) and maybe a New Zealander!! By the way, why isn't Mr Noisy entered?? ML.

[Ben Mazur]

Thanks for the update Mike. It has to be a good position to be in to be "fully booked".

I would have thought that a few Italians would have signed on the dotted line apart from Buzzi and maybe a few Americans but there we go.

As for Mr. Noisy - not enough boat for RB2, too much motor for RB3.

[ciao]

Another scoop Ben! "intended entrants" have just been posted www.roundbritainrace.co.uk

[Ben Mazur]

Looks like some really interesting boats that have signed up. Even 'Mr Noisy' is in there.

Guess I should speak with Alan and see if he needs me on throttles.

[ciao]

I will do the leg through the canal!

[Dragon]

We will be there ... racing in Tony Fiddy's boat :)

[ciao]

Got this post as I was building the profile of the boat for the RB site!

Will be up on the net in a few mins ...do you want to add to it?

[ciao]

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/Super%20Class%20RB1.htm

[Ben Mazur]

At work at the moment. Will have a look when I get home.

[Ben Mazur]

Might have mentioned this before but the last time I saw the old Follett boat race was at the World Championships in Atlantic City in 1989.

It was renamed 'Diesel Dancer' at that point and was defending the Class II world championship it had attained in 1988. I only saw one race and it was badly outpaced, with 'Team Skater' driven by Kevin Brown overtaking 'Diesel Dancer' as if it was tied to a tree. Sadly, Kevin Brown was killed in that race.

It still haunts me that I shot video of the last few seconds of his life. Fortunately, he was out of frame when the accident occurred. I would not want to have seen it.

[ciao]

Class 2 chucked up some World Champions!
1990 was won by Neil Holmes, in a re engined class 3D boat. (Midas 26'catamaran 2 x 2.4 EFI)
Neil romped the flat calm race, average speed ...incredible, and finished high enough in the points in the other two heats.
Seem to remember Miles Jennings in the Yellow Phantom 28' Brut, won the rough third heat in fine style.
I still have a problem with the points system for a three race worlds, but then I am bitter, it cost me a couple of World Championships!

[Him]

News about Noisy

We are currently rebuilding both drives with new parts.
Moving both engines back to get rid of the universal joint that failed at Cowes.
This will give us room for two bolsters behind crew....rental space for Round Britain!!
Engines out and checked and then test at Poole and Cowes.
Not sure if I will be able to be present at both venues but Noisy will be there!
Look forward to getting Bens address, could not read writing on Xmas card!!
Great site Ben

[Rupert Munro]

Alan, how much you looking to rent each leg for?!!! Great to hear drives are being rebuilt, hope to see a fully competitive Noisy at both events this year :)

[Rupert Munro]

News about Noisy

Engines out and checked and then test at Poole and Cowes.
Not sure if I will be able to be present at both venues but Noisy will be there!


If you need any help with anything at either, i'm always willing to help :D !

[ciao]

Alan, how much you looking to rent each leg for?!!! Great to hear drives are being rebuilt, hope to see a fully competitive Noisy at both events this year :)

A couple of people were talking about that to me this morning! Perhaps there should be "auction a ride" page on the RB site....

[ciao]

News about Noisy

We are currently rebuilding both drives with new parts.
Moving both engines back to get rid of the universal joint that failed at Cowes.
This will give us room for two bolsters behind crew....rental space for Round Britain!!
Engines out and checked and then test at Poole and Cowes.
Not sure if I will be able to be present at both venues but Noisy will be there!
Look forward to getting Bens address, could not read writing on Xmas card!!
Great site Ben

Could you kindly email a picture of the boat and crew and some blurb so I can put it against your intended entry on the Round Britain entrants page please.

Many Thanks http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/entrants.htm email address at the bottom - save Ben's server!

[Ben Mazur]

News about Noisy

We are currently rebuilding both drives with new parts.
Moving both engines back to get rid of the universal joint that failed at Cowes.
This will give us room for two bolsters behind crew....rental space for Round Britain!!
Engines out and checked and then test at Poole and Cowes.
Not sure if I will be able to be present at both venues but Noisy will be there!
Look forward to getting Bens address, could not read writing on Xmas card!!
Great site Ben

Wonderful to hear from you Him and welcome to Proprider.

I'm sure a lot of people will be interested in Mr. Noisy's progress as it has to be one of the most if not the most popular raceboats in Britain. It has alway been my pleasure and privilege to be associated with it (and you of course :D.)

I will pm you my address and if you'd like, I can supply Ciao with some pics of the boat. I have dozens on my computer. This is one of my favourites.

[Rupert Munro]

This is one of my favourites.

That looks like cowes '05??

[ciao]

Nice to see that the 2008 Round Britain Race today announced its first sponsor.

From the web site - " At last a manufacturer of marine products has put their head above the arapet and decided to support the Round Britain Powerboat Race, not with money but with product. Stuart Nicholls of Marine Track in Shoreham has agreed to provide their very latest satellite linked tracking systems free of charge to ALL race boats taking part in this race. This is in effect a large sponsorship deal with Marine Track and is a significant saving for each of the teams taking part. The Round Britain Race Committee thank Marine Track for their generosity."

[Rupert Munro]

Very good of them, hopefully we will see many more sponsorship initiatives like this and also some pure monetary ones in the coming weeks

[Ben Mazur]

That looks like cowes '05??

Certainly was.

[ciao]

The decision has been made by the management team of the Round Britain
Powerboat Race 2008 to cap entries as from today the 23rd May 2008 to a
maximum of seventy five teams.

All further entrants will be put into a reserve listing on a first
come first serve basis. We have already received our first reserve team
today. We do anticipate teams falling out as the months go by and the
next in line on the reserve list will automatically take their place.
We cannot and do not guarantee a place for any team that has been late
in submitting their entrance fees and therefore have had to go on the
reserve listing.

Most Venues will have difficulty in accommodating a fleet this size
let alone re-fuelling, berthing and supplying every other Marina
facility. Hence, this is just one of the reasons for this decision.

All existing seventy-five members are guaranteed a place on the start
line when this great event takes place.

Mike Lloyd.

[Rupert Munro]

Thats good as I thought that they had already met the limit and were already taking reserve listings. Can't wait to see that 75 strong fleet at the first start line, will be very nice to watch. Saying that if anyone needs any help for their team let me know.........!!!!!

[ciao]

May be worth putting a post on the 2008 Round Britain forum! Sounds like the teams are going to need a load of help!

[ciao]

“BIG ON RESULTS” APPOINTED TO THE “GREATEST OFFSHORE POWERBOAT RACE IN THE WORLD”
“Big On Results”, the sports and business development agency announced that it has been appointed to coordinate the commercial and marketing development of the 2008 Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race.
Mike Lloyd, the Event Director of the Round Britain Race, said “We are extremely pleased to have retained the services of such an experienced company for this historic and important event. BoR have a well developed and detailed knowledge of the powerboat racing community and the business that is created around it. We welcome BoR on board in the knowledge that their commercial, media and marketing expertise will prove a great asset to us in the development of this important and historic maritime motor sporting event.
“It has now been some 23 years since the last Round Britain Offshore Race and the time is right for a new generation of racers to attempt what is surely one of the greatest offshore challenges in the World.
”Big On Results have been heavily involved through a four-year project in the meteoric rise of Powerboat P1 from a little known U.I.M. Championship to a well developed and professionalizing motor sport emulating Formula 1 on water.”
Martin McDonald, Managing Director of Big On Results is also in buoyant mood: “It is a privilege for us to be working alongside Mike Lloyd and his team on such a powerful international motor sports event property. History will once again be made as the new generation of young racers and their powerboats will be pitted against some of the best known names in offshore motor sport, including mega-stars of the sport Hannes Bohinc and Fabio Buzzi, who is returning to defend the title that he won 23 years ago in the dynamic ‘IVECO WHITE’ race boat.
“The commercial and marketing benefits to business partners, venues and sponsors are very exciting indeed. This is an event like no other running over 11 days, with 9 different venues around the coast of Britain. Each leg will be as demanding on the Pilots and support crews as taking part in the Dakar Rally with racing distances equivalent to racing the Cowes-Torquay-Cowes Offshore Race every day for 9 days – an adventure for a courageous and lucky few! For our partners there are unique opportunities to connect to a group of successful high net worth individuals as well as to the public that are always attracted in large numbers to major marine sporting events physically and through new media.
"The event has begun powering forward to capture the attention of the public and competitors from around the world. There are 75 race boats and teams already entered, the financial impact of so many supporting people at each venue is sure to be very strong. As you can imagine with such a huge series of event logistics and communications challenges interest from business partners is high and we are already developing win-win long-term packages for our sponsors.”

[ciao]

Alan Goodwin has joined RB 2008 team as Funding/Venue
Manager.

[ciao]

Just thought I would add this:

Alan Goodwin has joined the 2008 Round Britain team as "Funding/Venue Manager".
....Alan comes to the team with many years experience of fund raising for Offshore Powerboat Racing including a three tenure as Commodore of UKOBA. Alan worked with seven time Class One World Champion Steve Curtis MBE in the early days of the Honda Four Stroke Powerboat racing circus to add to the considerable funding that Honda UK gave to the series.
Between them they raised both the profile and the budget of The Honda Series.

[ciao]

RB site got 100882 hits in May.
As I post this June 12th 69346.

Should decrease now Big Brother is back on TV!

[Rupert Munro]

Very good! Hopefully there willbe as many people turning out to watch at each of the locations when the event finally comes around.

[Rupert Munro]

Typo on the RB site! the fleet is reurning on the to portsmouth on one of the top banners on the media centre page. Ciao can you let whoever it is that needs to know know :) i wasn't sure who to tell!

[ciao]

Typo on the RB site! the fleet is reurning on the to portsmouth on one of the top banners on the media centre page. Ciao can you let whoever it is that needs to know know :) i wasn't sure who to tell!

Yeah me! sorry about that, site will look a little different come the weekend, new sponsors, new boats - for the record you are only the third person to spot that!

[Rupert Munro]

Do I get a prize?! :)

[ciao]

Yep, I get to sleep with your girlfreind!

Seriously though, I hate to make mistakes - check the site out tonight- loads more uploading and work!

[Jon fuller]

Yep, I get to sleep with your girlfreind!

I'm sure that'll go down well with Ben.

[Ben Mazur]

Yep, I get to sleep with your girlfreind!



These two might have something to say about that.

[ciao]

:eek: since you are bringing the Second Amendment into it.....

[Rupert Munro]

Then run over with this..

[Ben Mazur]

News from Mike Lloyd, Event Director.

June 29th. The Royal Navy have just confirmed their total support of the race which carries "Priority One" with them.
They have offered a "Frigate" as a start boat! Also there will be "Fisheries Protection Vessels" at every port and sweeping up behind the fleet. They are also looking at supplying at each venue two of their rather large mobile display wagons for our and their use. There is also the possibility of their helicopters from Cornwall and Scotland patrolling the fleet in those areas.

[ciao]

New video on front page of RB site - well worth a look!

[ciao]

Latest Round Britain course
http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/main/course1.JPG

[Rupert Munro]

New video on front page of RB site - well worth a look!

Seen that one before but the Apache/Warpath Boat is one of my favourites, amazing racing.

[Rupert Munro]

Latest Round Britain course
http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/main/course1.JPG

Knew that a while back :D

[ciao]

At a drivers meeting held today in Belmore Park, Hampshire, the competitors voted unanimously to underpin the funding of The 2008 Round Britain Offshore Power Boat Race™ by way of entry fees.
This means the race will go ahead, starting at Portsmouth 21st. June 2008.

I have never seen a powerboat meeting in 25 years where nearly everyone agreed!

Well done Mike Lloyd.

[ciao]

A very small piece reporting the news in todays Daily Telegraph

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?xml=/sport/2007/09/17/sosrup117.xml

(Scroll down to powerboats)

[ciao]

Updated (25/09/07) list of Runners and Riders is now up on the Round Britain site.

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/entrants.htm

[ciao]

Updated (26/09/07) list of venues http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/course.htm

Page only working in Internet Explorer at the moment, will add code for Firefox in due course.

[ciao]

New news and stuff..

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/index1.htm

[ciao]

P.S. Nice and local for Rupert !

The 2008 Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race will be launched at the Earls Court Boat Show on press day Friday the 30th November.

[Rupert Munro]

Is press day open to the public?

[ciao]

No, but to invited guests

[Rupert Munro]

No, but to invited guests

Is their anyway to become an 'invited guest' :rolleyes:

[ciao]

You are more than welcome, and invited Master!

[Ben Mazur]

Very surprising that there has only been one American entry in what could be described as the only legitimate “offshore/endurance” powerboat race in the world.

I would have thought at the very least that those in the Outerlimits or Fountain camp whose teams currently compete in P1 might enjoy a challenge. Then again, they may have heard that Buzzi’s Cesa 1882-Gancia dei Gancia will be in the premiere class and they might have thought better of it.

[ciao]

Brit entry US boathttp://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/dorian.jpg

[ciao]

Mikko Oikari has also sent me some latest pics of his boat.http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/ben/mk1.jpg

[ciao]

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/ben/mk2.jpg

[Rupert Munro]

looks nice :) even if it is a rib :D !

[ciao]

It's still an Ocke hull!

[Dragon]

Brit entry US boathttp://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/dorian.jpg

That'll be Dorian's boat in all it's new livery. I believe it is at the show tomorrow as well

[Rupert Munro]

Look forward to seeing that tomorrow, looks nice

[ciao]

Iain May moves into “Top Gear”

Iain May, who many people will know for the infamous Charlie Fish sailing campaign over recent years, has decided to change tack this year and will be hitting the high seas this summer in the 2008 Round Britain Power Boat Race!

In his role as cameraman for BBC2’s Top Gear Iain has encountered many adverse conditions when filming in Botswana and the North Pole. This race is about endurance and is billed as the Biggest and Toughest Powerboat Race in the world!

The Two Scoops Racing Team will compete on board their 39ft Hunton boat, with twin 450 HP twin diesel turbo engines capable of reaching speeds of 75mph. Iain has recently secured a team of top engineers including Sam Christopher and Roly McIldowie to work with the team and keep the boat racing at maximum capacity.

“In 1969 my Dad came 11th in this race on a boat called Translucent and I have always been keen to emulate his success. I think I have selected an ideal team mate in my Top Gear colleague James May (no relation). James and I have worked closely together over the last 5 years and we have often talked about taking on a challenge of this nature. It was when we were filming at the Pole that we decided this was the race for us!” comments Iain.

James signed up primarily because he saw the film from the 1969 race. “I thought they looked like a bunch of chaps doing something very British – a bit Bentley Boy’s if you like. I have never been sea sick, I am good at navigation and any boat that is faster than my plane must be interesting so I am looking forward to the race immensely.” commented James.

The pair will also be joined by BBC One DIY SOS presenter Nick Knowles who says he brings ‘ballast and a keen sense of humour’ to the campaign. A full list of who will race on each leg will be available shortly.

The boat will be officially launched on the Thames in April.

[Ben Mazur]

Some good news from RB08 today.

Tim Powell steps up to Race Chairman.

At a Logistics Meeting in London held on Sunday 3rd February regarding the Continued Planning and the remaining Allied Logistics of the 2008 Round Britain Race, starting on 21st June and Completion on 30th June 2008, it was agreed between Mike Lloyd of The Cowes Organising Committee Ltd and Tim Powell, that Tim would assist the C.O.C. Board, the Race Committee and our many Hands On Event Helpers in this Great Race and that Tim Powell would now be appointed as the official "Race Chairman."

Tim Powell, as most of you will know, has been a Prime Mover in this Country as to Events "Offshore" for many years having Organised the Cowes Classic for some 25 Years, competed in 20 of these Races and Organised the 1984 Round Britain Powerboat Race and also Competed in the 1969 Round Britain Powerboat Race {2nd. Overall}.
He is also very well known to the International Offshore Powerboat Racing Community having Competed at the Majority of the Venues for many years in Class 1.
There is No doubt that his very considerable knowledge and expertise in Organisation and Logistic Matters, with the help of others, will ensure that this event will be the success it deserves to be.
Tim is also able to Fully Confirm, as I am, that this Event is now sufficiently Funded to be able to announce that the START will take place on the due date and he looks forward to working with the Committee, The Support Team, The Entrants and The Competitors and our Hosts at each Port of Call to ensure that the entire Operation is enjoyable and most importantly Safe and Satisfying.
Much Organisational Work has already been put in place but there is still more to be done.
Those Remaining Competitors still intending to Enter this Great Race are strongly urged to do so now as the Confirmed Runners Entrants / List approaches some 45 / 48 Racing Craft at this point in time.
An incredible Turn Out in all Classes and still more are coming! What a great race this is going to be.
Mike Lloyd.

Some very impressive personalities on the organizing side. Have my doubts about one though.

[Ben Mazur]

Has to be considered the front runner for an overall win.

New Entrants!

The International Powerboat Racer and designer and winner of the 1984 Round Britain Race and many others, Fabio Buzzi, from Italy, has officially declared his entry into the 2008 Round Britain Race, starting from Gunwharf Quay Portsmouth on June 21st. He will be racing the famous and historical mono hull CESA, built in 1985, and will be racing it in Class CC1.

The Race Organisers have also been given notice that Hannes Bohinc, from Austria, has officially entered into the RB08. He has a long tradition in racing internationally and is a winner of the famous Harmsworth Trophy. Hannes has entered his Wettpunkt.Com Powerboat which is fitted with twin Isotta Fraschini engines of 750 hp each in the RB1

[Rupert Munro]

I said FB would enter Cesa! Can't wait to see it :)

[ciao]

A very positive RB 08 meeting was held at the RYA yesterday.

Funding for the race via competitors entry fees are in place.

Now I don't want to be on the organizing team - I want to go racing!!!!!

Or maybe take a ride in Gee, http://www.geeracing.co.uk/

:)

[Ben Mazur]

Now I don't want to be on the organizing team - I want to go racing!!!!!

Why not take Noisy for a cruise around.



Or maybe take a ride in Gee,

Looks great.

[ciao]

Probably because I have known "the mec" since a Teenager, I don't wan't to catch on fire!

[ciao]

Richard Carr is buying a new boat for RB 08 - Honeyparty not up for it

[Ben Mazur]

Are you allowed to spill the beans as to Mr. Carr's RB08 mount?

[ciao]

Wish I Knew! But I guess Pascoe is busy!

[Ben Mazur]

Aaaaaaaaargghhhhh - a RIB?

[ciao]

I have been working on a website for the chaps who are entering "Gee" into the RB 2008.

Go to http://www.geeracing.co.uk/ ,and give the front page about 20 seconds to load.

Interesting to work with young guys who love nostalgia!

[Ben Mazur]

How did the drivers' briefing go?

[ciao]

Very well , most competitors I spoke to afterward seemed to be happy and really looking forward to the race!

A good few of the overseas chaps came over to Southampton, next time everyone meets again, Portsmouth in June!

[Ben Mazur]

From RB08

Drivers Briefing for the 2008 Round Britain.

An Epic Drivers Briefing for the 2008 Round Britain Offshore Power Boat Race was held at Drivers Wharf in Southampton on Saturday 8th March. Some forty teams arrived and the venue was crowded to the doors.
The briefing took four hours to complete with just a small break for refreshments, a marathon briefing by any standards but all essential information for the participants and it will shortly be available to all participating Race Teams on CD. The Briefing was also filmed.
Many teams arrived from abroad, notably Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Germany and Greece. One of the Swedish teams advised us that they will be coming to the race in their race boat by sea, doing the race and going home again by sea all in the true tradition of Offshore Powerboat Racing.

Many thanks go to the following for helping to ensure a great Venue. Drivers Wharf for allowing us to use their premises free of charge, Vee Ganjavian for the use of his Boat Shed, again free of charge, John Fuller and Nick Gilley for supplying the screen, sound system and camera and the whole of the Race Committee for their support and valuable contributions in so many ways.

Everyone, Teams and Organisers, are now eagerly looking forward to Race Week in June and to the start of the Longest and Toughest Offshore Powerboat Race to be held in this country for almost a quarter of a century.

[Ben Mazur]

Round Britain 2008 begins in less than a month. My pick for the overall winner......

[ciao]

I watched the '84 video this afternoon, something I had never done before!
It seems to me that looking at the '08 entrants list FB will have a load more competition than last time!

If we take out the unknowns, ie. boats being rigged right now for the race, his natural competition on paper should be Silverline, Wettpunkt and Venturer.

But due to the RB class structure I think you can look in RB3, RB4 and MC1 at potential overall challengers.

From RB3 my pick would be Team Vilda and Team Goldfish. RB4 - Team Jersey.

MC1 challengers could be Biretta and Blue FPT (now with Dag Pike).

Now throw in the wild cards Cinzano, Swipewipes and Round Britain Challenger.

Add to the mix that although I am informed that FB has got the reliability on over 100 hrs dyno testing, how well are those engines performing in races in P1?

If I were a bookmaker I couldn't afford to offer you any better than evens on Red FPT Ben, but it is nice to see this time round 10 to 11 boats capable of an overall win!

[ciao]

BBC TV Breakfast are planning to broadcast live from Gun Wharf Quays, Portsmouth during scrutineering on Friday June 20th, the start of the 2008 Round Britain Powerboat Race on June 21st, Milford Haven on June 23rd, Bangor June 24th, Oban June 25th, Inverness June 27th and Lowestoft June 30th.

[Ben Mazur]

Sure wish I could be there for this spectacular event.

[ciao]

I will post results, updates, pictures on Proprider every night.

Boats can be tracked thru the RB website using Marine Track technology (The beta version I have tried looks good). ((very simple!!))

[ciao]

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/images/news/hannes%20fb.jpg

[Ben Mazur]

June 21st The opening leg of the Round Britain race that headed from Portsmouth to Plymouth yesterday (Saturday) proved a tough test for much of the 47 boat fleet. A rough head se across Lyme By slowed many. Despite this Drew Langdon and Miles Jennings were first to finish bringing upSilverline/Original Style home in first place after covering the 130nm mile course in less than three hours. But those further astern were not as lucky.
Race favourites Fabio Buzzi, the Italian winner of the last circumnavigation in 1984 and favoured to win yet again, made a massive mistake leaving Portsmouth Harbour. In attempting a short cut to the start line his 3,500hp FPT Red struck a submerged wartime defence barrier smashing a rudder and one of his three propellers.
The Austrian driver, Hannes Bohinc, was another. The one time round Britain record holder drives one of the fastest boats in the line-up only to blow his engines in the first few miles. Both Buzzi and Bohinc are expected to work through the night making repairs and could rejoin the fleet further down the course.
It was less than ten minutes after Silverline Original Style finished that the Greek entry of Blue FPT of Vassilis Peteras and Panos Tsikopoulos entered Plymouth. They were to take second slot with Nick Gilley and Jon Fuller bringing the Phanton hull, Swipewipes.co.uk, finished a matter of hours before the start, home in third placeless than a minute behind.
The weather made it a punishing race, some unable to take stand the strain The Fairey cruiser 747, crewed by three British Airways Captains was forced to enter Weymouth to put Cormac Lundy ashore with a broken rib.
Garmin, the boat carry TV presenter Nick Knowles retired early with mechanical problems but this was insignificant compared to the luck experienced by the German entered Swordfish cruiser, Blue Marlin. It was while crossing the rough and tumble Lyme Bay that she suddenly sprung a leak. Pumps could combat the inrush of water and she went forcing the crew to take to their liferaft. Markus Hendricts and his three-man crew were later picked up unharmed by a fellow competitor. but Blue Marlin is now considered a total loss.
A poor weather forecast for Sunday’s leg from Plymouth to Milford Haven could cause delay or a modification to the course to enable the event to maintain its time-table.

June 21st Portsmouth to Plymouth

Position # Boat Name Class Position PM

1 471 Silverline / Original Style RB1 1 12.49.57
2 333 Blue FPT MC1 1 12.58.38
3 43 Swipewipes.co.uk RB4 1 12.59.21
4 6 Mystic Dragon MC1 2 13.01.36
5 R80 Seahound MC1 3 13.01.38
6 22 Lionhead RB3 1 13.05.48
7 55 Braveheart III MC1 4 13.07.50
8 12 Biretta MC1 5 13.19.28
9 R2 Hot Lemon RB3 2 13.24.50
10 7 Going Lean RB3 3 13.30.16
11 4 Hardleys RB3 4 13.30.24
12 9 Team Vilda RB3 5 13.40.49
13 77 Sealbay RB4 2 13.41.07
14 96 Mr Mako RB4 3 13.46.14
15 18 Ikon RB3 6 13.51.10
16 10 Black Gold RB4 4 13.58.33
17 8 Power Products Marine MC2 1 13.59.41
18 15 Buro MC1 6 14.00.28
19 33 Gutter Boyz RB3 6 14.02.08
20 110 Seafarer RB3 7 14.07.44
21 343 Carbon Neutral RB3 8 14.09.05
22 185 Gee Historic 1 14.09.52
23 69 The Bandit RB2 1 14.12.04
24 16 Team Scorpion Dubois MC1 7 14.12.08
25 R3 My Pleasure 2 RB4 5 14.18.13
26 5 Northern Spirit MC2 2 14.23.53
27 102 Vampire Team Pulsar RB4 5 14.25.11
28 17 TFO MC2 3 14.28.37
29 14 Mud Swell and Beers RB4 6 14.46.11
30 47 Relentless RB3 9 14.47.28
31 130 Fugitive MC2 4 14.58.28
32 101 Team Pulsar / Wolf RB4 7 15.07.54

Confirmed results subject to protest.

[Ben Mazur]

June 22nd >> Day Two of the 2008 Round Britain Powerboat Race was an surreal experience for most of the 400 people directly involved, writes John Walker. As one observer noted, Parry Thomas used to create world land speed records on the Pendine Sands, just east of Milford Haven but for today’s powerboat racers, there would be no record set, on the race day that never was.

It was scheduled to be the day that the 45 boats still in contention raced 180 nautical miles from Plymouth in Devon to Pembroke Dock in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, passing the big milestone of Lands End and crossing the Bristol Channel but it didn’t happen.

Waking up to a meteorological prediction of south westerly winds of Force 5-7 with occasional touches of 8, all delivered by TV forecasters jolly as ravens, Safety Officer, Richard Salaman, was pondering the nonsense of launching his fleet into the western approaches but it was a no-brainer and after considering a delay to take advantage of any reduction in wind speed as the day progressed, the Race Committee accepted the inevitable and cancelled the day’s racing.

The alternatives were then twofold. One, to slip the schedule by one day, with all the administrative logistical horrors to organisers and teams or two, lose the second leg and re-start on the scheduled day from Milford Haven, leaving the competitors to make their own way to South Wales on land or sea.

After the battering of the first day, most teams happily opted for the second alternative but those who lacked road trailers looked glum; after all, cruising 180 miles in a Force 7 would be little different to racing those same miles so the prospect was not entrancing.

As those teams without trailers began to pull in favours, upsetting the Sunday morning lie-in of more than a few hauliers and chums with their plaintive requests, the wise virgins of the fleet and their support crews began to load up, shape up and ship out for the run up the M5 and M4, beginning to arrive in the Pembroke Docks in mid-afternoon. Sitting on that dockside, listening to the French F1 Grand Prix in a vehicle buffeted by what was still a substantial wind, the unreality of the situation was underlined by history.

There may have been none of today’s race boats in the Haven but just after lunch, a boat appeared over the horizon with race numbers and on closer inspection, it turned out to be one of the two Miss Bovril Triana 25s that competed in the 1969 race, one of which was owned by South Wales businessman, David Bassett. Could it have been him at the wheel, looking to re-live the glory of days gone by? We shall never know, as having seen 100% of nothing going on, it sped away west, into the teeth of the gale.

Perversely, the met forecast for Day Three suggests no wind at all over the Irish Sea, a circumstance that will appeal greatly to the crews as they make their way to Bangor, on arguably the toughest leg of this race.

[Rupert Munro]

Todays update so far:

June 23rd >> It is disappointment for Italian Fabio Buzzi aboard Red FPT in the 2008 Round Britain Race. Despite being among the leaders at the start of the third leg from Milford Haven to Bangor NI this morning (Monday), he has since suffered problems and been force retired.

Meanwhile his teammate, the Greek entered Blue FPT driven by Vassilis Pateras and Panos Tsikopoulos, was leading the event at 1.45pm.



June 23rd >> Despite having to transport their boats overland from Plymouth to Milford Haven, enthusiasm remains high amongst the fleet competing in the 2008 Round Britain Race.

Severe seas off the North Cornish coast and Southern Irish Sea that forced the organisers to cancel the second leg on Sunday eased overnight leaving moderate conditions for the run to Bangor NI.

Boats were launched in the early hours in readiness for the new starting time of 11.am.

Early indications are that Italian ace Fabio Buzzi aboard the 3,500hp Red FPT is up amonst the leaders despite suffering serious damage during the Portsmouth start.

Other causalities of the opening leg included Austrian Hannes Bohinc aboard Wettpunkt.com who entered Torquay on Saturday with mechanical problems.

Both these competitors were fronting the third leg at 12.30pm.

Indications via Marine Track show Red FPT travelling in excess of 100mph with the Austrian running a little faster at 106mph!

[Ben Mazur]

and links.

Pics by Boatmad members Scand, Robbie, Flying Fish and Foolish

[Ben Mazur]

...

[Ben Mazur]

more

[Ben Mazur]

////

[Ben Mazur]

';/.

[Ben Mazur]

last pic and some links

http://www.richard-page.com/gallery.cgi?galleryid=66&prints=

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/june21.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20hluzJGbqo

[Ben Mazur]

June 23rd

A crew of Watford based taxi drivers who were considered rank outsiders when they entered the race are now contenders for their class prize in the 2008 Round Britain race.

The performance of skipper Barry Deakin on the opening leg between Portsmouth and Plymouth on Saturday confounded the pundits but this was no fluke. After having to transport their boat overland to Milford Haven when high seas forced the second leg to be abandoned, they repeated the performance on Monday by using navigational tactics.

Despite choosing the longer course off the Irish coast between Milford Haven and Bangor NI in an attempt to seek shelter from a strong South Westerly wind, it was a gamble that paid off and they hit the finish in tenth place overall to collect first prize in the RB2 class.


June 23rd
The end of the third leg of the 2008 Round Britain Race between Milford Haven and Bangor NI today (Monday) produced a surprise result when Jamie Edwards and John Lindsay brought their Mercury powered Rib (Rigid Hull Inflatable) Mr Mako across the finish line. However although they took their class prize, the fastest time was set by Gutta Boyz, entered by Nick and Ivar Tollefsen, Norweigan brothers.

Bohinc left with the second start over 30 minutes later hitting speeds in excess of 100mph.

After finishing third in the RB4 class in the opening leg to Plymouth on Saturday at an average speed almost 12 mph below the class winner, those aboard Mr Mako won the day by using navigational tactics on their crossing of the Irish Sea. Instead of hugging the Irish coast they set a direct heading for Bangor which more than paid off. Their final performance relegated Saturday’s RB4 class winner, Swipewipes.co.uk driven by Nick Gilley and Jon Fuller, to third place.

The success of Wettpunkt.com was just reward after a disappointing start on Saturday. Austrian Hannes Bohinc was virtually unchallenged after the Italian race boat designed/builder Fabio Buzzi aboard Red FPT had mechanical trouble and retired early on this leg. Once clear of the coast there was no stopping the Austrian and he creamed up the Irish Sea at full speed producing and average well over 65mph for the 240 statue mile course.

A fast performance was also set by the Greek entered Blue FPT driven by Vassilis Pateras and Panos Tsikopoulos. They finished a matter of minutes behind Wettpunct.Com to take second in the MC1 class. Collectively with the high placing on Saturday’s first leg Blue FPT now leads the larger class fleet on elapsed time.

June 23rd
Wettpunkt.com, the Anglo-Austrian boat of Hannes Bohinc, Max Holzfeid and Ed Williams-Hawkes, won the third leg of the 10-day Round Britain Powerboat Race with an incident-free crossing from Milford Haven to Bangor in Northern Ireland. The FB Design, powered by 1800hp Isotta Fraschini engines, completed the 190nautical mile journey with over an hour to spare on many of its competitors.
“The boat ran perfectly across the Irish Sea.” confirmed a relieved Hannes Bohinc, team owner and throttleman. “We have arrived in Bangor more than an hour ahead of most of the competitors which is a fantastic achievement. This performance is dedicated to our engineers and mechanics who have worked tirelessly to put us back in the race after the disappointment of Saturday.”

On Saturday, Wettpunkt.com led the first stage from Portsmouth-to-Plymouth before water flooded the engines and the boat was forced to detour to Torquay. The team fitted new engines overnight and are determined to make up for lost time.

Thanks to Downhilldai from Wales for the next four photos.

[Ben Mazur]

More of today's action in pics. and video

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/june23.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlRX6C70UhM

[Ben Mazur]

More pics, results, stories and overall standings after the first 4 rounds.

What is most sinister is that the boat that had been leading RB4 after the first leg had its GPS wiring cut underneath the dashboard while the boat was in (along with the others) a secure military compound in Milford Haven. Just how despicable is that!

June 25th>> Lay Days at Inverness
Following three days of rough and tumble, racing the 2008 Round Britain Powerboat Race fleet spent today (Wednesday) transversing Scotland either by road trailer or via the Caledonian Canal. The convoy covered the 100 odd miles from Oban in the West to Inverness in the East in readiness to start the five remaining racing legs, the first heading for Edinburgh, on Friday writes Ray Bulman.
Although some teams face time penalties for rule infringements occurring as they sped North up the West Coast, it’s now certain the event is headed overall by the Norwegian Rib (Rigid Hull Inflatable) Lionhead. Its crew, Pat and Henrick Sollie together with James Sydenham have taken 8hrs 50mins4 6secs to cover the 506 statue miles raced so far from their Portsmouth starting point. It represents an average speed of around 60mph and puts Lionhead 10mins 9secs ahead of the Greek entered Blue FPT filling second slot. Gutta Boyz, another Norwegian entry of father and son, Ivar and Nick Tollefsen, lies third overall with a time of 9hrs 2min 3secs demonstrating the high performance of the international entries in the race.
By contrast Austrian Hannes Bohinc, who has finished first with Wettpunkt.Com on the last two legs to Bangor NI and Oban but failed to finish the opening leg between Portsmouth and Plymouth, is well down the table at this halfway point in 33rd place. Although he is likely to lead most of the remaining legs back to Portsmouth, those ahead would need to suffer serious breakdown for him to feature among the winners.
The glamour of the race is always up ahead but many individual contests are taking place further down the fleet. The Watford based taxi drivers now lie 16th overall and second in the RB2 class with a time of 11hrs 11mins 44secs aboard ‘The Bandit’ Barry Deacon, Graeme Young and Carl Hemp are chasing Silverline / Original Style, their RB2 class leader four places ahead, and although a much more powerful contender, Drew Langdon’s Silverline / Original Style has suffered mechanical problems.
Drew and his crew, Jan Falkowski and Miles Jennings, were working at Inverness to correct their problems but if breakdown reoccurs then the taxi drivers driving ‘The Bandit’ may find they have quicker journey.
Another backmarker by no means out of the running in the lower powered MC2 category, is one of the smallest boats in the race. The hull of the single diesel engined ‘TFO’ was once owned and raced by the Countess of Arran as ‘Laura Lucy’ which its current crew, Tom and Charlie Williams-Hawk (sons of Ed Williams-Hawk aboard Wettpunkt.Com) bought for less than the entry fee for the race. They are the youngest competitors in the event and lying a creditable 25th overall with a total elapsed time of 12hrs 43mins 43secs ahead of the well reported 42 year old Gee running in the Historic Class.
The two-day non-racing break at Inverness has allowed several teams to ]catch up. These suffered various mechanical problems en-route and withdrew. They have since been worked upon and been transported north to rejoin the fleet on its journey south.
These include the Top Gear team aboard ‘Garmin’ which failed finish the opening leg. ‘Round Britain Challenger’ driver by veteran racer Richard Griffith, who competed in the previous Round Britain contests in 1969 and 1984 and now alongside his son Dorian, is another to arrive.
‘Xanthus’, entered by Harley Street dentist John Skuse, has made it by road from Plymouth while a strong possibility remains that Ocean Pirate and Italian favourite, Red FPT driven by Fabio Buzzi has now retired from the race, and is taking a plane back to Italy this evening.
[/I]
http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/resultsjune24.htm

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/june24.htm

[Rupert Munro]

>> June 27th>> Competitors in the 2008 Round Britain Race sped south today (Friday) in moderate to rough conditions and while it may be heading home to Portsmouth, it is an Austrian, Hannes Bohinc aboard Wettpunkt.Com, who is showing the way.

Wettpunk.com covered the 240 statute mile course between Inverness and Edinburgh in a little under three hours representing an average speed of approximately 70mph. But although not the roughest seas so far encountered, conditions were far from smooth and this was reflected in the finishing times

Wettpunkt.Com finished 12 minutes ahead of Venturer driven Andy Macateer, a boat that although first in the RB1 class, was previously lying 18th overall. This second placing for Venturer illustrates this great offshore battle is far from over and is going to be a bow to bow up to the Portsmouth finishing line on Monday.

Third place was filled by the Greek entered Blue FPT driven by Vassilis Pateras and Dag Pike, the British navigational expert. Previously lying second overall and leading the MC1 class, Blue FPT was 13 minutes 12 seconds behind the Norwegian entered Rib Lionhead at Inverness. Despite this impressive result she only reduced her elapsed time by less than two minutes on this leg over the leading Norwegian, Pal Sollie, who bought Lionhead home fourth. With such high performance by the Goldfish Rib, Blue FPT will need to work hard to swing the final outcome.

The pace is beginning to tell with some hulls and machinery protesting at the punishment. Four days of racing from the Channel to Northern Ireland to the Scottish highlands and now downhill to southern waters has seen some teams working through the night to remain in the contest.

Cinzano 558 of three-man crew, Tim Grimshaw, Eric Smillie and Nick Keyser worked frantically to get their boat up to Inverness after suffering a multitude of mechanical problems at the Portsmouth start. Working through Thursday night they just managed to reach the start line only to break down yet again a few miles later.

The Belgium entered Birretta driven by Thomas Vandamme and Jean-Pierre Neels lying ninth overall suffered an engine fire an hour after the start. Once extinguished its determined crew maintained their heading for Edinburgh on one engine.

Another suffering a mountain of problems but now rewarded with a tenth place on this leg, was the Top Gear entered Garmin driven by Iain May and Rowland MacDowie and Jeff Hunton. With Gremlins apparently sorted, this one looks set for a good finish at Portsmouth.

Perhaps the greatest act of sportsmanship so far in this event was when the Fairey cruiser <>, crewed by BA Captains, Jonathan Napier, Andy Fielding and Cormac Lundy, wrapped a drifting rope round its propeller a few miles after the start. Class competitors John Guille, Richard Hoskins and Chris Clayton aboard the 42 year old restored Gee, immediately stopped and offered assistance.

Grabbing a knife, John Guille jumped into the sea, and swimming below the stricken Team 747, cut the tangled rope from his competitor's propeller in order to continue their bow to bow contest to Edinburgh.



>> June 27th>> Wettpunkt wins again!

Friday 27th June 2008: Hannes Bohinc, Ed Williams-Hawkes and Max Holzfeind arrived in Edinburgh ahead of the field on day seven of the ten-day Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race to claim another victory for the Wettpunkt.com team. Despite choppy conditions, the 1800hp Isotta Fraschini-powered craft completed the event's longest stage at an average speed of 84.36mph to further establish the team's credentials as one of the outstanding performers.

"It was an uncomfortable ride and we are all pretty exhausted," commented a drained Hannes Bohinc. "But we won and made up more time on our rivals; the boat is running well and we could not have asked for much more. Ed's navigating is always top-class and Max is proving his talents as an engineer as well as a driver. If he had not detected one of two small problems when we arrived in Scotland we may not have completed today's stage. As it is, we completed it, won it, and with the boat and engines running perfectly, we're looking confidently ahead to the remaining stages."
The Wettpunkt.com team were followed into Edinburgh by second placed 'Venturer' and third placed 'Blue FPT'. The next leg of the event commences tomorrow (Saturday 28th ) as the teams head to Newcastle-upon-Tyne.




>> June 27th. After working for 24 hours Team 747 managed to start todays race from Inverness to Edinburgh, with members of the Gee crew sacrificing their nights sleep - The two boats started the race and after a good tussle 747 got rope tangled arround it props - the Gee Team came to the rescue again.

Gee team skipper dived into the freezing water swum to 747 and cut the props free!

The two boats then continued to head to Edinburgh in convoy - Gee are truly a team of gentleman and enthusiasts!

>> June 27th. A Hitchin-based healthcare firm is spreading the message about one of its exciting new products by sponsoring a team competing in a gruelling powerboat race around the UK coast.






Family-run Diomed Developments Ltd, located in Gosmore, is the principal sponsor for Xanthus, a classic 31-ft Fairey Huntsman speedboat built in 1974, which is tackling this month’s 2008 Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race.

Diomed aims to increase awareness of its remarkable new mouth ulcer treatment, “iglü gel”. Unlike other mouth ulcer gels, which do not provide any lasting protection, the iglu formulation absorbs moisture from the gum to form an adhesive, protective barrier over painful mouth ulcers. Clinical trials have demonstrated that use of iglu significantly speeds up the healing process. Many dentists often get patients seeking advice for products to help deal with the pain and healing issues associated with mouth ulcers.

Appropriately enough, the boat’s skipper John Skuse is a dentist.

The long-anticipated sea race kicks off on June 21 and will see about 50 powerboats speed nearly 1,400 miles clockwise around Britain’s coast over 10 days, starting and finishing in Portsmouth. Inclement weather, rough seas and mechanical breakdowns are just a few of the formidable challenges the boat crews are likely to face.

The route has been broken into eight legs, calling at a number of ports in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. From Portsmouth, competitors will make stops at Plymouth and Milford Haven before speeding 200 miles over the Irish Sea to Bangor in Northern Ireland and then over to Oban in Scotland.

Instead of circling the tip of Scotland’s north coast, the boats will use the Caledonian Canal to cross from Oban in the west to Inverness in the East. From there they will head for Edinburgh, and then on to Newcastle, Lowestoft and back to Portsmouth.

Powerboats taking part include the so-called Super Class – purpose-designed racers with monster engines putting out 1,500 hp and capable of more than 100mph – as well as smaller and far less powerful craft.

The iglü-sponsored boat, Xanthus, is taking part in the Historic Class, open to boats that are at least 20 years old and capable of no more than 50 knots. The boat’s name comes from Greek mythology – Xanthus was the immortal horse belonging to Trojan War hero Achilles.

While the Fairey Huntsman 31, built nearly 35 years ago, is unlikely to beat its faster competitors, its powerful twin 225 hp diesel engines should help guarantee speeds of around 25 to 30 knots to keep it up with the rest of the racing fleet. It certainly has a strong heritage - a Fairey Huntsman competed in the last Round Britain Powerboat Race in 1969, and came a very credible 4th out of 42 boats.

The Skipper John Skuse said: “We are absolutely delighted to have iglü onboard with us as a sponsor, in what is sure to be a hugely exciting and challenging event. Xanthus is an example of classic British design and we know she will cope admirably with all that the race can throw at her. We are looking forward to having a great time.
Michael Yarrow, managing director of Diomed Developments said: “The Round Britain race is one of the highlights of this year’s powerboating calendar and we are proud to be sponsoring Xanthus and her crew. Like the Fairey Huntsman, our product, iglu, is entirely of British design and manufacture. The race won’t be an easy ride, given the typical British Summer weather, but Skipper, John, is a very experienced and skilled sailor and we’ll be following his team’s progress closely.”

[Rupert Munro]

Results From 27th:

POS BOAT NO BOAT NAME CLASS TOTAL ELAPSED TIME TOTAL N.M AVERAGE KNOTS AVERAGE MPH AVERAGE KM/H

4 1 Xanthus HC1 7 40 18 210 27.37 31.50 50.70
3 2 Hot Lemon RB3 3 40 34 210 57.13 65.74 105.80
3 3 My Pleasure II RB4 5 4 12 210 41.42 47.67 76.71
4 4 Hardleys RB3 3 42 28 210 56.64 65.18 104.89
NS 5 Northern Spirit MC2 14 30 0 210 14.48 16.67 26.82
3 6 Mystic Dragon MC1 4 19 13 210 48.61 55.94 90.02
6 7 Going Lean * RB3 4 25 57 210 47.38 54.52 87.74
1 8 Power Products Marine MC2 4 25 30 210 47.46 54.61 87.89
2 9 Vilda RB3 3 24 29 210 61.62 70.91 114.12
2 10 Black Gold RB4 4 46 20 210 44.00 50.64 81.50
RTD 11 No Worries RB3 13 30 0 210 15.56 17.90 28.81
RTD 12 Birretta MC1 13 30 0 210 15.56 17.90 28.81
7 14 Mud Swell & Beers RB4 6 12 1 210 33.87 38.98 62.73
6 15 Buro MC1 5 58 36 210 35.14 40.44 65.07
5 16 Team Scorpion Dubois * MC1 5 1 59 210 41.72 48.02 77.27
3 17 TFO MC2 4 43 34 210 44.43 51.13 82.29
NS 18 Ikon RB3 14 30 0 210 14.48 16.67 26.82
1 22 Lionhead RB3 3 10 21 210 66.19 76.18 122.59
9 33 Gutta Boyz *** RB3 9 38 13 210 21.79 25.08 40.36
5 43 Swipewipes.co.uk RB4 5 25 56 210 38.66 44.49 71.60
9 45 Team Jersey RB4 7 36 2 210 27.63 31.80 51.17
RTD 47 Relentless RB3 13 30 0 210 15.56 17.90 28.81
2 55 Braveheart III MC1 3 36 12 210 58.28 67.07 107.93
5 68 Swordsman HC1 8 0 54 210 26.20 30.15 48.52
3 69 The Bandit RB2 5 39 52 210 37.07 42.66 68.66
2 72 Garmin Racing RB2 5 29 39 210 38.22 43.99 70.79
1 77 Sealbay RB4 4 4 6 210 51.62 59.40 95.60
4 80 Seahound V MC1 4 27 42 210 47.07 54.17 87.17
2 81 Wettpunkt.com *** RB1 3 54 32 210 53.72 61.83 99.50
8 88 Tequila * RB3 5 12 11 210 40.36 46.45 74.75
8 96 Mr Mako RB4 6 18 56 210 33.25 38.27 61.58
NS 99 Blue Marlin HC1 14 30 0 210 14.48 16.67 26.82
NS 100 Challenger/Blastoff RB2 14 30 0 210 14.48 16.67 26.82
6 101 Team Pulsar - Wolf RB4 5 44 41 210 36.56 42.07 67.70
4 102 Team Pulsar - Vampire RB4 5 12 13 210 40.36 46.44 74.74
5 110 Seafarer RB3 4 8 40 210 50.67 58.31 93.84
1 111 Venturer RB1 3 6 49 210 67.45 77.62 124.91
2 130 Fugitive MC2 4 42 18 210 44.63 51.36 82.66
NS 144 RIB International RB4 14 30 0 210 14.48 16.67 26.82
NS 177 Red FPT CC1 14 30 0 210 14.48 16.67 26.82
1 185 GEE ** HC1 6 7 12 210 34.31 39.49 63.55
3 323 Ocean Pirate HC1 7 39 35 210 27.42 31.55 50.77
1 333 Blue FPT MC1 3 9 57 210 66.33 76.34 122.85
7 343 Carbon Neutral RB3 5 1 39 210 41.77 48.07 77.36
1 471 Silverline RB2 3 11 10 210 65.91 75.85 122.07
RTD 558 Cinzano 558 RB2 13 30 0 210 15.56 17.90 28.81
2 747 Team 747 HC1 6 38 50 210 31.59 36.36 58.51

Sorry for the poor formatting - the board seems to reset anything I do to change it.

[Rupert Munro]

...

[Rupert Munro]

....

[Rupert Munro]

.....

[Rupert Munro]

......

All Pictures are from the RB08 website.

[Ben Mazur]

>> June 28th>> After 1000 miles and 6 days of race Blue FPT is leading the Round Britain when there are only two stages left to the end of the competition.

Entered in the MC1 category for mass-produced boats and engines, the FB Design’s hull equipped by Fiat Powertrain Technologies engines has overtaken the boats of the faster classes as well.

This is a result of a competition raced always at high average speed, in any condition of the sea, thanks to the performance of the hull, the power of the three engines FPT N60-480 rated at 480 hp and the skill of the crew.

The driver Pateras Vassilis, the throttleman Panos Tsikopoulos, the mechanic on board Vasiliou Lefteris and the British navigational expert Dag Pike have always boosted full-out, aware of the reliability of the boat and counting on their experience.

The Round Britain is a real strength and speed race that even in this edition is showing how the best results can be reached by boats that are able to maintain consistently high performance level, thanks to their technical equipment.

With the today’s leg, the advantage over the closest opponents has risen to about an hour, but nevertheless the crew say they want to continue pushing to maintain high concentration and increase the posting.


>> June 28th>> It was all change in the 2008 Round Britain Race today(Saturday). Rough conditions in the Firth of Forth at the start of the sixth leg to Newcastle took its toll, completely upsetting the result table. While the elapsed time leader at Edinburgh lost out, Blue FPT, the Greek entered Fiat Powertrain Rib of Vassilis Pateras, Panos Tsikopoulos and British navigator Dag Pike reaped the benefit. Now Blue FPT not only lead the MC1 class they also head the fleet on overall elapsed time.
It was problems suffered by the Norwegian entered Lionhead; the Max Diesel powered Goldfish Rib driven by Pal Sollie, that changed the pattern. Setting off in contention she suddenly slowed when one of its sterndrive legs failed ten miles after the start. Although the on-board mechanic managed to make repairs, the stoppage erased their elapsed time lead.
"It was a great disappointment," said navigator James Sydenham. "Instead of an eleven minute lead we're now 60 minutes behind but with over 500 miles to go we will do our best to catch up."

Once again Wettpunkt.com, entered by Austrian Hannes Hannes Bohinc, was first to finish a leg for the third consecutive time. He covered the 132 statute mile course between Edinburgh and Newcastle in 1hr 29min 32secs representing an impressive average of 88mph but it was not without problems.
The last few miles were covered with diesel leaking from the fuel tank.
"It wasn't much fun," said Ed Williams-Hawk, navigator aboard Wettpunkt.com. "It flooded the floor making difficult to keep to our feet but finishing some ten miles ahead of the rest was just reward for our problems."
Second slot was filled by Andy Macateer aboard Venturer, another Buzzi Rib. He came home nine minutes astern of the Austrian and stays ahead on the RB1 class. It was another four minutes before Blue FPT arrived to find it had secured to elapsed time lead, an elated result for the Greek team and Fiat Powertrain in particular.
Although much of the course offered moderate conditions, the opening miles down the Firth of Forth suffered a strong head wind and a punishing seas. It damaged several craft forcing some to return to their Edinburgh base.
The team of Watford based taxi drivers aboard The Bandit disappeared in a cloud of spray when it stuffed into a wave. The impact caused some damage and the crew to turn back. Another was the Norwegian Goldfish Rib Gutta Boyz driven by father and son Nick and Ivar Tollefesen that won the third leg to Bangor NI. She also turned back.
The ongoing hero of the event is Gee, the 42 year old restored racer that took part in the first Round Britain in 1969. She retired at Inverness in '69 but age seems to count. Although she was forced to slow when crew member Mike Clark strained his back, she still managed to finish at Newcastle in 30th position maintaining her first place in her class.


>> June 28th>> Britain's Ed Williams-Hawkes navigated Wettpunkt.com, the dominant force in the 2008 Round Britain Offshore Powerboat Race, to a third consecutive stage win as the event arrived into Newcastle on Day 8 of 10.

In the best racing conditions to-date Williams-Hawkes, alongside throttleman Hannes Bohinc and driver Max Holzfeind, averaged over 80mph throughout the 115 nautical mile stage as they set their sights on clawing back time from the overall leader, the Greek boat of 'Blue FPT'.

The race moves onto Lowestoft tomorrow (Sunday 29th) for the penultimate stage before Monday's Grand Finalé in Portsmouth.

[Ben Mazur]

Today's results and overall standings

http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk/overall.htm

[Ben Mazur]

...

[Ben Mazur]

///

[Ben Mazur]

Photos courtesy of RB08

[Rupert Munro]

Congratulations to FPT Blue for being the first to cross the finish line :) Interesting race to watch, shame I couldn't make it to the start or finish.

[ciao]

Well I made it to the start, but thereafter saw little racing!

The logistics of the race were huge, get from one Port of Call to the next, check in to a hotel, go to the pits and try and find Wi Fi access!

Although I made lots of mistakes, I am proud that I managed to get Chris Davies photo's online most afternoons by 16.00 so that the powerboating world could see some of the days action.

For all of us involved - it was a learning curve - never before has a race like this been monitored so closely on the net.

I use a small ISP for the RB site, they had to man the server 24/7 for 8 days, the load was that huge, the only down time (as I am aware) was for 10 minutes at the start of the race.

From the day of the race start to Bangor the site had just under 2 million hits (not unique) - no one could have predicted that.

Sorry if the info wasn't more forth coming - but it wasn't easy!

[Rupert Munro]

Well done ciao - the coverage, although not complete, was very impressing given the undertaking of all involved. It was great to see some of the pics for those of us not able to make it to the race. Nice job by you and all involved :) Thanks.

[THUNDERBOLT]

JUNE 21st 2008
That Saturday morning I was up early, raring to go and was at Keyhaven by 8.45 am, giving me plenty of time to walk to Hurst Castle. It appears I was not alone either, in all around 200 people were heading for the vantage point where the Solent narrows (which was crowded with as many as or more spectator craft) to watch the entrants come through on the first stage of the Round Britain Powerboat Race, what memories flooded back as I approached the end of the spit…The Cigarette and Miss Enfield, SURFURY, Yellowdrama. Hurst had been a favourite viewing point for countless offshore fans over the years but in recent times there was nothing to see, true powerboating had died, until today, when we would witness the spectacle of up to 48 offshore racers smashing their way out through the tidal race, past the Needles towards Lyme Bay and Plymouth the first stop in the Race round Britain 2008.

But first let us rewind about 2 years, I was fortunate as a committee member of the newly formed Classic Offshore Powerboat Owners Club to hear member Mr Mike Lloyd announce to us that he was putting together plans for a revival of the Round Britain Powerboat race, there were more than a few gasps of disbelief as Mike reeled off his ambition to re-stage a race last run in 1984, there were also some rumblings that the date set would not give him enough time to put everything in place and his biggest hurdle was to find a sponsor, for what would be the race of the century…..
The websites burst into life as soon as Mike’s plans became public knowledge and to the amazement of many doubters the entries started rolling in for a race that was only in the planning stages! Throughout 2007 the thought of a true offshore powerboat race had re-ignited the enthusiasm of ex racers, new kids on the block and spectators young and old who remembered the days when the sport took to the open seas and made hero’s out of every participant.
As Mr Lloyd persevered with his newborn monster it became obvious, especially as the sport had been dormant for a significant number of years that he could not handle every aspect a venture of this magnitude was producing, especially with an entry list already nudging toward the 70 mark. So a call to assist went out to all who had experience with offshore racing and its complexities, (ie; re writing the non existent rule book etc) it was the formation of Cowes Organising Committee headed by veteran racer and organiser Tim Powell was the result.
By the spring of the new year with the race months ahead, the course was set, the venues booked, an entry list of quality craft including some major names from the past and present but no major sponsor, the decision was taken to fund the running of the RB08 through the entry fee’s and with 90% of the entrants endorsing this option, the race was on!
One major coup for the Committee was the entry of Fabio Buzzi along with sponsorship from Fiat for him and with support for the race itself, their perseverance and enthusiasm had paid off.
So it was that on Saturday June 21st offshore powerboat racing saw its rebirth in Britain and a final total of 48 boats set of on their epic journey, some never to return.
For spectators, participants and organisers there was a buzz in the air, not experienced since the heady days of the C-T-C, this was the result of one mans dream to restage a true offshore race, The RBR. Mike Lloyd’s vision and tenacity had paid off, the resulting spectacle his just reward, plus, as an added bonus and maybe though his sterling efforts, another epic adventure had stirred into life ..the revived CTC.
It would be a brave man to predict the future but who knows what could follow next?

Mike James
COPOC

[ciao]

I have put up a 5 minute trailer to give everyone here an idea of the 2008 Round Britain Film <here> (http://www.veoh.com/videos/v16177977wrH2W8P4)

The quality of the upload is poor, but if anyone would like to purchase the nearly 2 hour DVD of the event please go <here> (http://www.roundbritainrace.co.uk)

[Ben Mazur]

Here's a link to a video done by a friend of mine with whom I used to race in the UK. Thanks to Jon Fuller for editing the original to a managable size so we can view it.

www.boatmad.com/vids/RB1small.wmv