It was a weekend of highlights, big crowds and great weather at the largest powerboat race held in Victoria for several years the Paynesville Gold Cup.

The iconic event on the powerboat racing circuit has a rich history steeped in tradition going back more than 40 years and the competitors came from all across Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia to take up the challenge.

The 2019 race saw 68 competitors line up in every type of craft imaginable. From the fleet of 15 juniors aged 12-16 in the 15 horsepower category, right through to a legendary GP1 hydroplane packing over 1800hp with a top speed of nearly 290 kilometres per hour, it was an incredible spectacle of carbon fibre, chrome, speed and noise delighting the big crowds lining the banks.

Legendary commentator, Dave Bishop, was on hand to keep families up to date with what was happening out on the water, and they came out in droves.

The East Gippsland Powerboat Club hosts the annual event and club commodore, Aaron Hill, was proud of how the event unfolded.

“We really were on the edge of not moving ahead with the event this year,” he stated. “If it wasn’t for the support of the local community, my guess is that we would have had to cancel. “The East Gippsland Shire Council, David Talko and all the team at Gippsland Ports have been instrumental in providing support for this event and we cannot thank them enough. “Our major sponsors, a host of local businesses and community members also dug deep and kept us afloat. Over the past two years we have looked to really focus on the community aspect of this event, including removing entry fees and instead, opting for a gold coin donation; the locals have responded with their feet. It was wonderful to see so many families down here with picnic rugs and deckchairs enjoying some spectacular racing.”

Aaron is also a passionate racer and when asked about his results he was a little coy.

“Well we didn’t have the perfect weekend in team rebound. We experienced what you might say, was an avoidable issue (rumour has it that a lack of fuel was the culprit) but all in all the weekend was fantastic, we cannot wait for next year,” he said.

The Victorian Championships were run across most classes on the Saturday and Sunday. The outboard classes saw huge fields with up to eight boats racing side by side in some very tight action. Crowds were also treated to some speed and noise with the blown alcohol displacement boats, Rival and Rebellion, waking up the neighbourhood at more than 225 km/h.

The classic 4.2 category provided some spectacular action across the weekend and with two of the drivers in their 70s there was no sign of them slowing down any time soon.

In the open outboard category, the high-performance formula tunnel boats were on show. The highlights included the debut of a brand new carbon fibre machine from Europe for the TBR racing team, a return to the podium for Don McClymont and a win in class for Stuart Jackson of the R Marine F1 team.

Also on debut was a brand-new cockpit mono hull, Still Angry, with Sam Lucas at the helm. This new machine is in development and showed a great deal of promise.

One of the highlights Sunday for all in attendance was watching the Harrison owned grand prix hydroplane out on track.

GP1 is a carbon fibre work of art and with pilot, Grant Harrison, at the wheel he decimated the field in the qualifying for the Gold Cup event. With more than 1800 HP and speeds that make your eyes water, it’s hard not to be captivated as the big hydroplane roared around the circuit.

Steve Scott in the 6lt hydroplane, Aquamagic, drove to the limit all weekend and eventually an oil hose split finished his campaign one race early.

The black and orange 6lt Chase-n-Cash was at the centre of some of the toughest racing of the weekend in the 168km/h class. Max Stevens, in Another Madam, had a very rough race when he was almost ejected from the boat after opening the throttles into the front straight.

The 1.6lt hydroplane class was also on show and it was the Toyota 86 machine of Harrison racing that took the win.

The 152km/h class was a huge crowd pleaser with gunnel to gunnel action across the field. It’s a new category and has proven very popular with both inboard and outboard boats competing together.

Another highlight of the weekend was the inclusion of the open water event held each afternoon. The 12-boat field was challenged by the afternoon breezes with the six kilometre course proving very tough. The field was mixed and at the very top was the jaw-dropping Team 3, a race-built Victory cat.

The 43 ft boat, powered by twin 525hp racing engines, was truly a remarkable sight as it leapt clear of the water making its way around the course. The crew on board consists of pilot and throttleman, Steve Jelick and John Shand, the reigning New Zealand champions, and they put on an absolute show for the crowd.

The 30-minute marathon races saw competitors in coota craft half cabin boats, bullet ski race boats, open cockpit offshore racers and two of the supercat 600hp class in TCR and Saracen.

These two were at battle throughout the weekend with one race going each way in the end.

Powerboat Racing, like all forms of motorsport, is not without risk and for Zol Gore and Mark Swain, it was to end in spectacular fashion.

They were 25 minutes into the race and had not put a foot wrong when tragedy struck and the big 400hp stealth cat launched into the air on an unusually large wave.

In what must have been the perfect storm, a wind gust then caught the boat and Casey Earthworks was over in a spectacular shower of foam and spray.

The crowd leapt to their feet in stunned silence, and broke into spontaneous applause when it was immediately apparent that the crew had swum clear and were in the hands of the rescue crews.

Zol and Mark were treated by the medical team at the scene and referred on with only minor injuries; the same cannot be said for the beautiful machine. “In any form of competitive sport there is risk involved, be it football, motocross, horse riding or motor racing,” Australian Power Boat Association representative, Andrew Murphy, said.

“The challenge is minimising those risks and the association has done a great deal of work in this area. Rescue team and competitor training on what to do in case of an incident, safety equipment and the design of boats have come along light years in recent times, and like many sports, the risks have been reduced dramatically.

“The sport has never been safer. I would like to congratulate all the crews involved for their textbook response and the desired outcome was achieved. The only thing hurt in this incident is the pride of the crew and, unfortunately Zol’s beautiful boat, but he certainly will be back.

“The crowd loves to see the action, and the bangs and crashes always make the highlight reel. I am glad that we could put on such a great show for all the spectators that have attended; we have truly seen some wonderful racing this weekend.”

For the many locals and visitors alike, it was a true spectacle. The food vendors and jumping castles really added to the carnival atmosphere, which highlighted the wonderful waterways and assets in the Gippsland Lakes.

IMAGE: Aquamagic reaches top speed during East Gippsland Power Boat Club’s Paynesville Gold Cup on Sunday. The event was held over the weekend with a large crowd lining the Paynesville foreshore to watch powerboats from a variety of classes reach speeds of more than 200 kilometres per hour.