Shelter View Jet Sprint Park

Wow and we have a World Class photographer here at our track! 🤩.. congratulations Jeremy Ward

PENULTIMATE ROUND SHOWDOWN!

Non-stop racing and close finishes made Round 5 of the NZ Jetsprint Championship at Shelter View an exciting day for fans. Sam Newdick set the pace in the Superboats, while other classes saw plenty of action and tight battles.

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Congratulations to all the podiums winners in the weekend! 🏁🚤🥇🥈🥉

Shelter View Jet Sprints Thrill the Crowd

Non-stop action and nail-biting finals thrilled spectators at the Shelter View Jetsprints on Sunday the 1st of March.

Forty-one race teams fronted up for the CRV Equipment Round 5 of the NZ Jetsprint Championship at Shelter View Jet Sprint Park near Whanganui. Racing started early under a picture perfect sky, fine and warm with some cloud. By mid-morning the meeting was looking good, with plenty of racing and no significant crashes.

Leading up to the Southern Jet Superboats final, points leaders Sam Newdick and (navigator) Shama Putaranui recorded five consecutive sub 46 second runs, while everyone else was very happy to complete the course in less than 48 seconds. In the final, Mike Hessell and (navigator) Shaun White were looking strong until they lost power and ran aground. Still, they were not complaining about finishing in third place. Next out, Simon and Sarah Gibbon used every inch of water on their way to a super aggressive 47.290 second elapsed time. Then came Newdick and Putaranui, stunning onlookers with a confident 44.289 second ET: More than 2 seconds quicker than anyone, in any class, achieved on the day.

Four teams dominated Group A, however mechanical trouble forced Kris Rasmussen and (navigator) Holly Sutherland to retire after a great performance in the first (nine-boat) elimination round. In the final, Ross Travers and Jackie Hawker took third place with a very smooth 48.215. Also smooth, and ferocious to boot, Matt Hareb and Hayden George put 46.965 on the clock. Defending champions Ollie Silverton and Amanda Kittow, with a brand-new hull, vanquished Hareb and George with a tidy and very tight 46.257 second ET.

MTW LS Class delivered a nail-biting re-run of the previous final at Taranaki, with Paddy and Jay Haden set to race two separate teams sharing boat number 67. First out of the starting pool was Jackson Hopkins, taking navigational advice from Dana Doyle. They clocked 49.718, only the second LS team to record a 49 second ET. Next out, Paddy and Jay Haden stamped another 49 on their timesheet: 49.603 to be precise. Dave Hopkins had won in Taranaki, but his son Jackson had not raced in the final due to an injury. Who would be quicker in boat number 67? Father or son? Driving smooth, tidy, and very noisily, Dave Hopkins and Shelley Radford stopped the clock at 49.975: Third place.
MTW Group B continues to deliver close exciting racing, dominated by the rivalry between equal points leaders Hamish Clarke (navigator Lisa Seator), and Gemma Johnson (with Richard Currie). In the final, they faced off against Andrew Craig and (navigator) Scott Gouman, who made a navigational error and finished third with a 1 minute 2 second final run. Clarke and Seator ran a faultless 53.343: their best time of the day. Johnson and Currie were poetry in (noisy) motion, faultlessly using every drop of water and stopping the clock at 52.261 seconds. Johnson now has three wins from five starts in her first season of championship jetsprinting.

The NextGen training programme continues to impress. Seven young drivers lapped a shortened course, sharing four purpose-built single-seaters. Quickest on the day were Summer Hareb, Ryan Patterson, and Cooper Silverton. Cooper’s 48.588 second ET earned him the right to fly the chequered flag for a victory lap, during which he showed off his passion for elegant muddy doughnuts.

According to NZ Jetsprint Association President Julia Murray, “We knew it would be challenging to fit 48 teams into one day with four qualifying rounds plus the Top 9, Top 6 and Top 3. We are pretty happy to achieve that! Everything fell into place. With good weather and very few crashes, we were able to keep things running smoothly. Great to once again have the podium placings mixed up. The final round is certainly going to be interesting!”

Racing continues with Professionals Real Estate Round 6, on Saturday the 21st of March 2026 at Mountain View Jetsprint Track, 382 Croydon Road, Stratford.

Well, that's a wrap for Shelter View Jetsprints for this season and so many people to thank ... from the racers who turn up and put on such an awesome show, the NZJSA and their Event Team who keep it running smoothly .. our Rescue Crew and the Waka Ama Club who assist them pushing the boats in (and also help with the car parking) ... the Shelter View Team and volunteers who helped get the track ready for the day (especially when we were trying to fix the flood damage on our property a couple of weeks before!) ... Dave in "Just a Beer at Dave's Shed" for feeding our workers and racers at prize giving and hosting some of our spectators on the hill ... our supporters who either sponsor us by putting signs up at the track, book a corporate site or just rock up through the gate on the day ... if we didn't have all of you people we couldn't put these events on so THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Also, a huge thank you to CRV Equipment for coming on board as the NZJSA sponsor for Round 5 of the NZ Championship.

Yeehaa .. its race day! .. and what a great day to be here! ☀️🚤🏁

Coming to the jetsprints tomorrow?
Not sure what to expect?
Well, here are a few tips for you:
We have 47 boats racing so we are starting a little earlier, around 8am!
*It is on a farm, so NO PETS are allowed (yes that includes your dog or puppy!)
*Being on a farm we also advise you to wear suitable footwear.
*We have eftpos at the gate.
*The pine trees have all gone! We have tried to remove all the pinecones and root systems from the trees but there may still be some around so please watch where you walk, some springs have also popped up so there may be some boggy patches on the bank.
*Bring a camp chair, groundsheet or blanket to sit on, the grass on the banks hasn't had a chance to grow properly yet so the banks don't have lush green grass to sit on!
*There are food carts here to purchase food from, but you are also welcome to bring a picnic.
*We have flushing toilets ... and a portaloo accessible by wheelchairs
* We don't mind you bringing umbrellas but please be mindful of blocking a view for people behind you.
*The safety tape around the fence is to keep you back for a good reason ... when a boat cuts out, they have no control, they have no brakes, and no steering so please stay back!
*You can purchase discounted tickets here: https://www.v8jetsprints.co.nz/tickets You save $$ and you won't have to wait in a big queue, but the online ticket special ends at 3am.
Hope that helps ... we would love to see you here in Wanganui ... so get your tickets now it's going to be a great day's racing! 😃🚤🏁🏁🏁

Tomorrow's the day at Shelter View Jet Sprint Park for round 5 of the NZ Jetsprint Championship brought to you by CRV Equipment!
Get your tickets here: https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/2026/2025-26-new-zealand-jetsprint-championship-round-5/whanganui

Head-to-head in the Group A Class Final at Wanganui and it was tight!
Matt Hareb and navigator Hayden George stopped the clock at 45.671sec, repeating their Round 1 victory.
They edged out the defending NZ, Australian & World Champions Ollie Silverton & Amanda Kittow on 46.153 sec

Head to head in the Group A Final at Wanganui and it was tight. Matt Hareb and navigator Hayden George stopped the clock at 45.671s, repeating their Round 1 victory. They edged out the defending NZ, Australian & World Champions Ollie Silverton and navigator Amanda Kittow on 46.153s.