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‘Stock car racing on the water comes to Jacksonville’. ‘Thousands pack down-town for Saturday’s events’. ‘The most highly anticipated day of events in Jacksonville finally arrived Saturday’. These were just some of the headlines that appeared in the local media as P1 prepared to return powerboat racing to the St. Johns River for the first time in more than 30 years. A fleet of ten P1 Panther race boats and thirty personal watercraft took to the water off Memo-rial Park to serve up a feast of free-to-watch sport and entertainment for local residents and visitors to enjoy.

Jacksonville is a leading venue for racing as it has all the right elements that P1 searches for when selecting host cities: a global reputation as a sport-ing city, a strong local community and the beautiful natural resource of the St. Johns River. Mayor Alvin Brown was excited to have P1 join the city’s top class events line-up: “This is great for the city and it is our intention to make this a regular event and give the people of Jacksonville more events that provide the city with international exposure and a significant local economic impact.”

P1 Visits Jacksonville…And Everyone Loves It

P1 chief executive James Durbin commented: “From the very first discus-sions with Mayor Alvin Brown about bringing P1 to Jacksonville, the people of the city have been wonderfully welcoming. We believe that this event is a true partnership and we want to work together to continually improve it year on year. Along with Mayor Brown and his team, our special thanks go to the TDC, Sports Commission of Jacksonville and the Omni Hotel for making this Grand Prix of the Sea possible.”

Thousands of spectators flocked to Memorial Park on Saturday and Sunday to watch the highly anticipated double bill of powerboat and jet ski racing…and they were not disappointed. The P1 SuperStock boats had some rough water to contend with on both days and it was the experienced racers who managed the conditions best. CL-Alpha (Gene and Paula Weeks of Ft. Lauderdale, pictured above) claimed the top spot on the podium with consistent racing all week-end. Paula described the action: “It was close, competitive racing with a little bit of bumping and grinding but everything came out just fine and I’m ready to do it

all over again”. The remaining places on the podium were filled by Lee Baker and Sandy Kenigsman in Space Coast and Andy Biddle and Tracy Blumenstein of Team Pro Boat.

The Visit Jacksonville boat campaigned by father-and-son team Bill and Justin Belz fought hard over the weekend with two 4th place finishes and the fastest lap in the final race. Justin said: “I lived in Jacksonville for a year so it’s a bit of a home town for me. It’s great to have the whole city cheering us on. It gives us the ambition to do as well as we can – we’ve got a lot of people count-ing on us”. His father commented: “It’s so exciting to be here with my son. To be able to do this is an super opportunity and as a Florida resident representing Jax is very special to me as well.”

The Aquax jetski racing also produced some fast and furious action. The 300 class produced a fantastic battle between championship leader Eric Francis and his Kawasaki team mate Anya Colley (UK). They continually exchanged positions in second and third place, but it was Stuart

RESULTSROUND-UP

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

CL-ALPHA.COM

SPACE COAST

TEAM PRO BOAT

S’EASTERN LIGHTING SOLUTIONS

GD ENVIRONMENTAL

FLORIDA NATIONAL GUARD

VISIT JACKSONVILLE

LYCAMOBILE RACING TEAM

BOATWRENCH

60 PTS

58 PTS

57 PTS

57 PTS

56 PTS

52 PTS

52 PTS

50 PTS

42 PTS

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Kelly Belval

Rob Greenwald

Scott Reeves

Jason Maxson

Justin Mack

57 PTS

54 PTS

45 PTS

42 PTS

38 PTS

200 CLASS - TOP 5

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Eric Lagopoulos

Sean Hagen

Tim McKercher

Alex Holguin

Ken Moore

60 PTS

51 PTS

45 PTS

41 PTS

40 PTS

250 CLASS - TOP 5

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Stuart Rasmussen

Eric Francis

Anya Colley

Jason Russo

Blaine Spooner

54 PTS

54 PTS

47 PTS

39 PTS

39 PTS

300 CLASS - TOP 5

Above: The father-and-son pairing of Bill and Justin Belz put the home town boat through its paces on the St. Johns River

Above: Eric Lagopoulos (Sea-doo GTR #361) and Stuart Rasmussen (Kawasaki 310R #222) celebrate victory in the 250hp and 300hp classes respectively.

Rasmussen who took the honors to extend his lead in the championship and secure valuable World Ranking points. Eric Lagopolous dominated the 250 class yet again with another clean sweep. Sean Hagen finished in second place and Tim McKercher rounded out the top three to give Seadoo all three 250 class podium places. Hagen also claimed the top rookie spot for the weekend. Yamaha dominated the 200 class with Kelly Belval just pipping Rob Greenwald for first place.

P1 championship manager Azam Rangoonwala said: “The positive feedback we’ve received from people here in Jacksonville has been over-whelming. They are so pleased that we have brought this event to the city and we can’t wait to come back next year and make it bigger and better.”

The next stop for the P1 racers and riders will be in Tampa on July 12 and 13.

JACKSONVILLE TEAM PROFILE‘Visit Jacksonville’ it says proudly on the side of the powerboat and that’s exactly what a young Justin Belz did. Now he’s at the wheel of the city’s very own race boat with his father Bill alongside him in the cockpit. The father and son pairing are new to P1 SuperStock racing this season but Bill, who lives in Titusville and works in marine services and sales, has some boat racing experience.

Now based in New Jersey as a boat dealer and underwater welder, Justin lived in Jacksonville when undertaking his dive training and is keen to do a good job for his adopted home town in this year’s race series.

JACKSONVILLE ON THE GLOBAL STAGEMedia and broadcast relationships play a key role in building P1’s international presence and in delivering significant exposure for host venues such as Jacksonville as well as commercial partners. In the USA all the P1 race action will be broadcast in 24 half-hour weekly TV programmes through to October on MavTV and Fox Sports Florida, reaching over 40 million homes. MavTV is available on the largest satellite platform in the country and is a network with its roots deep in the automotive world.

Internationally, P1 continues to deliver extensive broadcast distribution with more than 50 countries airing all the programmes on major network channels, including ESPN, Ten Sports, Star Sports and Fox Sports.

In addition, race venues receive considerable press and online coverage through P1’s comprehensive PR and media relations programme. The Jacksonville Grand Prix of the Sea is scheduled to be screened on July 1(P1 SuperStock) and on July 6 (P1 AquaX).

GOING GREEN IN JACKSONVILLEP1 Marine Foundation partnered with St Johns Riverkeeper and Jacksonville University Marine Science Research Institute to promote their research and the local wildlife to the general public at the P1 race village. As part of this a booklet called ‘On the water guide to protecting our rivers and coasts’ was developed and handed out.

The Foundation also engaged with local schools through a lesson plan where students were asked to create a poster of an Eco Superhero and how it would encourage spectators to be aware of the environment at a Powerboat P1 event. The top two winners were announced on 8th June, World Oceans Day, and received a special P1 goodie bag as a prize.

Spectators were invited to join and celebrate World Oceans Day by taking a ‘Selfie for the Sea’ and sharing one thing they would do to protect the ocean.

CITY WELCOMES P1P1 chose Jacksonville to launch its race season in the USA at the end of April and the occasion provided the opportunity to preview the city’s own Grand Prix of the Sea. At a special event at The Landing, on the north bank of the St. Johns River, plans were announced for the 6-venue season and the ‘Visit Jacksonville’ race boat was unveiled. Flanked by AquaX riders and carrying presentation flags, the Jacksonville powerboat and its crew crossed the river to be greeted by Mayor Alvin Brown who told guests and the local media that the 2014 season would serve up a feast of fast and furious action at a total of 12 events on both sides of the Atlantic.

P1 AQUAX WORLD RANKINGSUK riders fill the top three places in the P1 AquaX World Rankings powered by Lycamobile that were launched at the end of April. More than 100 racers from the USA and UK who have competed in at least four AquaX races qualified to be officially ranked in the new system.

The new World Rankings are a reflection of the growing interest in the AquaX race series on both sides of the Atlantic and the rising number of competitors. The listing has created huge interest and sparked considerable debate amongst racers and fans alike. The criteria include the number and quality of competitors in any given race, the sea conditions, how recently the points were accrued and, of course, finishing position in the race.

The coveted world number 1 spot is currently held by Dave Huddleston (right) of the UK. The battle to top the rankings at the end of the season will climax in Florida in September when the successful rider will be presented with the Lycamobile race vest for the 2015 season and an XperiaZ waterproof phone from associate sponsor Sony.

10 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT POWERBOAT P1

Powerboat P1 began racing in 2003Since then it has raced in 17 countries on 3 continents, clocking up more than 200 race eventsIn 2010, P1 launched the one-design SuperStock series with the P1 Panther race boatMore than 20 teams compete in the UK and USA seriesThe state-of-the art P1 race and leisure boats are built in Deland, FloridaP1 controls all the championship’s commercial properties – from boat production through to the podiumsP1 AquaX jet-ski racing runs alongside the powerboat action and was launched in the UK in 2011 and in the USA last yearThis year P1 will race at 12 venues in the UK and USA and attract 300,000 live spectators P1 race action is enjoyed by TV audiences in more than 50 countriesThe world’s leading jetski manufacturers - Kawasaki, Sea-Doo and Yamaha - all compete in the P1 AquaX championship

2014 P1 INTERNATIONAL RACE CALENDARDaytona, Florida – 26/27 AprilStuart, Florida – 17/18 MayBournemouth, Dorset – 31 May/1 JuneJacksonville, Florida – 7/8 June Hull, Yorkshire – 21/22 JuneTampa, Florida – 12/13 JulyCardiff, Wales – 26/27 JulyTorquay, Devon – 9/10 AugustCocoa Beach, Florida – 23/24 AugustGosport, Hampshire – 6/7 September St Cloud, Florida – 20/21 September

© 2014 Powerboat P1 USA2320 Clark Street, Suite A1-3 Apopka, FL 32703 USA

“P1 racing is great for the city and it is our intention to make it a regular feature and give the people of Jacksonville more events that provide international exposure and deliver significant local economic impact.”

Alvin BrownMayor of Jacksonville

Find out more online at these websites: powerboatp1.com p1superstock.com p1aquax.com