RaceR’sEdgE

The official Ski Racing Australia publication

SEASON2016 - 2017

July 2016

MAJOr EvENtS PrEviEwPArt ii

https://www.instagram.com/aus_ski_racing/

Directors Deck..................................6

New season preview.......................10

Barrie Beehag..........................12

SA River Race...........................14

Bridge to Bridge 2UP.............16

Aussie Titles.............................18

5 people to watch..........................20

5 Minutes with Mick........................21

iN thiS iSSuE

O c t O b e r 2 0 1 6

N O v e m b e r 2 0 1 6

J a N u a r y 2 0 1 7

F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 7

m a r c h 2 0 1 7

a p r i l 2 0 1 7

m a y 2 0 1 7

iN thiS iSSuE MAJOr EvENtS 2016/17a u G u S t 2 0 1 6

hawkeSbury 120, NSw.....................................auGuSt 27-28

GraFtON bridGe tO bridGe, NSw...........................OctOber 1-2barrie beehaG, vic..............................................OctOber 15Sa river race, Sa..........................................OctOber 29-30

ted hurley memOrial claSSic...........................NOvember 12-13bridGe tO bridGe 2up, NSw............................NOvember 26-27

auStraliaN champiONShipS, NSw.......................JaNuary 11-15

SOutherN 80, vic...........................................February 11-12

rObiNvale/euStON Ski race, vic...........................march 11-12

mildura 100, vic................................................april 15-16

barry carNe iNterState challeNGe, NSw..................may 13-14

With a new CEO in town ahead of the new ski racing season, we took 10 minutes to find out a little more about Wes Lloyd, who he is and where he has come from. We’ll be hearing more from him monthly in Directors Deck begin-ning in August.

Question: Who is Wes Lloyd?

Wes Lloyd: I come from a large trade family, all plumbers. However I was dif-ferent and strayed from the family trade. I found myself finding work in the emergen-cy services aviation sector, specifically in search and rescue. That really led to a passion in safety and risk management, which in turn took me into the corporate sector with a focus on safety roles.

Over the years I have worked on signifi-

cant projects, specifically with the Austra-lian Grand Prix Corporation and now we are here.

Q: Is there a bit of water skiing some-where in that background?

WL: We were always massively into sport, as kids we were into our footy and cricket and that hasn’t changed, but you’re right there was water sport involved too. The whole family loved skiing and we did it socially. I think I was able to stand up by the age of five. These days the boat has been replaced with a horse float for my daughter.

Having a love for the water and skiing makes me really excited to be working with ski racing now, it has all sort of come full circle. This is a large sport, a great group of people and I hope to help every-one move forward.

Q: Safety management is a big thing for you, what have you done previously in this area?

WL: While this is my background, I want to stress that in my role with SRA, it is just one facet of what I will do, but of course it is something I do have experience in.

My career has included some interesting projects, which included everything from running the risk and insurance processes around the Formula 1 cars for the Aus-tralian Grand Prix, and the same for the bikes at the Australian MotoGP. I man-aged contractors and made sure they all met safety requirements and there were more specific areas within that.

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DirEctOrS DEckMeet Wes LLoyd, sRA Ceo

One particular highlight was working with Mercedes-Benz Australia to set up the risk and safety for their drive days. They started in Bathurst and continued to Al-bert Park in Victoria.

Q: You’re no stranger to fast vehicles and now it’s boats, not cars. Do you see much difference in the approach to the racing of the two?

WL: There’s a big difference. Cars are raced on a purpose built track with large walls and safety barriers, boats and skiers race on large waterways, be it protected, bay or ocean. That is a different physical realm to be racing in.

The similarities can be drawn in the roles and processes that you need to go through with race organising and safe-ty. Motorsport and water sport also both rely on volunteers and I have a history of working with them, and that will be a major focus. The key to ensuring that we do the best by our volunteers is to offer appropriate education, communicate with them and moreover show them the re-spect that they deserve. That last point is paramount.

Q: After your brief time heading up the sport so far, what is your take on Ski Rac-ing?

WL: I am pleasantly surprised at the amazing level of enthusiasm that all the participants have, whether they be volun-teers or competitors. This is a major factor that the sport has going for it.

I haven’t been to a race before, but friends have done them and relatives have watched them and I hear nothing but good things.

Q: Where do you see yourself taking this sport?

WL: A key aim is to increase the revenue by increasing membership. That means

we need to put the members first, explore sponsorship opportunities on both a small and large scale.

I want to see if we can get the sport more recognition too. It is a huge sport (mem-bership wise), it’s colourful, makes a lot of noise. It may not be spectator friendly, but that hasn’t stopped people from showing up.

So we want to capture some marketability to be a mainstream water sport in Austra-lia. At the extreme end of things you see large engines, boats at full speed and the entire colour of it all. At the other end there are those in the beginner phases of their time participating in the sport and learning the ins and outs of high-powered boats. Of course, it is great to see young kids enjoying this sport.

Q: We have a passionate member base, what can they expect from you?

WL: Solid consideration and support in the administration of the sport and the organisation of events, in short.

Expanding on that, the aim is to solidly support our members and organising volunteers, and help bring people back to the sport and into the sport for the first time.

We need to facilitate programs to enable people to return to the sport and rekindle their passion, or introduce new people to the excitement of it all.

Moreover, I want to ensure that every possible opportunity for new avenues and venues for ski racing are explored. It’s imperative to grow this sport, while also continuing to support what we already have.

Q: What’s the fastest speed you have ever gone in a car? What about a boat?

WL: A very scary 100mp/h and back to

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60mp/h in an old Holden would be up there. In a boat, it was actually with one of my father’s friends who loved to say he was 68-years-old and that his boat would do 72mp/h. It was a magnificent boat and pulled my arms out of their sockets very quickly. I guess that sort of speed puts me in one of our race classes!

I’ve also been lucky enough to work at high speed with search and rescue heli-copters, which had a flat out speed of 165 Knots. That was part of the thrill of that job, and often the high speed was safer than when we were over water at a lower speed.

Q. Who’s going to win the Southern 80?

WL: The best-prepared team.

…Diplomatic.

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It may only be July, but lurking in the depths of winter is a new season that promises to be nothing short of outstand-ing with 11 key events taking place be-tween late August 2016 and May 2017.

While the upcoming season is as import-ant as any other for competitors to notch up victories, it will also precede the next iteration of the World Waterski Racing Championships to be held in Seattle, Washington from July 26 to August 6, 2017. With the lure of world titles on the

line, expect the standard of skiing for our season to step up another level.

The 2016/17 calendar will again be high-lighted by the Australian river classics season, with Australia’s most well-known event, the Southern 80 again being the centrepiece and race that everyone wants to win.

Joining the great race on the mighty Mur-ray River are the Robinvale/Euston and Mildura 100 events, while early in the

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SEASON2016 - 2017

season the Ted Hurley Memorial Classic and Barrie Beehag will remain among favoured events for competitors.

Of note is the reinstatement of the Grafton Bridge to Bridge event in early October, while at the end of that same month is the South Australian River Race, the only race in South Australia.

With the beginning of major events just a short time away, take a look at each of the major events in detail with insight from our own columnist, world champion observ-

er and former winner of the Southern 80, Mick Kelly.

After covering the first three events last edition, we’re looking at the next four. Note that since last edition there has been an update, with the Ted Hurley Memori-al Classic moving to November, with the Barrie Beehag coming forward to Oc-tober. We preview the former this time around, after doing the latter in the June edition of Racer’s Edge.

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MAJOr EvENtS

PrEviEwPArt ii

On the Australian motor racing scene the Bathurst 12 hour race is considered by some as a good chance to race at ‘The Mountain’ for the first time if you harbour intentions of racing in the iconic Bathurst 1000. In cycling those hoping to win the world renowned Tour de France line up for the Criterium du Dauphine in the month preceding the July epic that runs for 23 days.

In ski racing, if you want to try and find an edge for the Southern 80, you race the Barrie Beehag.

This race is considered a good prepa-ration for February’s iconic Southern 80 and in 2015, the tenth edition of the event didn’t disappoint as some of the strongest teams dipped their toes in the water.

Leading the charge to victory in 2015 was Tim Pickford (driver), Chris Gelle (ob-server), Lloyd Woolman and Ben Gulley (skiers) on board Blazen, which was the

first weekend the team had run the boat. It was a great start for the new rig, which would go on to be a Southern 80 favourite and then winner of the Mildura 100 at the end of last season.

Following in behind in second place was 99 Psycho Clowns with emerging driv-er Jessica Pearse behind the wheel, the result firming up that team’s standing for the 80.

Claiming third place was The Mistress, who would be the eventual winners of the Southern 80. Perhaps it was the Beehag where that run to victory really started to gain momentum?

Last year there was an outstanding turn-out of 117 boats, with a mighty 112 com-pleting the race. No doubt event organ-isers will be hoping to equal or better that in 2016!

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e v e N t 0 3 b a r r i e b e e h a G

Location: Torrumbarry, VIC 2015 WINNER: Blazen2016 Race: October 15

2 0 1 5 S u m m a r y

Some people may hate me for saying this, but…for some Queensland teams it is hard to justify going this far for a one-day race. But then again it is the only South-ern 80 prep you get, so you always go!

Essentially it is a shorter and faster South-ern 80, it’s a chance to test things for that race and get your team prepared, even a few months out.

I’ve had a fair bit of success there and anytime you get to burn up that section of the Murray River is a good time. People would still go if it was just one leg, not a return race – it is seriously that much fun being on the water there. The enthusiasm people have for this race is probably indicative of the enthusiasm for Echuca in general. The corners and width of the river is fantastic and it keeps you on your toes. There is nothing else like it anywhere in the world. You can nev-er substitute this race.

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m i c k S a y S

(PIC: Blazen won the Barrie Beehag & transformed into Sap-phire for the Southern 80 a few months later)

The traditional Berri 90 transformed into the Berri 140 for 2015, and despite a rebrand, a fantastic format change and plenty of positives for potential entrants, the outcome of the event was the same as the year prior, cancellation.

Poor entries meant the race was deemed unviable. With a new year on the horizon, it is hoped that a race in South Australia takes place, because it is simply a great oppor-tunity to race in a town that really gets behind their event!

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e v e N t 0 4 S a r i v e r r a c e Location: South Australia2015 WINNER: N/A2016 Race: October 29-30

2 0 1 5 S u m m a r y

South Australian events have always been good, the scenery is different and the wa-ter is really unique and in the past when there has been the format of running laps it has been great because it brought it back to being a real skiers race.

I guess the thing that has worked against events in this state is that it is hard to get to. There is so much racing in the eastern states, so it is a hard sell to get people there when you have racing on your door-step.

It is a bit of a shame; it’s a great bit of riv-er down there.

In saying that, often I find that once you’re on a plane it doesn’t matter where you are going. I think it’s a good race for some-thing different. It’s a race where you can blast a smooth lap, but like Grafton need to deal with wash and really manage your race.

This is another race where there is truly a great community feel. Everyone is there and you realise how good it is to be wel-comed into a community, and race and hang out as mates.

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m i c k S a y S

When you win the Sydney Bridge to Bridge, you’ve won a race that people all over the world have travelled to try and tame at one point or another. In 2015, as it was in 2014, a few local NSW boys by the name of Daniel Cotton and Daniel Graziano won it, notching up their second victory at the race, as well as their second victory of the season following the Ted Hurley.

Skiing behind Superman with Darren McGuire at the helm and Brett Armstrong in the observers seat, the NSW duo and their team repeated their performance from the year before in a race result that was more or less a forgone conclusion by the half way point, save for any sort of mechanical failure or error from the team.

It is a herculean effort to finish this 112-ki-lometre race, let alone win it. For Graziano a second victory meant he moved within one victory of his brother Jamie, and one win ahead of his sister Tracey, who re-

mains the only woman to have won the race since it’s inaugural year in 1961.

Last year Superman cleared the pack by 1 minute and 39 seconds with Merc Force holding off Stinga to claim second. In un-limited The Mistress claimed top honours, as they added another strong result to their season.

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e v e N t 0 6 b r i d G e t O b r i d G e 2 u pLocation: Windsor, NSW2015 WINNER: Superman2016 Race: November 26-27

2 0 1 5 S u m m a r y

It’s a pain in the bum of a race…ok, I guess not, but this is a hard race. You need to be smart and safe, especially if you are in a limited class. It can be all over if you get stuck behind another team.

For a lot of people, particularly in the Sydney region, this is the biggest race in the world and it has the name and history to follow it. When you ski here it is a very cool feeling to come into the finish line, which is like an amphitheatre with every-one lining the banks. It’s an impressive race to have under your belt.

Over the years I have seen people win this from pole one or 10, and really if you know how to push through rough water, it shouldn’t matter too much where you start, but there can be a lot of unpredict-ability in the swell. It’s a bit about running your own race here too. There are lots of tactics at play and off the start I have seen occasions where the two boats at the front burn themselves out too quickly.

In this race there are a number of compo-nents. Over the first 10 kilometres through the bridges it is a good chance to show off pure skiing talent. It isn’t smooth and flat and fast like the rest of the river, so it promotes good skiing.

As you go along there are plenty of land-marks, which help some skiers and a smart team can segment the race. A little local knowledge also goes a long way if you know the right lines, so it is great for NSW based skiers.

At the end of the day, a crew that has a few all-rounders will do well. You can’t just be a smooth water specialist, you need a crew that knows what’s up, you need to know how not to lose it, the complete package.

To me there are four major races in the world, the Diamond Race, Catalina, Syd-ney Bridge to Bridge and Southern 80. Winning in Sydney is BIG.

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For the first time ever the Australian Titles went to Bundaberg in Queensland, Sandy Hook Ski Club working with Ski Racing Queensland to put on the event.

Rainy weather had threatened to inter-vene in the days leading into racing, how-ever by day one the sun was out and hot weather reigned for the opening of the competition.

As with all Australian championships there were plenty of standout results, among them was the huge effort by Rev-olution Racing to steer skier Brock McMil-lan to victory in the marathon event. His father David was driving, Jason Campbell observing. Also producing good form was Shantelle King in the women’s event as she relied on Burnin and driver Travis Stone with James King observing to claim the win.

As the event continued, so did the good results and a few familiar faces were

achieving them. 99 Psycho Clowns banked another strong race with Ashley Herwin on the skis, Jess Pearse driving and Daniel McMahon observing. Not long after our very own Mick Kelly pieced to-gether a victory behind the Merc Force driven Trent Souwer, Kevin Boylan ob-serving.

Pleasingly for the Gulley family, Gerry and son Ben pieced together victory in the men’s event, slowly edging out Stone and the Burnin team who had eyed off a the double of the men and women’s event.

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Location: Jindabyne, NSW2015 WINNER: Various2016 Race: January 11-15

2 0 1 5 S u m m a r y

It’s always big to be on the Aussie Titles stage. It’s one of those things that used to be state versus state event. Over the past few years the numbers have thinned, but even then if you want to win here you need to bring your A-Game, there is no doubt about that.

I think this year we may see a few more people getting involved with a world championships on the horizon. Nothing beats time on the water, no matter how much gym work you do, time on water is golden.

There will be a lot of people will be knock-ing on doors with their results and a lot of teams will be showing up and working together. It isn’t an event where you can just rock up and have an easy race, so it comes at the perfect time of year to show up and push yourself around and show what you have.

This year the champs are in Jindabyne,

it is nice with a massive lake there. Like a lot of places it has a bit of a village feel, which is good because it is a little bit of a hike from everywhere, unless you’re in NSW or Victoria. It will be a great time to be there for skiing and it always very cool to be able to call yourself an Aussie champ.

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Images credit: Shaun Williams

Kristofer KnightsThis guy can ski! I think people are probably on top of it by now, but I think previously he has been underrated. Back when he was in unlimited he was doing mind boggling times and not much notice was taken. He returned to skiing at the Barry Carne after injury reallly well.

Murrumbidgee MadnessI know they’re good blokes and always turn up and have a shot, and that is the real essence of racing. You need to take what you’ve got and have fun with it. If you’re competitive, even bet-ter!

Raymond BallA confident skier, and knows what he wants and so has aligned himself with a team that can provide him with what he wants. He can be outspoken, but that is more his coming of age where he is going from being just Ray, to a guy helping out. He has great intentions and it is hard to fault him. overall, he’s fast.

Ellen JonesShe is one of the fittest females in the world for her age, she is technically near perfect on the skis and that is a potent combi-nation, how do you go wrong? She’s young and part of a tribe of females coming through. Be warned, she does not run out of fitness!

Burnin’Travis Stone has arguably one of the fastest boats out there, it’s originally from Noel Griffen Racing and not much has changed these guys have potential, and could be competitive. Trav has been around for a long time, but has only been at the pointy end for a short while.

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Meet Mick kelly

A world champion observer, former winner of the Southern 80, top racer, menter to newcomers - at time outspo-ken (but always with good intentions) - mick’s always up for for a chat!

In each edition of Racer’s Edge, Mick puts one of our members under the spotlight for an in-depth chat. They’re not always famous, nor prolific win-ners, but each person is committed and loves the sport...that’s what turns Mick on.

Sit down, have a breather and spend 5 Minutes, With Mick!

Name: Travis StoneAge: 43Years Skiing: 36Years Racing: Got introduced/involved with Lenny Retallick (Cinders) when I was 13 years old and owned my first race boat at 31Team: Burnin’Favourite Race: Ted Hurley Memorial Classic WentworthFavourite other crew/skier/driver: The Mistress - Leo Welch (Good bloke great for the sport)

Mick Kelly: Righto, so let’s start with the obvious – you picked yourself up a pretty sweet ride the other year – just how good a bit of gear is the red boat?

Travis Stone: No Words can explain the horsepower and how this boat handle’s until you site in the Driver’s Seat MK: I still feel like I haven’t driven/sat in a better handling bit of gear – did you change anything, or is it still how you got it?

TS: Bernard Simpson has given it a cou-ple of small tweaks to suit my driving but Noel Griffin Racing put a lot of develop-ment into it prior.

MK: It won the worlds – going to buy yourself a river boat as well?? ☺

TS: The budget won’t allow another boat in the shed…yet.

MK: You were a part of Noel Griffin’s crew for a long time before purchasing the boat. Were you just feeling out the equip-ment, or was it more an apprenticeship?

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5 MiNutESWith MiCk!

TS: I had no intentions of buying a boat while with Noel Griffin Racing; it was just a great team to be part of over all those years. MK: Unlimited has to be one of the hard-est classes to get skiers and be competi-tive, how you going with it?

TS: I found it fairly good for the first three years, but you’re right the cream of the crop in skiing ability for unlimited is limit-ed. MK: Have you picked yourself up a gun team for next season – or is that top se-cret?

TS: We’ve Locked In Cameron Mitchell (Ommpa) and we’re still waiting for a re-turn phone call from a Michael Kelly

MK: Nah – that dude’s old and cr@p!!! (Seriously – let’s talk though…Ooomp and I go alright as a team!) I heard there is a ‘facelift’ coming up for the red girl – new stickers or what?

TS: You heard right Micko! It’s just a small couple of changes and they should be revealed for the

MK: Sick! Can’t wait to see the big girl. What’s your take on racing at the moment across Australia?

TS: Our sport is definitely still developing and it’s great to see we are all looking at the safety aspect a lot more for the future of our sport. MK: You’re a Grafton local, so obvious-ly the last few years of ‘change’ with the bridge to bridge must be a point of focus. Without upsetting anyone (or do it – what-ever), what’s your take on it, and where to for Grafton Bridge?

TS: I love racing on the Clarence River.

It has got so much more potential to offer and I would love to see more racing up this way. Let’s leave it at that!

MK: Well handled. You run the beautiful Big River Holiday & Ski Park down there – how long till you need to widen the roads? A Nautique drove past at the Qld titles that was dead set the size of a B double – good for fuel sales no doubt, but how do these giant boats effect the skiing down there?

TS: The big boats come and go, not only is it our job running the Holiday Park, we try to keep the calm between wakeboard-ers, skiers and land owners on the water, which is a full time job in itself.

MK: You have Bernie Simpson sitting in the boat with you as observer, and while he doesn’t say a lot, he’d have to be one of the most knowledgeable and depend-able people in ski racing, how much confidence does he give you out on the water?

TS: There’s no way I could run this team without Simmo! He brings a lot of calm to the team and has put a lot of time and development into the Noel Griffin Racing boats. MK: Just how quick can you get the boat off the line – you’re not bad at snapping gears!

TS: I’m looking at a getting a quicker trip pump to get out even faster! The feeling of pushing that throttle down into first and hitting second gear is awesome. These transmissions have been set up to take the 1850+ horsepower we’ve got!

MK: Can vouch for that!! Wwww-waaaaaaapusssssshhhhhhhh!

Reckon you could beat Ultra Trouble Maker in a 100m sprint?

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TS: I say I’d win, he’d say he’d win, right? But I would like to have a rear view mirror fitted for it! MK: You’ve got to be sitting in arguably one of the fastest race boats on the wa-ter – does the safety aspect ever concern you?

TS: The setup of this boat is a proven thing, and I have no doubt at all about the safety aspects considering the speed in the boat. I describe my first Thuger like a Mini with a big block in it. In comparison, Burnin’ is like being like a Ferrari, it’s a great boat to drive. MK: You have developed a pretty good team with Shantelle King in the past few years, is the red boat looking at doing another worlds campaign?

TS: I absolutely love Towing Shantelle King! She is a great Girl and we’re incred-ibly proud of her. It would be great to put her through a worlds campaign; you nev-er know what’s around the corner. MK: Anything else we should discuss?

TS: With all your pull Micko any chance you can change SRA to one up racing so I don’t have to look for another skier like every other second Team at the moment. (Mexican Stand Off at

MK: My pull is exactly zero – but if any-one is reading this…. TS: One more thing...The safety aspects of one up racing in my opinion (A definite SRA should look at):• Observer is 100% focused on 1 Skier

only• The Skier is 100% focused on his own

ability • It’s hard to get two skiers with the

same ability

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July 2016