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RACING EVENTS

*Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Events

11 - 13 July 2008 : Port Elizabeth (Inter-Regional)

The 2007/2008 season of the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series came to an end during the weekend of 20 to 22 July.
This inter regional competition was held at Kings Beach and the North End Lake in Port Elizabeth. Three regions, Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Inland took part in the competition.
After an eventful series, the Eastern Cape proved to be on top. Red Square was the main sponsor of the event and the series.
In the Wild Africa Cream Standard class three different teams won each of the three races.
The surf race was won by the Conti Crete team (Kyle Kolbe and Kevin Pattinson).
In the Axxess longhaul Eugene Vorster and Jacobus Taljaardt in the Wild Africa Cream boat had too much stamina for the rest of the competitors.
Nico Denner and Martin Grobler (Geosearch) won the circuit race.

Dylan Cloete and Pierre Du Preez (Fusion) won the surf race in the Ratsport Blueprint class. George van Balen and Nick Dodds in the Emerald Fire boat won the  Axxess longhaul. 
The Agriwire team, Steyn Basson and Jan Kriel, were first in the circuit race.

Johan Lodewyks and Bertie van Huysteen, in their Donadio boat, won all three races in the
Conti Crete Modified class.

Below the Eastern Province winning team.



For Photos from the event please go to : Ratshop
To download the Results click here

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20 - 21 June 2008 : Strand

The last WP Regional event in the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series, sponsored by Red Square and filmed for a SuperSport production by Rat Race Media was held in the Strand on 21 and 22 June 2008.  Facing the cold weather, light rain and freezing water temperatures, saw a relatively small number of competitors taking to the Strand Beach.
Saturday, 23 competitors took to the water in the three different classes, all ready to take on the surf in the last Western Province Surf Circuit of the season.  Flat-water conditions, with very little surf, awaited entrants, which made racing extremely fast and some close battles were fought in all classes.

Surf Circuit Winners:

Standard Class:  Luhan and Riaan Malan (Sponsor:  First Pump Seals)
Blueprint Class:  Hermann van Geems and Theo Rischbieter (Sponsor:  Ultrachem Chemicals/Strand Auto Spares)
Modified Class:  Johan Lodewyks and Bertie van Huyssteen (Sponsor:  Donadio Plant Hire)

On Sunday, 22 June, the final Longhaul on the season’s calendar started with 120km awaited 25 teams on a misty and yet again, very cold morning.  With no rain and very little wind predicted; good racing was expected.

The distance of 120km saw boats leaving from the Strand main beach passing close to Maccassar en route to Gordon’s Bay Harbour and return to the Strand beach.  Boats had to complete 6 of these laps.  With this being the final race of the season, some valuable WP points were up for grabs, with the final three positions in each class still up for grabs.  The 120km’s could be a make-or-brake event!

The weather did not play its part with light rain and misty conditions experienced.  It still made for a very fast, flat-water race, ensuring high-speed and record times achieved. 
The winners in the Longhaul event:

Standard Class:  Luhan and Riaan Malan (Sponsor:  First Pump Seals)
Blueprint Class:  Rocco Erasmus and Juan Meynhardt (Sponsor:  Kanu Wines)
Modified Class:  Johan Lodewyks and Bertie van Huyssteen (Sponsor:  Donadio Plant Hire)

A special thank you to the teams of Rat Race Media, Red Square as Main Sponsor of the event,  False Bay Inflatable Boat Club, Honda Marine (supply of Safety Rib) and Sales Hire (supply of scaffolding).

For Photos from the event please go to : Ratshop
To download the Results click here

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30 - 1 May/June 2008 : Gonubi (National)

The Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series took Gonubi (East London) by storm from the 30th of May until the 1st of June.

The longhaul took place on the first day of the competition. In the Ratsport Standard class Gordon Butler and Werner Muller in the Vertex / Elcazets boat were the first to complete the distance of 120km. In the Rat Race Media Blueprint class Stefan Lindeque and Tony Ingram (Aquarius Inflatables / Freestyle Watch Co) took the first place and Barry Marx and Stephan Hugo from Century Electrical / Nashua won the Modified class.

Two circuit races were completed on the Saturday and Sunday. Kyle Kolbe and Kevin Pattinson (Conticrete) won the first race in the Ratsport Standard class and the team from Caprica / Elvin Food & Beverages (Brendon Amaral and Chris Minnie) won the second race.

Stefan Lindeque and Tony Ingram (Aquarius Inflatables / Freestyle Watch Co) were too fast and furious for the other competitors in both Rat Race Media Blueprint class races.In the Modified class Micheal Hatting and Candice Pretorius from Aquarius Inflatables / Mtati Projects also won both races.

The next race in the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series will take place in Strand on the 20th and 21st of June.

For Photos from the event please go to : Ratshop
To download the Results click here

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26 - 27 April 2008 : Witbank (National)

ON THE weekend of the 26th to the 27th of April the fourth race in the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series, with Red Square as the main sponsor, was held at Witbank.

On the 26th of April two circuit races were held.  A total of 35 boats entered in the three different classes. In the Ratsport Standard class’ first race Gordon Butler and Werner Muller in the Vertex Alcazets boat were the overall winners.
In the second race Nico Denner and Gerhard Breed from the Geosearch team came first.

Johann Lodewyks and Bertie van Huysteen in the Donadio Plant Hire boat won the first and second race of the Jack Tarr Rum Modified class.

In the first race of The Ridge Casino Blueprint class Stefan Lindique and Candice Pretorius (Aquarius Freestyle Watch) were too fast for their competitors, and Jacques Turner and Mark Van Niekerk, in the SA Paving boat, won the second race.

The longhaul took place on the Sunday.  A total of 12 laps had to be completed which added to a total of 120km for the day.  18 Hardbottoms also entered the longhaul, and a total of boats on the Witbank Dam for the day was 53.

In the Ratsport Standard class Gordon Butler and Werner Muller in the Vertex Alcazets boat were the first team to cross the finish line. Johann Lodewyks and Bertie van Huysteen (Donadio Plant Hire) won the Jack Tarr Rum Modified class, and The Ridge Casino Blueprint class was won by Stefan Lindique and Candice Pretorius (Aquarius Freestyle Watch).

The next event in the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series will take place at Gonubi (East London) on the weekend of 30 May.  Red Square will once again be there with their very popular Reload, the non alcoholic beverage, to give the competitors that extra bit of energy they need to tackle the East Coast waters.

For Photos from the event please go to : Ratshop
To download the Results click here

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19 - 20 April 2008 : Quaggaskloof (Regional)

The third race in the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series was held at Quaggaskloof Dam on 19-20 April. A circuit race was held on Saturday, with a 130km longhaul on Sunday. The weather was less than ideal on the Saturday with strong winds blowing and the threat of rain keeping the spectators and land crews close to their gazebos or the closest fire.

The main sponsor of the Rat Race Media Inflatable Boat Racing Series, Red Square, supplied the racers with the much-needed non-alcoholic Reload energy drink.

On Saturday, although the wind made racing tricky, a total of 34 boats were present, so there was no lack of speed or excitement. Christo Nimb and Hanno Grobler of Plum Systems won the final of the More About Publishing & PR Standard class. In the LA Staal Blueprint class Steyn Basson and Jan Kriel took top honors in the Agriwire boat and in the Jack Tarr Rum Modified class Johann Lodewyks and Bertie van Huysteen emerged victoriously in the Donadio Plant Hire boat.

On Sunday the weather was perfect for racing and the 130km longhaul promised to be fast and furious. The boats flew over the water and when the checkered flag was dropped, Johann Lodewyks and Bertie van Huysteen again won the Jack Tarr Rum Modified class in the Donadio Plant Hire boat, with Steyn Basson and Jan Kriel (Agriwire) first in the LA Staal Blueprint class. Pieter Smith and Ferdi Schenk from PSPG came first in the More About Publishing & PR Standard class.

A surprisingly 17 Jet Skis also competed in the LA Staal longhaul. Nico Vlok was the first Jet Ski racer to finish, with Charles Lambrechts and Shaun Lambrechts in second and third places.

Rat Race Media once again filmed the Quaggaskloof inflatable boat race and this production will be broadcasted on SuperSport.

28 -30 February 2008 : Strand (National)

The weekend of the 28th of March saw the second race in the Rat Race Media inflatable boat racing series held in the Strand. The event was hosted by FBIBC (False Bay Inflatable boat Club) and there were a spectacular turnout with 38 boats competing. The event consisted of two surf circuits held on Friday and Saturday respectively and a longhaul of 120km held on Sunday.

The weather forecast was grim with a 40 km/h South-Easter expected on the Friday. On the Saturday a 30km/h South-Easter was expected. The forecast for the longhaul looked better with only a slight breeze expected.

Friday’s forecast was very accurate. The wind was blowing strong and even though there were no big swell, the surf conditions were very tricky. Both the Standard class and the Blueprint class needed to be split into two groups because of the amount of entries. From the start it was clear that the racing would be exciting with teams struggling to keep their boats upright in the strong wind. Most of the heats had to be restarted due to boats flipping and competitors losing grip. Jacques Turner, in the Blueprint class, was injured in a collision between his boat (SA Paving) and the Maxload team. In the final of the Blueprint class disaster struck again as George van Baalen and Bradley Smith were involved in a collision with two other boats. Smith broke his left arm but suffered no other serious injuries.

Due to the accident the finals of day one were only completed on Saturday morning. On the second day there was no trace of the expected wind, the sea was calm and only a light breeze was blowing.

The weather was perfect for racing the longhaul on Sunday. Everything went smoothly even though there were a few upsets. In the Blueprint class Rocco Erasmus, who was in the lead at that stage, flipped his boat when hitting a ribs wake. In the Modified class Barry Marx started late but made up a tremendous amount of time to finish second. After the action the prize giving was held at the Old Bridge Tavern in Somerset West.

For Photos from the event please go to : Ratshop
To download the Results click here

Broadcasting Times:
18 Mei : 21:00 - 21:30 SS1 / SS1A
19 Mei : 14:00 – 14:30 SS1 / SS1A - repeat
20 Mei : 23:15 – 23:45 SS2 / SS2A - repeat
21 Mei : 08:30 – 09:00 SS1 / SS1A - repeat
22 May : 18:00 – 18:30 SS5 / SS5A - repeat
23 May : 14:30 – 15:00    SS2 / SS2A / CSN - repeat
24 May : 08:30 – 09:00    SS2 / SS2A - repeat  

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8 - 9 February 2008 : Gariep (National)

Rat Race Media filmed the annual Konica Minolta Gariep National Inflatable Boat Race Championship from 8 to 9 February. The footage of this exiting race will be edited and produced for all fans to watch on Supersport.
The racing consisted of three events. First, the inflatable boats participated in two flat water circuits. A total of 41 boats participated in three different classes, Standard, Blueprint and Modified. Rat Race Media, sponsor of the National Inflatable Series, captured every moment of the action.
The Gariep dam has a reputation for being very challenging for long distance racing due to weather conditions. This year was no exception and alternative arrangements had to be made to ensure the safety of all competitors. The distance had to be shortened to 136km and only ten laps in the bay.
Phil Louw and Big Boy van Wyk (Danlouw Marine) and the team from Donadios Plant Hire, Johan Lodewyk and Berkie van Hysteen were the top competitors. Lodewyk and Van Hysteen proofed to be worthy champions, taking the overall first position as well as the Modified winner’s trophy. Steyn Basson and Jan Kriel (Agriwire) won the Blueprint class, with the team from SA-Paving/Concrete just behind them. In the Standard class the Vertex/Elcazets team with Gordon Butler and Werner Muller were just too fast for the Teavigo/Peptopro team.
See the complete results for more information. The race will be shown on Supersport at the following times: 1 April 18h30 (SS2), 2 April 15h00 (SS1), 3 April 22h00 (SS1) and 4 April 10h30 (SS2).

For Photos from the event please go to : Ratshop
To download the Results click here