Zack takes his 2nd 3.5cc World title after winning gold in France 2018

Zacks Win
iMBRA

22nd World Championships Day Seven 18.8.24
Early breakfast and then down to the lake for 8.30am.
Still warm but slightly cooler today at 32C which is a welcome relief.
A1 to start and Pete had a good launch and good run due to cutting the sponson hook off the boat.
Angela’s A1E next – good launch but the shaft did not hold so it stopped mid run.
B1’s next another good run for Angela same speed as yesterday but getting quicker at the end. Pete’s B1 was slower than yesterday due to changing the prop.
Back to the hotel to start packing and to the town centre for lunch. Call from the lake to say the closing ceremony had been brought forward so off we went. It was lovely to see all the well deserving champions receive their medals and our very own team leader with a bronze medal. Well Done to All! It was good to see Ganchev’s wife who presented Smolnikov Senior with the Ganchev Cup for long term achievements. Very well deserved!
Now to start thinking about 2025!

22nd World Championships Day Six 17.8.24

Luckily no sore heads this morning. A quick DIY brekkie in the hotel room before making our way back to the lake for 8.30am. A cool 36C today 😎
B1 to start a Pete breaks the British record at 155.363mph. Angela’s B1 had a good run as well 149.686mph.
A1 followed and Pete had a bad launch. Angela’s A1E was next but the shaft came undone when the boat started so could not run.
Off to the cafe for food and drink.
Lunch break ended at 3pm and we started with Norman’s A3 had a plug issue so didn’t finish the lap. Norman then had a good run with his A2 101mph with which he was happy. A2 and A3 classes have now ended and Norman go a bronze in A3 and came 4th in A2. Well Done Norm! Congratulations also to the winners and the runner ups (see charts for more info). Now in Scorpios with a bottle of red plonk to celebrate

Championships Photo Album
On The Wire

Despite the foggy heads we headed down to breakfast for 7.30am and at the lake by 8.30am. Norman was helping to mix the fuel and the competition began.
Bryn’s B1 had a good launch but only did a few laps, although he had put a new engine in (Mark 1 Profi). He didn’t put enough fuel in the tank (again) and it ran out before it could get a run in.
Angela’s B1 had a good run but it was slower as the tank was too lean. It is in need of some modification and training. Pete’s B1 went really well but the engine is under compressed so needs training. A1’s followed and we got a run! Pete listened to Norman, moving the tank and putting on a smaller prop and the A1 got a good speed.
At lunch Angela’s B1 had some training and it was brought back to where we were so roll on tomorrow!
After lunch the competition began with the last runs for A3/A2. Although Normans A3 got a good launch the globe plug blew and the boat stopped. Bryn could not run his A2 as he did not mend his tail shaft. Norman’s A2 had a good run, a little bit slower than previously.
The results for the A3 are 1st place Andreii, 2nd place Babken and 3rd place Armen. The results for A2 are 1st place Oleksei, 2nd place Andreii and 3rd place Norman. Congratulations to all but especially to Norman as Johns boat now has a bronze medal!

On The Wire

Day Six 21st European Championships Tethered Hydroplanes A/B Pazardzhik Bulgaria.

After an early breakfast we are heading the lake at 8.30am, Norman and Andreii mixing the fuel as usual.
A1’s were first Pete putting a bigger prop on his boat but it didn’t like it and stopped. B1’s followed. Pete was first and achieved his personal best 150mph. Well done Pete! Angela’s boat is a little rich but did 154.31mph so very happy. Bryn’s engine was a bit lean. Although it didn’t get a run it did manage a couple of circuits of the lake so he is very pleased.
Then off to the cafe for lunch with Koko, Boris and Ivo and to wait for the closing ceremony to start.
The ceremony started shortly after 2.30pm. You can see from the results the Ukrainian team dominated the competition winning medals in almost all the classes. It was very emotional. A huge well done to them and also to the other winners. It was great too to see our own team captain Norman receiving a medal on behalf of Johns boat. Well Done! A new trophy (the Ganchev trophy) has been designed. This was presented to the best competitor (Ivan from Ukraine) by Ganchev’s wife.
It was great to see everyone after 4 years and although in Team GB we all didn’t win a medal it was lovely to take part in the competition.
Looking forward to 2024!