PORT ANGELES — Sprint boat racers will deftly maneuver through corners and push the throttle to the limit on straightaways in front of an expected crowd of thousands in Port Angeles on Saturday.
Fans will descend on the Extreme Sports Park for the first of two American Sprint Boat Racing events held there within a month.
The jet-powered boats will zip around the water-filled channels racing against the clock in time trials beginning at 10 a.m.
Drivers and their navigators will whip around the course making as many as 35 turns in fewer than 45 seconds in some classes.
“I believe it’s the fastest- paced motor sports action there is on the planet,” Morrison, Extreme Sports Park co-owner and driver of the Unlimited class Wicked Racing No. 10 boat.
“A day at the races is very family oriented. It’s a family friendly sport.”
The venue at 2917 W. Edgewood Drive also will host the first round of the American Sprint Boat Racing World Championships on
Saturday, Aug. 22.
Tickets for both events are $25 for adults (15 and older), $20 for military members and $10 for children ages 6 to 12. Children younger than 5 are admitted free.
Gates will open at 8 a.m. Saturday. Racing will continue throughout the afternoon.
Sprint boats come in three classifications: the Modifieds with engine sizes of up to 368 cubic inches, 400s with engines up to 412 cubic inches and the unrestricted Unlimited Boats.
The boats follow a sequence of turns that are only predetermined and given to sprint boat teams the night prior to the race.
This means the navigator has less than 24 hours to memorize where and when to signal the driver to turn on the channeled race course.
Following this format allows for an equitable race experience for each team, according to “You can play with setup in advance but you never know the channels so everybody just practices on race day,” Morrison said.
“It makes our sport unique and it makes it fair for everybody involved.”
Fans can quickly figure out the track’s trouble spots during early qualifying laps.
The speed of the boats gradually increases with each round as teams become familiar with the course.
Tickets for both races will be available at the gate each race day, or online at www.extremesportspark.net or via several area vendors listed on the ESP website.
The price of admission includes pit passes and parking.
Access to the typically behind-the-scenes pit area allows fans to rub shoulders with sprint boat teams.
“You can get up close,” Morrison said.
“We try to be as fan friendly as we can safely be and have the drivers and crews interact with the crowds down in the pits.”
The annual Sprint Boat Show and Shine, another opportunity for fans and racers to interact, has a new venue this year.
It will be held today at Fanaticus Sports Grill, 1026 E. First St., from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Food vendors and a beer garden also are options for spectators at Saturday’s races.
Camping is available at Extreme Sports Park for $30.
For those who can’t make it to Port Angeles, Saturday’s qualifier — as well as the American Sprint Boat Racing National Finals — will air live on the Internet via Livestream at tinyurl.com/PDN-SprintRace.
Viewers will need to create a Livestream account or login with a Facebook account.
The race also will be taped by MAVTV, a network focusing on motorsports from the grassroots to the extreme.
It will be played repeatedly by the network over the coming months, Morrison said.
MAVTV is available on Direct TV and many cable systems but not Wave Broadband locally.
Around 25 sprint boat teams from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia are expected to compete.
More boats are expected to compete in the unlimited class than in past racing seasons, a good sign for the growth of the sport, according to Morrison.
“We expect to have six Unlimiteds competing,” Morrison said.
Favorites in that class include Morrison’s Wicked Racing No. 10 boat navigated by his stepdaughter, Port Angeles elementary school teacher Cara McGuire.
The area team was beaten in the first race by the driver/navigator team of Cory Johnson and Gary McNeil in the No. 55 boat.
“We were a second- and-a-half faster than everybody in qualifying,” Morrison said.
“But I put myself out of that one by blowing a turn [in the quarterfinals].
“Cara had it right and I totally blew it. by the time I reacted it was too late.
“Now we need to bounce back and get back on top.”
________
Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-452-2345, ext. 5250 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
