In 1953 New Zealand farmer/engineer Bill Hamilton (later Sir William Hamilton) constructed a crudely-built unit that was to be the forerunner of the pump that brought an exciting new dimension to recreational boating around the world.
The sport of jet sprinting originated in New Zealand in 1981, and since that time has evolved into one of the most exciting and spectacular forms of motorsport.
In the early years races were staged on shallow rivers where man-made courses were created by extracting gravel banks to form islands around which boats raced in a pre-determined order - jet sprinting quickly captured the public's imagination because the boats raced individually against the clock, while the tight and testing course was within full view of spectators.
New Zealand's unique rivers served the sport well, but the world's first permanent track was built at Goolwa in South Australia in 1987, and other tracks were built in that country as the sport expanded.
In 1992 jet sprinting was introduced to the United States of America where events were staged on rivers and open water in north-western states with boats racing around a series of marker buoys. In 1997 the first permanent facility was built at Marsing in Idaho.
By the mid-90's New Zealand had also recognised the need to meet competitor's demands and the strict safety regulations - the future of the sport lay with the permanent track concept.
There are 3 classes in modern racing.Lites, Group A and Superboats.The later making for incredible viewing primarily due to the sometimes unbelievable horsepower generated from some of these vessels. Weighing in at a meagre 500 kgs and powered by up to 1400 horsepower they are literally "Aquatic Rocket ships"
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