THE Hawkesbury River is the stage for many great boat races but in May a world championship event will be seen at Windsor Marine Stadium.
Fastwater Promotions will host a world championship race in the unlimited displacements and six-litre displacements along with an Asia-Pacific SST120s championship.
The event was passed by council late last year and will take place on May 18 and 19.
Race director Tony Walsh said the event will be unique to the Hawkesbury.
“It will be a different atmosphere because a lot is on the line – they’re racing for world championships,” Walsh said. “Everyone wants to be number one in the world and there’s plenty of preparation that goes into it.
“They go at 260km/h and are tough to drive and expensive to maintain.”
The weekend will feature plenty of racing and Council voted unanimously in favour of giving the event exclusive access to Governor Phillip Reserve for the two days.
“This event is a world championship, international event and it’s a one off event,” councillor Porter said. “I think we should be supporting it, especially in terms of boosting tourism and the economy in the Hawkesbury.”
Councillor Christine Paine was also in support and couldn’t wait for the event to arrive in Windsor.
“I support this event if it’s anything like the Bridge to Bridge ski race we had here recently,” Cr Paine said.
“I was gobsmacked and had goosebumps watching the event at Governor Phillip Reserve and seeing how well it was organised.’’
The event will be a great advertisement for the Hawkesbury, with fans from around the world tuning in to watch the racing.
“We’ve got international teams coming and a world-wide audience of about 300m people,” Walsh said.
“Windsor is a good stadium-type course and the crowd will be close to the action. They will feel a part of it.”