Sea Doo races make waves

“We had the race. We had the crowd. We had delays.”
Those words of Jeff McFayden co-organizer of Sunday’s Sea Doo races on Sand Bay, summed up the event perfectly.
Sanctioned by the Jet Sport Association of Manitoba, the inaugural event drew a fair crowd to see the 15 competitors, including local and out-of-town racers.
In fact, Sean “Shredder” Williamson, a world-ranked racer from Brandon, Man., was among those on hand here.
After some lengthy delays, mainly due to problems classifying racers into the proper divisions, the competition finally got underway around 1 p.m. (even though Winnipeg’s CD Sound Experience provided music for the anxious audience in the interim, this delay caused some spectators to grow restless and leave).
But those who stayed were treated to an afternoon of high-speed jet sports. Most impressive was the showing by Williamson, who won very event he raced in.
“Sean ‘Shredder’ Williamson was amazing,” enthused McFayden. “He was actually lapping people.”
In the Beginner Runabout Open, Jeff Danchu of Selkirk took first, with locals Steve Arpin second and Chuck Arpin Jr. third.
Ryan Yakubicka of Duglad, Man. finished first in the Novice Runabout 785 Limited division, followed by Rick Foreman of Thunder Bay. The same pair also finished one-two in Novice Runabout 785 Open.
“Shredder” Williamson won the Ski Open division, with Yakubicka in second, while Mike Rosenblat of Winnipeg took the checkered flay in the Sport Open, with Foreman being runner-up for a third time.
Williamson ruled the Expert Runabout 785 Super Stock division, with Paul Yakubicka in place. “Shredder” also came first in Expert Runabout 1200 Super Stock, followed by Paul Yakubicka and Rosenblat.
Williamson then topped off the day with a fourth victory, this time in the Pinewood Oval event. Paul Yakubicka finished second, with Ryan Yakubicka third, and then Chuck and Steve Arpin in fourth and fifth respectively.
The event was sponsored by Fun in the Sun and Pinewood Sports, with Fort Frances General Supply donating trophies.
There already has been some talk about holding more Sea Doo events at the Pither’s Point Park after racers said they thought the location was good.
“All the racers loved the spot,” McFayden noted, adding there even has been talk of holding a national competition here if the town would support such an event.