2018 OPA Pt Pleasant Beach Grand Prix
Written by Johnny Saris of SpeedontheWater.com
Rough water and unseasonable humidity greeted the 30-boat fleet in the first race of the Offshore Powerboat Association yesterday in Point Pleasant Beach, N.J., The Atlantic Ocean dished up solid four- to six-foot seas that made for plenty of big-air and fan friendly action.
Starting at noon, the first race of the day included Classes 5, 6 and 7. The Class 5 race was heated right from the beginning with RUFSTR, Cisco and Coastal Boat Sales going at it. RUFSTR edged out a lead over Cisco by the third lap and never looked back. Coastal Boat Salesmade a move on Cisco and were charging hard trying to catch RUFSTR but ran out of race.
Unfortunately, a GPS reading error disqualified Coastal Boat Sales, putting Cisco in second place.
“It was a great way to return to racing” said RUFSTR driver EJ Salamone. “We took a year off and I really missed it.”
The Class 6 race was also very tight from the green flag. Knot Guilty, with Rob and Ray Murk onboard. took immediate charge pulling out a lead over Smith Brothers and Liquid Addiction.
But slowly but surely, Smith Brothers started to gain ground on them, making their move with just a few laps to go.
“The boat ran great,” said Rich Smith, throttleman of Smith Brothers Racing. “I knew it had it in it, I just wanted to choose the right moment to make a move. We ran pretty easy the first few laps getting our wits about us. All in all, it felt great.”
Without question, Class 7 had the toughest time with the water conditions on course, but still delivered some seriously tight action. The seven-boat boat field put on an aerial show for the fans lining the beach and boardwalk. READ MORE ....
VIEW ALL PHOTOS FROM THE RACES CLICK HERE
NOTE: PHOTOS have all been uploaded....
