Peter Caughey wins Suzuki SuperBoat Champs round five

16 June, 2014

 


Photo: Ian Thornton

Photo: Ian Thornton

Peter Caughey and his Enzed team have won the penultimate round of the Suzuki SuperBoat Champs which was held in Whanganui on April 5.

Taking out round four of the SuperBoat Champs sees Caughey defend his four-time world and six-time New Zealand SuperBoat champion title as he also prepares for the World Championships coming up in America in August.

“Up to this point we’ve not only been focusing on the New Zealand champs but in pushing the boat and the team as hard as we dare in pursuit of greater understanding of the team’s capability as the Worlds loom. Is the boat up to it, and is the team up to it.”

Caughey’s Sprintec boat has repeatedly set each event’s fastest time, yet he’s taken the chequered flag less often than his speed might suggest, as chasing ultimate pace can backfire.

“We’ve raced harder than we needed to at times, but for the worlds you need to be on your best game,” the Canterbury racer says. “Racing internationally is a big undertaking, and we want to go there knowing we have a package capable of winning.”


Photo: Ian Thornton

Photo: Ian Thornton

Caughey’s team is aware there are no guarantees, but it takes time – and time spent in the white heat of top-level competition – to fine tune a high-powered lightweight racer like Caughey’s Sprintec-built SuperBoat.

“It’s not easy to find that last two or three per cent of your boat’s ultimate performance, and that is what we have been focused on this season,” Caughey says.

His biggest hurdle will be raising the money to go, Caughey says, but he’s suspended sponsor talks to focus on the last two rounds of this season’s NZ champs, with the points now tight at the top.


Photo: Ian Thornton

Photo: Ian Thornton

He’s had the boat’s motor out, given the hull a few tweaks after its fast airborne exit from the last round, and fettled the jet unit in pursuit of more speed, which should suit the fast, flowing rotation at Whanganui’s Shelterview track.

“It’s a rotation I expect will deliver a level playing field for the top three. Phonsy will have his twin-turbo back in after trying a new motor at Hastings, Hill has good power too, and we’ll all be looking over our shoulders this weekend,” he says.

“The big variable is night racing, it’s difficult, and the faster you go the trickier it is, but it’s difficult for everyone, and traditionally Wanganui prepares well.”

The final round of the Suzuki SuperBoat class will be held in Wanaka (ending under lights) on April 18.

 

Lunch with… Jim Palmer

In the 1960s, Hamilton’s Jim Palmer won the prestigious ‘Gold Star’ four times and was the first resident New Zealander home in the New Zealand Grand Prix on five consecutive occasions. He shared the podium with Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Bruce McLaren, Graham Hill, Jim Clark, Denny Hulme, Jackie Stewart, and Chris Amon. The extent of his domination of the open-wheeler scene in New Zealand will probably never be matched or exceeded. Yet he’s always been modest about his achievements.

NZ Classic Car magazine, May/June 2025 issue 399, on sale now

Who would have thought it would become such a worldwide motorsport star when Ford introduced the humble Escort in 1967?
Its popularity, particularly in Mark 1 form, is now of iconic status. Our cover story for this issue is on a 1968 Ford Escort Mark 1, Alan Mann Racing Tribute. We talked with the owner of this very special Escort, finished in tribute also to the owner’s father.
“Most children love speed, and motorsport typically comes courtesy of a parent, and Elliott is no different. His engineer father, Mark, had a love for motorcycles and going fast; however, when children came along, he swapped two wheels for four, in the form of two Ford Escorts.
Little did Mark know it at the time, but the humble Escort was about to weave its way into the family fabric once and for all.
After emigrating from London to New Zealand, Elliott recalled one evening when he was 14 being invited to tag along by his father, helping a friend convert an Escort road car into a racing car. This was the pivotal moment when Elliott remembers the motorsport bug taking over. He knew he had to have his own one.”