The upcoming World Water Ski Racing Championships in Gosford could open the door for a new outright winner at this weekend’s Murray Darling 110 – Ted Hurley Classic.
The unique river race, which sees skiers compete on both the Darling and Murray rivers, is the first Sunraysia race on the 2023-24 calendar, however, numbers in the top classes will be down with the world championships taking precedence for many.
But this could make for an exciting Ted Hurley race as more teams will find themselves closer to to the top.
Recently elected Mildura Ski Club president Brandan McGlynn said it hasn’t been the ideal race preparation but he still expects a top weekend.
“There have been a a few circumstances beyond our control playing a part,” he said.
“The level of the Murray River going up and down wasn’t ideal, just trying to get a read on things, but that’s all sorted now and right to go.
“The world championships at Gosford are the week after the race which probably rained on our parade a little bit.
“You can understand a number of teams not wanting to run the risk of having issues with the boat or potentially getting injured the week before, so our numbers are probably down a bit, but the ski racing community have still shown their support and we’ve had more entries (75) than we actually anticipated.
“I guess that’s the big thing, it’s now opened up for a lot more boats to potentially take the outright title which is really exciting. The door is opened for someone else.”
McGlynn confirmed the water level at Apex Park, the end marker for the first leg and starting line for the second leg, was higher than preferred but will be okay for race day.
The committee and volunteers have also completed extra course-plotting due to the river movement in recent months.
The Murray Darling 110 is the first race under the new executive ski club committee, which was elected last Wednesday.
McGlynn takes over from Geoff Thomson, who stepped away from the top job following a decade at the helm.
“I’ve grown up down at the ski club and have seen the hard work of all the previous presidents over the years, and I want to carry that work on myself,” McGlynn said.
“It’s all about just trying to continue to build on what we’ve got here.
“Geoff has been in the chair for 10 years and has overseen so much change and development, which is a credit to his hard work and dedication.”
Murray Darling 110 qualifying is Saturday, alongside social classes, with expert classes racing on Sunday.
