New race format doubles the thrills

This year sees the race taking on a new name and a new format, most notably the inclusion of one extra skiier behind the boat.

Now known as the Rosevears Waterfront Tavern 2-Up Classic, Australia's longest waterskiing race starts at Rosevears at 9am, and sees two skiiers towed along a gruelling 112km course to Tailrace Park and back up the river to George Town before a final sprint to the finish line at Rosevears.

Reigning champion and race organiser Peter Richardson said the new format was devised to deliver twice the action, as well as giving more skiiers the chance of competing in a sport that was slowly being killed by rising insurance costs for speedboats involved in racing.

This year, only eight boats will contest the race compared to 16 last year, with mainland crews opting to stay away in order to prepare for the bigger cash prizes on offer interstate.

However, with several new crews and the presence of an extra skiier to slow things down a little, Richardson said the race promised to deliver more in terms of excitement.

``I think it'll be very interesting,'' he said.

``There's only about 4kmh difference between the top three boats, and there'll only be a rope length between them for the whole race.''

As reigning champions, the Richardsons will start as race favourites, but are expecting strong challenges from George Town boat Top Toy and Hobart entrant Lil' Creeper.

If conditions are rough, Richardson can also expect a strong challenge from first-time entrant Craig Flaherty and team in Bad Attitude.

A regular competitor on the club circuit, Flaherty had put in some good performances recently, but is counting on the skill of his skiiers to give him and edge over the more powerful boats.

``We haven't got the boat speed, so it needs to be rough for us to have a chance,'' Flaherty said.

The Rosevears Waterfront Tavern 2-Up Classic begins at 9am on Sunday, with an expected finish just before 10am.