Young powerboaters from across the London and South East will hit the water for the area final of the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship at Medway Yacht Club, Lower Upnor, on 23rd July.
The event will see finalists from area heats do battle, with the winners in two age groups, 8-12 and 13-16, going through to the national final held at the Southampton Boat Show in September. There they will be up against other area finalists from across the UK.
Club Commodore Colin Weston says: “The Championship is a great event to encourage youngsters to demonstrate their power boating skills. It helps them to develop to become expert boat handlers and focuses on safe and controlled boat handling skills. Each competitor aims to manoeuvre around a pre-set course in the quickest time. We look forward to welcoming competitors to Medway Yacht Club.”
Andrew Norton, RYA Event Director, adds: “It’s fantastic to see the competition continuing to thrive, with more than 5,000 children across the UK participating in last year’s event.
“The standard continues to rise every year, and we look forward to welcoming more competitors than ever in 2016.”
Head of Power Equipment for Honda (UK), Steve Morris, said: “We are delighted to mark the 15th anniversary of the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship, highlighting the success of our partnership with the RYA.
“Honda and our boat partner, Highfield, look forward to paying tribute to past winners and continuing to educate and encourage young people to learn the skills required to be the next Honda RYA Youth RIB Champion.”
The Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship, sponsored by Honda and Highfield, is a National Championship in which 8 – 16 year old Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) drivers can demonstrate their skills with the goal of winning a Highfield 460 or a Honwave T40 for their club.
Now in its fifteenth year, the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship is Britain’s leading programme introducing kids to powerboats and training them to be safe, proficient drivers and excellent boat handlers.
RIBs are light, manoeuvrable craft and the boats driven in the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship can hit speeds of up to 25mph
Thanks go to Championship sponsors Honda and Highfield.
You can see video of previous national finals here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPPBSaFGeuI
For more information about the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship visit www.rya.org.uk/go/hondayouthrib