Sprint boat racing or jet sprinting is a sport that started in New Zealand in the 1980's. It started on the many rivers and then slowly progressed to tracks scraped out of the shallow areas along the rivers.

Soon the Australians discovered this extreme sport and started building areas to race. The first in ground dug track was in Australia. Of course the great rivalry between New Zealand and Australia sparked many great races. They were always trying to find a way to go faster and turn quicker. They put larger and larger engines in these tiny boats.

By the early 1990's the Americans had seen the sport and started to build boats in the USA. Lewiston Idaho which is the USA's deepest inland port was the center of activity. Deepest in the previous sentence means the longest distance from the coast, in this case the Pacific Ocean, roughly 400-500 miles inland. Lewiston Idaho has a sister city just across the Snake River called Clarkston Washington. These two cities were the hot bed of activity in the early stages of racing in the USA. Soon other USA racers started getting involved in the Boise Idaho area. The sport has grown like wild fire since then. In the early days in the USA racers raced around buoys. They raced in rivers and ponds located in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. The first dug track in the USA was built in Marsing Idaho in 1997, on the banks of the Snake River. Then a dug track was built in Spokane Washington. The next track was built in Richland Washington. At the present time there is a new track in Woodland Washington.

The boats are really getting extreme now. In the "Open/Super Boat Class" boats are running fuel injected engines (406-475 cubic inches average) producing 700-975 horsepower. Some of the most extreme boats are running a 500 cubic inch all aluminum small block, weighing in at 300 pounds with fuel injection bolted on and oil in the engine. These boats are claiming 1000 horse power at 6500 RPM. They are capable of acceleration from 0-80 MPH in 3 seconds. When you watch the videos of the races you can see that some of the boats are making corners near 180 degrees on some tracks depending on how the course is laid out that day. They are making the corners in an area similar to the length of the boats, this being an average of 13 feet 6 inches. To accomplish this at speeds of 70-90 MPH through the corners in the Super Boat class the driver/navigator are subjected to 6-7 g's. In a 90 degree corner they average 3-4 g's. The crews work very hard to get the boats set up so they will corner properly. They will corner on a dime, you won't believe your eyes. But you will have to believe your videos.

Once people see the sport the are hooked. It is the most extreme type of boat racing ever conceived. The sights, smells (methanol in the air), and sounds! Just imagine your favorite dragster making a 4-5 second run. Wow they sound neat, now imagine that same engine involved in a 40-60 second run. That will bring your pulse rate right up.

The racers come from every walk of life. Hard working, honest, fun loving, family people. Some are doctors, pilots, electrical linemen, telephone company workers, construction company owners, boat builders, farmers, printers, machinists, nurses, just to name a few. They work hard and play hard. This sport is an outlet for their frustrations. After a great weekend of racing and relaxation they are ready to go back to work for another week.

The biggest plus to this sport is the families. Both on the racing side and the spectator side. Unlike any other sport whole families come and enjoy themselves. The boys bring their little trucks and tractors, the girls bring their dolls and stuffed animals, and the moms and dads kick back and relax in their lawn chairs under a sunshade or umbrella. The kids all mingle together and play, while mom gets a little time to relax, and dad gets his adrenalin fix. All in all it makes for a great family outing.