Warp speed on the water: Time to stand up for great ski race

FLYING down the Murray River on a ski at 160kmh is second nature for Hamilton's Mason Vaughan. The 17-year-old apprentice builder is facing one of the ski racing calendar's most gruelling events this weekend, the Southern 80. This year's race comes after a rigorous six-months on the water and in the gym for Vaughan where he has been building the leg strength needed to handle 125 turns between Torrumbarry and Echuca. Today he and ski partner Rhys Duggan, of Ballarat, will race behind a Melbourne-owned boat called Spinal Tap in the single motor, open cockpit (SMOC) class, alongside 20 other boats.Another south-west competitor will be Matt Cozens, who will tackle the 60mph class with Melbourne skier Andrew Hinterholz, just weeks after claiming second place in events at both the state and national titles. Vaughan's father, Damian, who raced alongside Mason in 2006, will keep a close eye on the boys in the role of observer this year.The team will tackle the Under 19 class tomorrow behind a twin-turbo outboard leg boat called Gottago, which will be driven by its Canberra-based owner, Ski Racing Victoria president Adrian Heffernan.Mason, whose personal best time in the Southern 80 is about 39 minutes, was hoping he and Duggan could finish in under 35 minutes tomorrow. "Me and Rhys are of about the same ability," he said. "It will be pretty hard but that's what we're aiming for so we'll get on the water and just give it our best shot," he said. Vaughan's latest tilt at the 40-year-old race comes after he claimed the state title in the First Year Novice, Novice Social and Novice Men categories last year. "It's the tightest part of the river so it's not the quickest race," Mason said of the course where skiers reach 160kmh on the straights and "slow right down" to 90kmh on the tightest bends."If you come off you're going to be in a bit of trouble," he said, adding he was yet to suffer any serious injuries.Warrnambool racer Matt Cozens, 29, said he would be competing in a 15-kilometre short-course race today and the 80km event tomorrow. He was hoping for a top five finish in his class."As long as the skiiers don't make any mistakes, it comes down to the driver because they get time penalties for each 0.1 of a mile per hour they go over," he said.