Grandad gets serious air in thundercat

David McConnell, driving, and co-pilot Sam Christie go flying at Waihi Beach. Picture / Dean Purcell

It's hard to tell from the shore but the man racing the leaping red thundercat at speeds of up to 85km/h is a 63-year-old grandfather.

Despite his age - roughly double that of most thundercat competitors - David McConnell is among the best at the extreme sport.

This week as he and co-pilot 17-year-old Sam Christie took to the water at Waihi Beach, the Waikato grandfather showed he had just what it took to race with the youngsters.

In round two of the annual Thundercat National Championships, McConnell, who is also known as Diesel, came sixth overall out of the 16 competitors.

The third of five rounds in the competition will be held later this month in Pauanui, where McConnell is looking forward to challenging yesterday's third place winner - his 27-year-old son, Brent McConnell.

Thundercat racing has been a favourite McConnell family activity for about eight years.

McConnell senior said he decided to take up the sport when he "got sick of holding the boat" for his son.

"I thought I'll get a boat and race against him."

The Taupiri farmer has never looked back.

"I just love the thrill of it," he said, with a grin.

Part of the thrill is racing his son, who drives a flash blue boat with detailed artwork and a corporate sponsor.

McConnell senior has an old red boat with the hand-painted name "Cow".

"I don't have a sponsor and I'm a farmer so I called it Cow."

At Australian competitions, that's enough to get the crowd mooing when he collects a prize.

Despite the difference in boat quality, friendly family competitiveness remains between father and son.

"I like Dad racing, it's good - but I don't like it when he beats me," said McConnell junior.

The older McConnell said age was no barrier to the extreme sport - which last year saw him flip into the water eight times.

He has suffered no serious injuries in the sport, and even if he had it is unlikely they would have stopped him.

As for watching his son crash or flip, he is not overly worried - once he knows Brent is all right.

As crowds gathered at the popular Coromandel beach on Monday to watch the racing there were no such dramas.

McConnell senior, however, was doing his best to put on a good show during the six laps of a W-shaped course, won by the first boat back on shore.

Co-pilot Sam Christie hung on at the front of the boat as it flew into the air several times, at one stage getting at least 8m out of the water.

However, Christie, in his first year of racing, didn't mind, just saying: "It's cool."