After a 3 month wait, powerboat fans are once again about to receive their fix of Class 1 action, from what is one of the most scenic venues that comprise the Class 1 race series.  The idyllic backdrop of this Norwegian fjord making a dramatic counterpoint to the sights and sounds of these roaring heavyweights of the powerboat world.

Earlier in May, the Victory Team boats and support vehicles arrived safely in Italy after their lengthy sea crossing from Abu Dhabi and were delivered to the facility we use as our summer base close to Pisa. One contingent of our crew subsequently relocated to join the boats to carry out some modifications and pre race servicing before changing roles to truck drivers, they safely delivered the convoy of trucks weighing in at over120 tonnes from the sun kissed fields of Tuscany, traversing Austria, Germany and Denmark to the delightful location that is Arendal. The remainder of the Team are now arriving in Norway to complete preparations and by Thursday evening everything will be set for this weekends competition.

Every member of the crew is keenly aware that all the other teams are itching to knock Victory Team off of the No. 1 spot, especially the Norwegians now that they are on home soil and with the local support being some of the most ardent and knowledgeable of any of the race venues, the Norwegian Grand Prix should be one of the best supported events of the season. The other teams are here after having carried out plenty of modifications and testing of their own over the past weeks and will be looking to see if they have reduced the gap to the championship leaders. But Victory Team also has a strong local fan base who will be happy to see the boat back in its traditional blue colour scheme and will be looking forward to seeing Arif and Nadir on the top step of the podium over the weekend.  The drivers themselves have been working hard in conjunction with the team in Dubai, studying all the available data, considering different setups and strategies so that when testing starts on Friday afternoon they will be looking to confirm that they have the optimum boat set up for this tight, fast demanding race course.

And so with fingers crossed for good weather and everyone hoping for a spot on the podium, we look forward to Arendal providing another exciting round of racing this weekend.