AFTER months of inactivity, the Manning River will be the venue for two major events later this month, both on the same weekend.
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Manning River Rowing Club will conduct a two day regatta on November 27 and 28. A total of 16 events will be decided on the Saturday, with 29 up for decision on the Sunday.
This will be among a handful of regattas scheduled to go ahead in the State next month, with a number of others cancelled.
Manning Aquatic Power Boat Club's two day club event is also set down for November 27 and 28.
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This will also be one of the first events held in NSW this year and will attract powerboats from throughout NSW and Victoria, providing the border remains open.
"We'd usually get about five or six boats for a club day,'' Manning Aquatic Powerboat Club commodore Scott Godfrey said.
"Providing the borders are right, we should get 20 to 25 here for the weekend, with three or four from Victoria.''
Forty boats were involved in a two day club program last December, held at the end of a year when little racing was conducted due to the pandemic.
Mr Godfrey said negotiations have already started between his club and Manning River Rowing Club to ensure both events can proceed without a problem. "We'll work together and get something sorted.''
It was initially planned to conduct some of the major races usually run at the Easter Classic, including the Liberty Cup, on the program. However that idea has been canned.
"There's been no racing, so we think it will be safer for the boats to just do laps instead of racing competitively,'' Mr Godfrey explained.
He hopes there'll be two GP Hydroplanes in action along with two or three unlimited boats and half a dozen six litres.
The club has endured a difficult two years. Their marquee event, the Easter Classic, was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. This year's classic was postponed due to March's floods and rescheduled to August. However, this was also cancelled due to the worsening COVID-19 crisis.
Mr Godfrey said drivers just want to get back on the water. "It's going to be a busy couple of days on the river."
