FOUR SOUTHAMPTON thrill-seekers start their quest for national Championship success in the ever-growing sport of Zapcat racing this weekend.

Introduced to the UK in 2001, the sport's organising body is based in Southampton.

And local man Tony Jones is one person aiming high for the 2003 race series.

Jones, Portsmouth born but now living in Southampton, is one of the drivers of the two boats the Navaho-sponsored local team have entered this year.

Another Southampton man, Paul Ackitts, drives the other with locals Tom Cadbury and Chris Audley their respective crew members for the two-man powerboats.

Jones is in confident mood ahead of the first two rounds of racing off Anglesey this weekend - the event climaxes with the last two rounds off the Isle of Wight in October.

He finished fourth and sixth out of 45 boats in the pre-season warm-up events off Paignton in Devon.

"I was 12th in the series last year but I'm aiming for the top five without a doubt this year," said Jones, 25.

He got into the sport thanks to his former Southampton Institute tutor Euan McGrath, who works for the Zapcat governing body.

McGrath said: "Zapcat is now the largest powerboating class in the world, and most of the others have been around a lot longer.

"The racing is very intense, races only last around 10 minutes.

"You have to be a bit mad to go in for this sport - it's very much for an adrenaline junkie.

"There's equal rights for everyone. All the boats are exactly the same so to win you don't have to rely on having more money than everyone else or the biggest engine.

"The only difference between winning and losing rests with the competitors' ability to move their bodyweight around the boat.

"There's no discriminations in our sport - men, women, old and young all compete together in the same races.

"Our youngest competitor is 16 and our oldest is in his mid-50s.

"I would say the sport is more extreme than some which are called extreme sports.

"Though the sport is non-contact, you do get a bit of argy-bargy - what we call 'ribbing'.

"The sport is physically hard work. And like any sport, it's those that are prepared to put in the time and effort for training, those that can put the mental and physical effort in, that can normally be found towards the front end of the races.

"It's a cheap motorsport as well. A boat and an engine costs around £6,000 and race fees for the year are around £600.

"Powerboating is still a minority sport, but this is attracting a lot of interest."

RACE SCHEDULE

The 2003 Zapcat National Race Series

Championship Rounds 1 & 2 June 21/22 - Rhosneigr, Anglesey

Round 3 - July 26 - Stokes Bay.

Rounds 4 & 5 - August 2/3 - Littlehampton, West Sussex

Round 6 - August 23 - Cardiff Bay, Cardiff

Cardiff Bay Endurance Cup - August 24 - Cardiff Bay, Cardiff

Rounds 7 & 8 - September 6/7 - Extreme Academy, Watergate Bay, Cornwall

Rounds 9 & 10 - September 27/28 - Herne Bay, Canterbury

Rounds 11 & 12 - October 25/26 - Bembridge, Isle of Wight