RULES FOR MINI SPRINT CLASS
This class is for hydroplanes with a total hull length of no more than 450mm including any front and rear sponsons or skis, but not including hardware.
All boats must be propelled by 1 or more surface drive propellers and 1 or more motors. There is no restriction on motor(s) used.
Permitted batteries, Up to 3s LiPo, Up to 3s LiFePo, up to 7s NiMh, up to 7s NiCd, There are no weight, size, or format restrictions on the batteries ie LiFePo can be round or square and Nickel cells can be subC, 2/3AF or any other size. The maximum charge voltage allowed is 4.23v/cell for LiPo and 3.63v/cell for LiFePo.
Boats go round a standard NAVIGA oval course, made up by 6 buoys, clockwise.
Competitors are to be divided into groups of maximum 6 people, if possible all groups should be made up with equal numbers.
The competition format is 2 heats and a final, with the first 2 boats in each heat entering the final, or if there is more than one group, the first boat from each group of each heat entering the final. The heats and final are six laps in duration.
The normal MPBA rules will apply in regards to course, safety loops, race numbers etc, with the exception that the any driving or course infractions, ie Jump starts, missed buoys or forcing another boat inside the course to avoid collision, will result in a disqualification from that round instead of a time penalty, any previous rounds will be unaffected and the driver will still be eligible for any future rounds and the final.
The start procedure:-
After the command “boats in the water” is given an acoustic signal will sound. At this point all boats must drive up to the 3 right-hand side buoys, staying well outside of them. Slowing down or stopping completely is also not permitted. It is a 10sec mill time with a count down from 5 as per NAVIGA rules, as follows: 5,4,3,2,1 start. Only after this command the actual race time starts. An early start (crossing the start line before the command start is given, slowing down or stopping all together) will be punished with a disqualification from that round. The Platform Judge must declare an early start to the competitor after completion of the first lap.
Turning around trying to avoid missing a buoy is not allowed. Boats stopped dead in the water will be recovered only after the race has ended. Only in cases where the boat is sinking, or looks like it will sink, the Platform Judge will summon an immediate recovery.