The New Zealand Boat Marathon Commission's Oamaru Marathon on Saturday has drawn its largestfield for an Oamaru race.
Seventeen boats will take to the sea off Oamaru in the event, which is part of the lower South Island series.
While many Oamaru people will be able to watch the racing from home, race convener Gary Story said some of the best views of the power boats - with up to 300hp motors - would be available from Holmes Wharf at the waterfront.
"If there is a bit of a swell on, when they round the mark at Holmes Wharf they get some amazing air, they will be coming right out of the water.'' Mr Story said.
The race starts at 10.30am at the end of Coquet St. Boats will head up to Holmes Wharf and past the breakwater. If sea conditions are good, the course will extend out past the end of Cape Wanbrow, before turning left, up to about Waitaki Boys' High School and back along the foreshore to complete a 10km loop.
This is the third race in the series hosted by the North Otago Yacht and Power Boat Club this year, with the previous two rounds hosted at Lake Benmore and Lake Aviemore.
The two final rounds are at Waihola and Invercargill.
As the only race in the ocean in the series, conditions would be different for drivers, and tunnel hulls, which "love the chop and love the ocean'' could be expected to perform well.
Expected swells of up to 1m on Saturday would present "absolutely fine'' racing conditions, Mr Story said.
The New Zealand Boat Marathon Commission was established in 1972. The race was scheduled to return to Oamaru in 2012 after a 30-year hiatus, but 5m swells prompted its cancellation.
Races had gone ahead every year since.
