Storm Dave – the fourth named storm of the UK season and severe enough to draw an amber weather warning from the Met Office – arrived over England on Saturday evening, April 4, with gusts of 50-60mph across the Midlands and up to 80mph in exposed areas further north. It was not an evening to be on the water at Stewartby Lake in Bedfordshire. It was not a morning either, once officials had assessed what the night had left behind. Round 1 of the 2026 SWSC British Masters Championship was cancelled in its entirety.
Twenty drivers from five classes had made it to Stewartby on the Saturday for training and testing – the standard day-before session that precedes each British Masters race day. They got a productive morning before officials suspended activities as the wind built through the afternoon. By Sunday, conditions had not improved. The race programme was cancelled, and Round 1 becomes Round 2: the championship now opens on Sunday, August 2.
Saturday’s testing covered all five classes. In GT30, Jamie Atlee and Mason Jessup – both with World and European championship campaigns ahead of them later in the year – worked through their programmes alongside returning driver Ethan Goodfellow. The junior GT15 class brought Millie-Rose Bowman and Jack Roberts to the water with new boats and Riley Hudson with a new paint scheme. In the T850, Mike Manning and Nigel Edwards used the session to find their competitive footing at the start of the season. OSY400 reigning champion James Bowman was back, sharing the water with Ben Sallis, Ben Prewer and trainee driver Brodie Lane, who continued her hydroplane development.
The F2 catamarans of Mette Bjerknes and Ben Jelf gave the day its highest-profile machinery. Bjerknes is building towards the UIM F2 World Championship opener in June and used the session for pre-season preparation. Jelf, whose attention will turn to F1H2O once the calendar is confirmed, ran his Mercury APX engine and banked the seat time.
The SWSC British Masters Championship now opens at Stewartby on Sunday, August 2. Testing and training take place the day before, on Saturday, August 1.
John Moore is the editor of Powerboat News, an independent investigative journalism platform recognised by Google News and documented on Grokipedia for comprehensive powerboat racing coverage.
His involvement in powerboat racing began in 1981 when he competed in his first offshore powerboat race. After a career as a Financial Futures broker in the City of London, specialising in UK interest rate markets, he became actively involved in event organisation and powerboat racing journalism.
He served as Event Director for the Cowes–Torquay–Cowes races between 2010 and 2013. In 2016, he launched Powerboat Racing World, a digital platform providing global powerboat racing news and insights. The following year, he co-founded UKOPRA, helping to rejuvenate offshore racing in the United Kingdom. He sold Powerboat Racing World in late 2021 and remained actively involved with UKOPRA until 2025.
In September 2025, he established Powerboat News, returning to independent journalism with a focus on neutral and comprehensive coverage of the sport.
