William Evans was in the right place during the MDL Marinas Shamrock Round the Island 2026. The place was a small inflatable ThunderCat, in the middle of 2-metre chop, with a first-timer in the passenger seat and a 20-mile round trip ahead.
Evans, the man behind Snap Photography, shoots UKOPRA offshore racing from water level – a small open inflatable with no shelter and no protection from whatever the Solent is doing on race day. The ThunderCat puts him in the same conditions the boats are actually racing through, which is the only way to get images like these.
His friend was along for the ride – and a first go on the cat. A 20-mile round trip in 2-metre chop was, Evans acknowledged afterwards, probably not the ideal introduction.
William Evans, Snap Photography:
Amazing first race of the year! Bloody hard work, but amazing. Took a friend with me for his first go on the cat and a 20 mile round trip in 2m chop probably wasn’t ideal but it was definitely good fun. Was nice to come away with a bit of behind the scenes type shots as well with his 360 and GoPro. I also had my little DJI action cam time-lapsing from the engine.
Kohaku did not finish. Later in the race, C-88 hit an unseen ship’s wash near No Man’s Land Fort, went airborne and came down hard enough to tear the engine off its mountings – held in the boat only by its cables. Gary Aldington took his helmet off and asked the driver alongside him if he had a rope. The full story is here.
The day’s camera setup combined Evans’ main kit with his friend’s 360 camera and GoPro, plus a DJI action cam mounted to the engine to time-lapse throughout. The result covered both the racing and the unglamorous business of getting to it.
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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.
