‘They won’t insure us nutters’ — survivors of spectacular jetboat crash see the funny side

Source:

Two jet boat competitors who survived a spectacular crash in Whanganui are ready to get back on the water.

Survivors of spectacular jetboat crash ready to get back on water

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Pilot Rob Coley and navigator Kellie Minnell went flying when their jetboat clipped a tyre, landing down a 30m bank.
 Source: ONE News

Competing in the national finals yesterday pilot Rob Coley and navigator Kellie Minnell went flying when their boat clipped a tyre, landing down a 30 metre bank.

Travelling at 130kph the boat quite literally took off at the New Zealand JetSprint champs.

“We were upside down barrel rolling like a torpedo, pretty much how many we did I’m not sure, but we landed up the right way at the bottom of a ravine,” Coley told ONE News.

It was a 30 metre drop that left the driver bruised and his navigator wife with a broken nose.

“He’s mad dog, Coley, and I’ve been named cannonball Cowell,” Minnell said.

The boat coming off second best is now destined for the scrap heap.

Without insurance, the pair say they’ve lost about $200,000.

“Unfortunately they won’t insure us nutters haha,” Coley says.

Spectacular crash at NZ Jetsprint Championships

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Both drivers walked away relatively unscathed despite a 30 metre drop down hill.
 Source: Supplied

These boats can travel from zero to 120kmh in just 1.2 seconds.

Accidents are not uncommon but no one has ever been killed. They say safety the main priority.

“If you’ve got top quality gear then it does a top quality job really,” Minnell says.

The husband and wife duo says they’ll be back on the water for the World Champs next month.

Originally published at www.tvnz.co.nz.