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Lake Minnetonka Sailing School is Hiring!

November 15, 2018 by Sail1Design Editor Leave a Comment

In Deephaven, sailing has been in style for over a century: Founders established the Minnetonka Yacht Club (MYC) in 1899 before Deephaven was even incorporated as a village.

Lake Minnetonka Sailing School (LMSS) started in the 1920s when MYC members were interested in organized sailing education for their children. For about twenty years, a volunteer group of parents ran private lessons out of the Minnetonka Yacht Club. The informal sailing school operated with a policy of BYOB- Bring Your Own Boat. Don Zinn, Brad Van Ness and Brad Robinson officiated LMSS from a function of the MYC Board of Directors into a separate non-profit organization in 1972. To this day, both MYC and LMSS call Lighthouse Island home.

Today, Lake Minnetonka Sailing School is one of the largest sailing schools in the nation with over 700 students enrolling each summer. Senior Coach Gordy Bowers won three Olympic medals during his years as Head Coach of the US Sailing Team.
The Lake Minnetonka Sailing School (LMSS) is seeking a full-time Race Team Director. This position will report to the Executive Director and they will collaboratively lead the Sailing School, events, programs, race teams and regattas.

The Race Team Director will be involved in all aspects of the sailing school and will have a spirit of continuous improvement and growth. This will include classroom curriculum, coaching high school sailing teams, and setting the groundwork for a year-round race team.

Kiwi’s Out Front: Yachting New Zealand’s Have a Go

November 12, 2018 by Taylor Penwell Leave a Comment

I’ve been coaching for ten years in the United States and internationally. Two months ago I moved to New Zealand to run a sailing program at the Queen Charlotte Yacht Club in Picton, located on the top of the South Island in the Marlborough Sounds. An interesting fact for me was that this small club hosted an Optimist Nationals years back in which winning America’s Cup skipper Peter Burling took home first place. As a nation, we all know that the Kiwi’s produce top notch sailors. As a country of under 5 million people compared to 330 million in the US, they also have many less people to pick from. So the beckoning question is, “what makes a nation with a small group of sailors so successful?”

I’ve found that one answer to this question is the country’s organizing sailing body, Yachting New Zealand’s, Have a Go. The other week, the Have a Go program came to my area, and I gave the Yachting New Zealand coach Simon a hand. This program is centered on getting the country’s youth into trying sailing by having kids take a day off school (who doesn’t love skipping school?) to come down and give sailing a go.

Have a Go was started and is able to continue through its sponsors. With Team New Zealand starting the initiative, the Lion Foundation joined to accelerate the program. Volvo also got involved by giving each coach a brand new car to pull the mobile trailer full of boats and gear from place to place. The other major sponsors are Zhik who supply the wet-suits and life jackets for sailors, Doyle Sails, and a NZ marine supply company called Burnsco, who supply spray tops.

Through these sponsors and with the help of many others and donations, the Have a Go program cost can remain low. The cost per sailor for a full days program is less than $20 US. A staggeringly cheap amount for a day on the water of sailing instruction.

Here is a bit more information on how it all works…

Who we are

Volvo Sailing… Have a Go! is Yachting New Zealand’s initiative to get children into sailing. Offered to schools throughout the country in term four and one, it is designed to give primary and intermediate school students the opportunity to try sailing in a safe and well-managed environment.

The aim of a Sailing…Have a Go! day is to provide kids with a fun, safe day on the water, with the hope that it captures the child’s imagination and they want to learn to sail. Host clubs are encouraged to use this opportunity to promote their learn to sail programme and club activities.

With a focus on water safety and building confidence in and around the water, kids are taught the importance of wearing adequate clothing and correctly-fitted life jackets, rigging, parts of the boat and the basic ideas behind how to make a boat sail. All this education is disguised by fun activities, capsizing and often a sneaky water fight!

“I really enjoy getting to help kids get out of their comfort zones through the Volvo Sailing… Have a Go! program. It is rewarding watching them out on the water for the their first time, have fun, and conquer fears. Many of the kids end up getting involved in the local sailing club which is always cool to see that I’ve had an impact on their sailing journey.” – Have a Go instructor Simon McVeagh

Yachting New Zealand have three trailers that travel the country, complete with six Optimists, one Weta trimaran, two Topper Taz and a RIB. They also provide all the gear, including wetsuits and lifejackets.

All schools need to do is show up to their local sailing club and go sailing.

Volvo Sailing… Have a Go! is suitable for students in years 4-8. Delivered by a fully qualified and experienced Yachting New Zealand instructor and assistant during school hours, the programme is offered to groups of 12-15 students as a:

Full-day session – one group for a full-day experience. $28 NZD ($18 US) per student
Half-day session – one group in the morning and another group in the afternoon. $18 NZD ($12 US) per student

Schools are responsible for:

Transport of the participants to and from the venue.
Providing at least one teacher or parent to be present during the course of the programme. They are welcome to come out on the water and have a go as well.
Ensuring all students have parent/guardian consent forms (provided by Yachting New Zealand) on the day and are able to swim 50m with a buoyancy aid.

Students with a disability

Sailing is a sport that allows everybody, regardless of ability or disability, to take part on a level playing field and the Volvo Sailing…Have a Go! programme is easily adaptable to ensure all students can participate and enjoy with their peers.

The Weta trimaran has proved to be very versatile and safe in a variety of conditions. It is fantastic for children who are initially nervous about sailing, building their confidence by going out with an instructor and other children.

It can be easily modified for people with a physical disability to take part in the sport alongside their peers.

Our coaches have all completed the inclusive coaching module, training stemmed from best practice of the Halberg Disability Sport Foundation. This training enables our instructors to be confident, knowledgeable and creative in adapting the programme to suit children with a disability – and nobody is left behind watching.

Where we came from

The Volvo Sailing…Have a Go! programme began in 2006 with one trailer. The Team New Zealand 2000 trust provided the original funding to get the programme started and the Lion Foundation continued to help as the programme evolved from one trailer to two and, in 2009, three trailers. In 2013, Volvo Cars New Zealand came on board as the naming rights sponsor in support of youth sailing.

Volvo Sailing…Have a Go! has taken more than 40,000 people sailing.

http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ygx1c85S5w

Have a Go is a breakthrough initiative and gets so many young people introduced to sailing who otherwise might never have. The goal is to get the interested students from Have a Go involved with their local sailing programs. Many of the students who came down for the Have a Go course in my area have decided they would like to join my clubs next Learn to Sail courses.

This program run by Yachting New Zealand is unlike anything in the states or provided by US Sailing. If a country the size of New Zealand can successfully run an initiative like Have a Go, a much larger country like the US, who has tremendous amounts of potential sponsorship funds should be able to put something similar in place to involve potential sailors at a young age and at a cost affordable to them.

https://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/learn-sail/volvo-sailinghave-go

S1D College Consultants WEBCAST & More!!

November 3, 2018 by Sail1Design Editor Leave a Comment

Welcome to the S1D College Consultants team. Here it is! Sit back, learn, and enjoy a video that was taken LIVE at our College Sailing 101 Conferences!

ICSA News: Conference Championships!

October 31, 2018 by Sail1Design Editor Leave a Comment

Photo: © 2018 Rob Migliaccio, All Rights Reserved

News Flash: S1D will present a Webcast of our College Sailing 101 Seminar at 5pm on Saturday 03 November! SIGN UP HERE and we will send you the link!! Learn more about S1D College Sailing Consultants!!

By Chris Klevan– There are moments, small and large, that cumulatively define a college sailor’s experience. It is hard to predict when these moments will materialize as something more than a single race or regatta. But if one had to guess, regattas like the War, Schell and Urn tend to hold their own place in the minds of college sailors past and present.

#1 Brown University won the Victorian Coffee Urn Trophy hosted by Bowdoin University. The Brown Bears edged #8 Boston College in the protest room after all other teams had left thinking Boston College won in a tie breaker. The Urn was an event that featured 11 of the top 20 ranked women’s team in the nation.

In the final race of the regatta, Boston College’s A-Division boat, Sophia Reineke ‘21 and Tara Ferraris ‘19 were attempting to protect a 3 points lead against Brown. Brown’s A-Division boat, Hannah Steadman ‘20 with Maxine De Havenon ‘19, Annabelle Hutchinson ‘21 and Emily Ito ‘19 had been sailing extremely well, stringing together all top-3s from race 2 to race 10. However, the tandem had stumbled a bit in the latter stages of the event opening the door for BC to hold a slim lead going into the last set.

BC’s Reineke and Ferraris knew to beat Brown they had to put up a good score. Unfortunately, however, Reineke and Ferraris had to tack in the zone at the top mark to stay in position to hold off Steadman and Brown. They fouled with many witnesses present. After the DSQ in race 14A, BC found themselves 15 boats back from the regatta win.

Though the regatta ended in a protest, Brown’s win came largely due to a 12 point victory in B-Division by Sophie Hibben ‘19, Emma Montgomery ‘22 and Megha Malpani ‘19.

“Our B-division of Sophie Hibben ’19 and crews Emma Montgomery ’22 and Megs Malpani ’19 have been steadily improving all fall and they really executed well at the Urn,” said Brown Coach John Mollicone, “Their starts were conservative but really good for most of the event and their speed and decision making was at the top of the fleet.” Mr. Mollicone continued to say:

“Winning both divisions was a plus, Hannah Steadman ’20 has won her division three weekends in a row (Showcase at Brown and Yale Women’s as well) so she has been really locked in as of late. Great starts and execution as well. She has a great group of crews that she sails with: Maxine de Havenon ’19, Emily Ito ’19, and Annabelle Hutchinson ’21.”

“Right now we have a lot of women’s depth, our other strong women’s boat sailed B-division at the Schell. We are happy about how we have been doing but still lots of room for improvement, particularly in lighter breeze like we saw at Nationals last spring.”

“The entire group really dealt well with the cold, wet, and at times miserable conditions at the Urn. It was total group effort and they were mentally prepared for it and kept a positive attitude at all times.”

Brown seems to be the top women’s team in the nation as their typical A-Division starter, Ragna Agerup ‘20 and Abigayle Konys ‘19 sailed B-Division for Brown at the NEISA Coed Championship.

#2 Yale finished 3rd with 149 points.

#3 Hobart and William Smith won the War Memorial at Navy. HWS finished the full, 36 race regatta with 170 points, 11 better than #2 Georgetown. “The course was the right length at full 20 minute plus races and the top boats had time to sail to the front of the pack,” said HWS coach Scott Ikle. “It was shifty but not crazy shifty and the top 3 teams had a boat speed edge and did a better job playing the shifts.”

“The conditions were great, beautiful wind, everyone got to sail,” continued Ikle. “It was a great event and Navy did a great job running it. One race could have shuffled the top 3 teams.”

Both HWS boats, Hector Guzman ‘20 with Chase Carraway ‘22 and Maya Weber ‘20 in A-Division and Charles Miller ‘19 with Lindsey Kloc ‘19 and Kyle Easton ‘20 in B finished second, including a 1,2,1 finish by Guzman and Weber to close out the regatta. Miller, Kloc and Easton finished with only 2 races outside the top-8 and Guzman, Carraway and Weber had 3. The B division boat had 9 finishes inside the top 3 while the A division boat scored 7.

The recent emergence of Charles Miller has been a game changer for the HWS team. The third skipper from last year’s team stepped into the starting role as Marlow College Sailor of the year finalist, Greiner Hobbs graduated. Miller, sailing primarily with Lindsey Kloc, has been one of the best in B-Division all year, displayed by a second place finish at the Showcase Finals last weekend. Ms. Kloc is one of the best crews in the nation this year and in their performance this is a team poised to challenge Yale in the spring. Miller and Kloc deserve a lot of credit for how HWS has finished the fall season and will be a major factor as they make a run at the National Championship in the Spring.

#2 Georgetown finished second with 181 points behind a B-Division win by Andy Reiter ‘19 sailing with Calire Mohun ‘19, Caroline Teare ‘21 and Haley Shea ‘19. Reiter, Mohun, Teare and Shea finished the regatta with 10 straight races inside the top-4. It was the effort of the B-Division boat that prevented HWS from pulling away.

#10 Navy finished 3rd with 198 points. Like Georgetown, it was the sailing of freshman Joseph Hermus with Kent Mathes ‘20 and Ana Mier ‘19 that kept the midshipmen in the hunt. Hermus, Mathes and Mier finished the regatta with 10 top-5s in the final 12 races sailed in B-Division.

“I was very impressed with Navy,” said Ikle. “I’m always impressed with Georgetown.”

The #1 Yale Bulldogs won the 78th Professor Schell Trophy held at Dartmouth College in a wintry mix. Patchy 0 to 10 knot breezes from various directions dictated the New England Championship as Lake Mascoma rewarded only sailors with refined boat handling and focus. Variable conditions coupled with extreme cold caused racing to develop slowly as races 8A and B were finished in absolute darkness with judge boats with running lights marked the finish line.

After Saturday’s racing it was #6 Harvard that held the lead as Henry Burnes ‘21 and Catherine Tang ‘19 had the day’s low score, finishing with three bullets in the 8 races sailed with and 6 of the 8 races were finished inside the top-3. “They couldn’t make a bad call.” said Harvard coach Bern Noack.

Despite the impressive sailing by Harvard, both Yale and #13 Dartmouth were within striking distance after Saturday at 12 and 6 point back respectively. Dartmouth hung around the entire event as Chris Williford ‘19 and Rebecca McElvain finished with only two races outside the top-7 en route to a second place finish in A-Division. Such consistency was especially impressive due to the instability of the conditions.

The conditions seemed to be getting the best of Nicholas Baird ‘19 and Sonia Lingos-Utley ‘21 as they scored three double digit finishes in the first 6 races sailed, a score-line uncharacteristic for Baird, a serious candidate for this year’s Marlow Coed College Sailor of the year, and Lingos-Utley, one of the best young crews in the game today. However, Baird and Lingos-Utley clearly figured it out after 6A, streaking 7 straight top-3 finishes, helping to spark Yale’s comeback.

“Graceann went in with Nic B for races 7&8A to end the day on a high note in the Z420’s,” said Yale Coach Bill Healy. “On Sunday with Sonia it was just focusing on the course; wind angle, wind location, fleet behavior, things like that. They had a good understanding of how to get off the line without being immediately at risk of missing the angle and puff that would take a group out of reach of the other group. That’s what hurt them on Saturday.”

If it was Baird and Lingos-Utley catching fire that spurred Yale’s come-from-behind victory, it was the efforts of Nick Hernandez ‘19 and Catherine Webb ‘22 in B-Division that kept Yale in position to win. Hernandez and Webb won B-Division with 70 points in 14 races and nothing outside the top-11. While they only won one race, they managed to finish inside the top 5 in ten of the 14 races sailed, clearly posting the most consistent scoreline at the event.

“Nick H and Catherine were just Steady Eddies’s,” said Healy. “Nothing flashy. They took very little risk and didn’t try and earn something that wasn’t there. Good starts and a VERY GOOD understanding of how to work the shifts and velocity changes on the beats. They were fantastic. That was their strong suit.”

Hernandez is having a sneaky good season in winning his division at the NEISA Conference Champs and the Showcase Finals along with 3 other top-4 finishes in A-Division at interconference events this fall.

Mr. Healy continued, “It was cold and wet and making sure we had the right gear on helped. It was hard for crews to stay warm and I think our crews did a little better than most in that respect. This helped them stay engaged on all races mentally and physically. Dartmouth is a tough place to be consistent against such strong competition. Instead of getting down after a tough race, it was ‘What did we learn from that last race to help in the future’?”

Connor Harding ‘19 and Jen Agell ‘19 of #9 Roger Williams University won A-Division in impressive fashion. Harding and Agell went on a run early in the regatta where they posted firsts in 4 of 5 straight races. Both sailors embody the spirit of college sailing as they’ve proven throughout this fall season that with hard work and a commitment to the sport you can beat anyone regardless of junior sailing resume.

Dartmouth finished second with 165 points, 18 points behind Yale. Harvard finished third with 180.

College of Charleston won both the SAISA Women’s and the SAISA Coed Championship last weekend. The perennial team to beat in SAISA maintained their impressive record against their conference. The Women’s event took place on Saturday alone and the Coed regatta was started Saturday and sailed primarily on Sunday.

Alie Toppa ‘20 and Annabel Carrington ‘19 won A-Division at the Women’s event handily, winning 6 of the 10 races sailed. The other 4 races were finished with seconds.. Toppa and Carrington have been one of the best women’s boats throughout the fall season. Liza Toppa ‘20 with Caroline Bracken ‘19 won B-Division capping another dominant in-conference regatta for Charleston.

#11 Charleston finished with 39 points in 20 races. Jacksonville finished second with 57 and USF finished 3rd with 62.

#10 Charleston won the SAISA Fall Coed Champs, also winning both divisions. Jack Brown ‘21 and Caroline Bracken won A-Division and Alie Toppa ‘20 and Annabel Carrington ‘19 won B. Brown and Bracken finishing inside the top-2 in 7 of the 9 races sailed and toppa and Carringot sailed with all top-4 finishes.

Eckerd finished second with 80, 36 points behind Charleston’s 44 and USF finished 3rd with 80 as well.

UC Santa Barbara won the PCCSC Fall Women’s Champs with 143 points after 17 races in each division. The Gauchos finished first and second in the combined division event behind the low score by Kerri Luttrell ‘21 and Olivia Beers ‘21, finishing with 65 points. Finishing second was Madeline Kraud ‘20 and Mary Toomey ‘21.

University of Southern California finished second with 211 and University of California at Los Angeles finished 3rd with 263.

While last weekend capped off competition in dinghy sailing. The Men’s and Women’s singlehanded national championship is set to take place next weekend and the ICSA Match Racing Championship will be sailed in two weekends.

Yale’s Nick Baird ‘19 will sail the Men’s Singlehanded championship despite finishing 5th, one spot outside of qualification at the NEISA Men’s Singlehanded Championship. The change occured because Boston University’s Javier De Urdanibia Panos ‘21 is in the hospital. We wish Javier a speedy recovery.

All information on the Intercollegiate Sailing Association can be found at collegesailing.org. All scores can be found at scores.collegesailing.org. Thank you for your support!

Up Your Performance: Tips To Changing Up Your Fitness Routine

October 30, 2018 by Rachel Goetting Leave a Comment

Looking for a way to up your sailing performance? Looking for a way to change up your fitness routine? Changing your routine and upping your performance is easier than you think. With a couple of easy tips, you can change up your fitness routine! Changing up your fitness routine will not only be fun, but you can better your sailing performance! With these simple tips and fun workout, you will see some significant performance improvements in your daily life and out on the water!

Tips To Changing Up Your Fitness Routine:

1. Step up your intensity
There are several ways to increase your intensity. It could be simple for example decreasing the amount of rest time or stepping up your speed in a workout. You could also do it by adding in drop sets, supersets, and slow reps. You know what kind of workouts you have been doing so think about how you could increase that intensity for a harder workout and better performance outcomes. It doesn’t have to be by much, but by changing it up a little bit every workout, you will see significant improvements in your performance. Up that intensity!!

2. Switch up your exercises/workout
To grow as an athlete and enhance your performance you need to target your muscles with a wide array of exercises and workouts. You need to challenge your body. Switching up your exercises and workouts makes your routine exciting and fun. You may not like doing those burpees but think of all the performance improvements you are going to gain. You don’t have to vary everything you do, start small and adjust exercises and workouts that change up that fitness routine a little bit at a time. Try something new!

3. Set a goal
Setting goals in your daily life are so essential for success. The same goes for your fitness routine. You want to have daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals for your fitness performance. Having these goals is what is going to increase your performance out on the water. These goals don’t have to be big, for example, a daily goal could be to complete 50 push ups. You want to think about what your fitness goals are and make a point to accomplish them daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. Accomplish those goals!!

4. Add a new fitness tool
Adding a new fitness tool can be fun and challenging! I remember when I first started using a sandbag for workouts. It was so challenging, but the results and performance I gained were amazing! You need to try something you have wanted to try and get after it! This may be as simple as trying paddle boarding or biking. It may be a new weight training tool, for example, a kettlebell or sandbag. Check out our previous articles for workouts using these tools: Kettlebell Training: New Workout To Add To Your Sailing Fitness Training and Sandbag Training: Build Serious Strength For Sailing. Try some new and have fun!!

5. Train other muscle groups
When we always use the same muscle groups, we aren’t going to see any major improvements in our performance. By surprising our bodies and using different muscles, we will change our muscles and see better gains. For example, I am trying to work on my grip strength and upper body strength, I don’t necessarily don’t like doing pull-ups, but I know I need them to help improve my grip and upper body strength. Also if you train one thing too often, it can lead to muscle imbalances and injury. Have fun and challenge your body!

6. Increase your weight
A couple of months ago I was ready for a change and challenge. So I decided to up my weight for some exercises. It was challenging at first, but it was fun getting stronger! Make sure you are ready for the weight increase and don’t overload your body. Make sure you don’t compromise form! Any weight increase is going to challenge your body and increase your performance. Increase that weight and watch your strength improve!!

Check out below our workout for changing your fitness routine up. We incorporated some high intensity and new fitness equipment for this routine. You can also watch the video for all the moves for the workout. Have fun using our tips to change up your fitness routine and watch your performance out on the water improve!

Change It Up Workout:

Warm Up with Dynamic Stretching (5 minutes)

Core Activation:
Plank (45 seconds)
Single Leg Squat (30 seconds each side) Diamond Push Ups (45 seconds)
Switch Lunges (45 seconds)
Repeat 3x with 30 secs between each set

The Workout:

Ski Abs (45 seconds)
Butt Kicks (45 seconds)
Jump Squats (45 seconds)
Switch Kicks (45 seconds)
Repeat 3x with 15 seconds rest between sets

Sandbag Bent Over Row (15 reps)
Sandbag Bearhug Squat (20 reps)
Sandbag Standing Overhead Press (12 reps)
Repeat 3x with 30 seconds rest between sets

Mountain Climbers (45 seconds)
Switch Lunges (45 seconds)
Lateral Plank Walk (45 seconds)
Jumping Jacks (45 seconds)
Repeat 3x with 15 seconds rest between sets

Kettlebell Single Leg Deadlift (15 reps each side)
Kettlebell Windmill (15 reps each side)
Kettlebell High Pull (15 reps)
Kettlebell Shoulder Halo (10 reps each direction)
Repeat 3x with 30 seconds rest between sets

Finish with 1 Mile Run (push yourself!) or Chest/Tricep Superset

Chest/Tricep Superset:
15 Tricep Dips immediately 20 Push Ups
Repeat 3x rest 15 seconds

Cool Down with Foam Rolling and Static Stretching (5 minutes)

For more information on fitness for sailing contact [email protected]. Also check out Sailorcise on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for daily tips on fitness, nutrition, and sailing.

2018 Etchells World Championships Report

October 29, 2018 by Taylor Penwell Leave a Comment

The 2018 Etchell World Championship concluded this past Saturday. 94 teams competed to prove who was the best in the world. The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron in the Brisbane suburb of Manly, hosted the championship which kicked off on Sunday, October 21st and finished on the Saturday the 27th.

Day 1: The feeling on shore was that the day was going to be grand. But once competitors reached the sailing area out past Green Island, the 8-10 knots from the southeast that had been gracing the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron in Manly were nowhere to be found. With light wind direction varying from 010 to 110 degrees, it wasn’t a surprise when the postponement pennant was raised before midday.

With the postponement in effect, the crews were trying their best to avoid the gazing sun by taking refuge in whatever shade they could find. The breeze decided to show around the mid afternoon with 12 knots, the prospect of two races for the day had past and only once race was scored the first day. The right of center side of the course proved to be the place to be going upwind on the 2.5 nautical mile haul to the windward mark.

The first race went to Havoc, AUS 1461, skippered by Iain Murray, with Grant Simmer and Richie Allanson aboard. After the racing Murray said, “It is nice to start the regatta, and sail well in the first race. There are a lot of anxious people out there so getting a good start and first beat to windward, where you can find your rhythm without too much angst is a great way to begin a campaign. We have been working hard on our trim in the last couple of days with our coaches. We have found an easier way to sail the boat, which allows us a little more flexibility in the waves, and not as cranky boat as we’ve had in the past.”

Reigning World Champion Steve Benjamin, with Michael Menninger, Ian Liberty, Jonathon Goldsberry, on board Stella Blue finished 18th in the first race. Benjamin said, “The race course was absolutely perfect. The race management was spot on, and they waited just the right amount of time to get the race away and it was dead true.”

Day 2: The ultra-light and variable wind at the beginning of the regatta posed a challenge for the race committee who wanted to do the best job they could in making sure they got the racing in. Nine races in total would be ideal, seven makes for good times, and six is acceptable for the championship to count.

With another postponement, it was clear that the day would only have one race. With wind settling in at 12 knots, the longer Course 1 was chosen, which adds an extra leg with an upwind beat to the finish. Though the conditions weren’t cooperating as hoped, it did not deter the competitors enjoyment. War Canoe, USA 1363, skippered by Michael Goldfarb, with crew Morton Henriksen and Skip Dieball are in 12th place this evening scoring a 14th and a 18th place. Goldfarb said, “We are so psyched to be here. It is an amazing place to sail. It is a big, open piece of water. It’s also really exciting, and there are so many boats. It is also a difficult and challenging stretch of water, so in combination with all the great sailors that have amassed here, well, there is not a lot of room for mistakes. We love it here, and appreciate all the hospitality. The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron is fantastic.”

Day 3: The third day looked like it had a great chance of getting both scheduled races in. With the plan being that the 94 boat fleet sail the shorter course, Course 2, to save some time. The first start saw a U Flag and after a general recall in the second race, the race committee went to a Black Flag. Unfortunately, both races claimed victims and the bar saw some sailors much earlier than anticipated.

The first race had a steady 10 knots with the tide running from South to North. Unlike the first days race, starting left was favoured, but you did want to cross back early, and not end up near the islands, for this put you out of the game. Those that did mentioned above, slaughtered those coming out from the right. The second race was positioned closer to the Yacht Squadron and the shorter Course 2 was run with a range of 2.3 nautical miles.

It has to be said that consistency pays off in racing. Many of Etchells regatta champions have been won without the winning boat having a first place finish in any race. Such was the case after the second day of racing finished with Mark Thornburrow, Mike Huang, Alexander Conway and Will Ryan on HKG 1406 leapfrogging over Lisa Rose who held the top spot last night. A fourth and a fifth place today gave them a five point spread over the second place crew.

“It has been great and the biggest thing, which applies to all the Etchells, has been the sharing of information. The skill is there, so it really has come down to getting used to the big fleet. So it is about trying to manage that, and also the tide flows. We have been paying a lot of respect to the latter, so are really happy to not have been pinged, so far. There is plenty of space on the line, so it is about finding your lane and we really are having a good time.”

Day 4: Two races were conducted on the fourth day of racing. This brought the total number of races completed to six, which at minimum constituted the series. Everyone was pleased to have reached this marker and many thanks to the race committee team under the helm of the Wilson Brothers for this. Like in previous days, the U Flag was displayed in the first race, claiming a number of victims. The race committee decided to use the Black Flag in the second race and just one crew had an early visit to the bar after the start of race six.

Lawrie Smith, Richard Parslow, Goncalo Ribeiro and Pedro Andrade on Alfie GBR 1434, won race six. They were part of a day when the internationals did really well, and regularly occupied top ten spots during all the mark roundings Others included Skanky Gene USA 1464, America’s Jud Smith driving Roulette, and then USA 926, Oatmeal, which was Peter Duncan, Andrew Palfrey, Victor Diaz de Leon, and Sasha Ryan.

Day 5: The fifth day of racing came with a nice 10 knots of breeze. But there was a catch, and that catch was the tide beginning to ebb from the full moon the night before. The massive tide caused the walkways to the floating marina to be almost an uphill walk to where the boats were. By the fifth day more of the international teams had worked out the tides which resulted in many more of them in the top places at the mark roundings and finishes.

Race seven got off without a hitch but race eight had to be abandoned after two legs. The fleet then asked if the start time for racing could be moved up for the last day in order to get nine races in.

Leading into the final day for the overall win, along with those for the Master and Senior Divisions, rested with Martin Hills skippering Lisa Rose AUS 1449 and crewed by Julian Plante, Sean O’Rourke, and a talented local sailor by the name of Mat Belcher, who can draw upon his eight 470 World Championships. Hill said, “It is so difficult, with the long 1.2km line here, and just a shift on that first leg can give you 15 places before you know it. Get on the right end of that and it is great. The wrong end, and well, it is hard to pass 40 boats.”

Lisa Rose held a three-point lead over second place Gen XY, with Racer C seven points behind them. The Corinthian Division is by far the biggest in the fleet with over 50% of the armada contesting for this most coveted of trophies. The Corinthian leader was in 16th place overall, with a Black Flag from the third day of racing really hurting them.

Final Day: A classic mix of sun and just enough wind for the last two races characterized the final day of racing. Teams assembled on the race course for the earlier start with breeze from the southeast at 7 knots. The shorter Course 2 was selected and the first race would go to the leader, Lisa Rose skippered by Martin Hill, but the racing wasn’t over. Race two got underway with the breeze building to 12 knots. With the moved up start time, race committee was able to run the longer Course 1 for the last race of the championship. Villiam Voermann, Lucas Down and Gary Van Lunteren on Triad took the final race. Voermann said, “A good clean start, and a textbook race with fast boat speed were essential. We played the shifts as well, as there were a couple in the first half of the first work to windward. So we stayed in phase, and kept mostly to the middle and ultimately it opened for us. The tide also dragged us up to the weather mark, as it began to ebb.”

The popular Iron Lotus crew of Tom King, Ivan Wheen, David Edwards and Greg O’Shea finished 13th place overall, making them the top Corinthian team, with a 49th place as their worst result once their Black Flag had been discarded.

The Grand Masters was won by John Bertrand, with Noel Drennen and Ben Lamb. The top female helm was Jeanne-Claude Strong who apart from collecting a race win, also finished in 20th place overall with her crew, Seve Jarvin, Marcus Burke and Jen Danks.

Chairman of the organizing Committee, David Irvine, was a proud man at the end of the final day. “Who would have thought around five years ago when we decided to go for it that we would be standing on the deck now, with just presentations to go, which will be my last official duty. In addition to the turnout, I think the conditions have been another highlight. We concentrated on giving people the best regatta we could on the ground, and the vibe in the boat park has been great. My back is sore from all the pats, and my right hand from all the shakes. That’s the best news, and I am very humble and very proud to be associated with this regatta.” In closing Irvine also said, “The number of people involved has been phenomenal. Today we had 27 people out there on start, mark, and safety. We had to make more shirts for the entire group, and it was in excess of 160. Their efforts equate to well over a thousand hours too. It is fantastic for the club, as well as the class. The Wilson brothers have been fantastic, and none of it would have been done without the committee that arranged it all.”

Congratulations to the to 1st place finishers aboard AUS 1449 skippered by Martin Hill and crew Sean O’Rourke, Julian Plante, and Mat Belcher who finished almost twenty points in front of the second place finishers. Second place went to HGK 1406, skippered by Mark Thornburrow with crew Mike Huang, Alexander Conway and Will Ryan. Coming in 3rd place by only two points was AUS 864, skippered by Matthew Chew with crew Brian Donovan, Ben Vercoe, and Ashley Deeks.

Results

https://www.sailwave.com/results/2018EtchellsWorldChampionships.htm

The 2019 Etchell World Championship will be held in Corpus Christi, USA and the 2020 in Perth, Australia.

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