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Overall Results
Results
summary
Overall
1st
Wayne Bates 1610 "Outabaloo" - Irwin sail
2nd
Alan Riley 1564 "The Sea Drift Social Club" - Hooper sail
3rd
Michael Johnson 1694 "Bojdeh" - Hooper sail
4th
Matt Westland 1697 "Zahir" - Walker sail
5th Barry Eastgate 1611
"Big Day Out - Irwin sail
Juniors
1st
Douglas Copson 1370 "Arm Chair Admiral"
2nd
Rhys Witt 1408 "Footloose"
3rd Red Barrett 1314
"Blue Thunder"
Seniors
1st
Wayne Bates 1610 "Outabaloo"
2nd
Michael Johnson 1694 "Bojdeh"
3rd Maree Early 1613
"Hello Buoys"
Ladies
1st
Maree Early 1613 "Hello Buoys"
2nd
Natalie Farrell 1622 "Miss Appropriation"
3rd Sarah Naismith 1104
"Bottoms Up"
Masters
1st
Alan Riley 1564 "The Seadrift Social Club"
2nd
Matt Westland 1697 "Zahir"
3rd Chris Keil 1446
"About Time"
Grand
Masters
1st
Barry Eastgate 1611 "Big Day Out"
2nd
Trevor Naismith 1655 "Power of One"
3rd John Dixon 1146
"Riposte"
Veterans
1st
George Fish 1443 "Precious Pumkin"
2nd
Phillip Johnson 1644 "Shearwater"
3rd Albert Riley 1629
"Drumbeat"
Read Wayne Bates report
Story
of the championship
Wayne Bates sailing Outabaloo won his 3rd title in 4 years
and his 5th Australian championship overall...who knows how many he
would have won by now if he hadn't been out of Sabres for over ten
years.
Wayne is
renowned for his heavy weather skills and this stood him in good stead.
Ten championship races and 2
invitation races were scheduled but due to high winds, only 8 races
could be completed over four sailing days. There was a distinct lack of
enthusiasm to sail the invitation races as it was blowing 30-35 knots
with some sailors not even turning up at the club and instead visiting
tourist venues such as the Port Arthur convict prison ruins.
The first day of championship
racing was also cancelled and 3 races were scheduled for the next day.
Race officials were keen to complete them and the first race averaged
30-40 knots NW with the 40 knots recorded on the start boat a few
minutes after the start. The shifty high wind and relatively flat water
made for very exciting sailing with a number of spills. The strong flow
in the middle of the Derwent river meant that the eastern shore with
less flow was favoured and it looked quite spectacular with 44 Sabres
tacking in close proximity within 100 metres of the shore.
Wayne Bates won comfortably from
dual past champion Michael Johnson and National President Chris Keil.
There were bent masts , broken booms and vangs and assistance provided
to a number of boats with retirements of a number fancied contenders.
Race 2
followed a similar pattern with the wind averaging 30 knots.
Wayne won
again from defending champion Alan Riley and Barry Eastgate.
Race 3
was late in the day and the wind eased to about 5-20 knots. It paid to
work the shifts rather than a shoreline out of the current. Maree Early
used the shifts to advantage after moving to the lead with superior
downwind speed. Unfortunately, a southerly change arrived for the start
of the last upwind leg which turned it into a reach. This allowed Chris
Keil to sail over Maree and as the wind died near the finish line,
Albert Riley and Alan Riley also managed to sail past her.
1st Chris
Keil, 2nd Albert Riley, 3rd Alan Riley
Race 4
(New Years Eve) was the only 'long' course of the series and was sailed
in 8-12 knots S with a 30 degree SW shift on the last leg to the
finish. This was the only race of the series where the upwind legs were
favoured by the river flow and boats that started in clear air mid line
to pin end that got to the middle of the river first benefitted most.
There was relief that we now constituted a series, albeit
with no drops.
1st Alan
Riley, 2nd Michael Johnson, 3rd Barry Eastgate
Officials
planned 3 races for the day after New Years Eve but only 2 were
completed.
There had
been heavy rain on NYE and on NYD which resulted in the strongest river
current of the series and for the non Tasmanians, the strongest
tide/current anyone had sailed in.
Races 5
and 6 were sailed in a shifty 20-25 knot NW wind.
In race 5 Lindisfarne local Matt Westland who is new to
Sabres led for most of the race only to be overhauled by Wayne Bates.
1st Wayne Bates, 2nd Matt Westland, 3rd Michael Johnson.
Alan Riley
was 7th and with a DNF in race 1 meant the fight for 2nd and 3rd spots
was hotting up.
Race 6
resulted in another win by Wayne.
1st Wayne
Bates, 2nd Alan Riley, 3rd Michael Johnson
A third race was started and Wayne
led this race from Barry Eastgate and Alan Riley with a big gap to the
next bunch at the start of the run. The wind suddenly increased to 40
knots and the bottom mark started drifting towards pylons of the Tasman
bridge. By the time Wayne reached the mark it was only about 80 metres
from the bridge and despite trying to gybe ("Boony") he went in. He
quickly righted and managed to get round the mark and headed off for
the finish. In the meantime Barry arrived at the mark and had only
about 30 metres of room left with a big backwash from the bridge. By
the time a discretionary "nanny" was completed there was no room left
with an official boat trying to get hold of the mark. Alan had flipped
and needed assistance to get him away from the bridge and officials
then abandoned the race.
Skippers
were advised to drop their masts that night as the forecast was looking
ominous. Sure enough the next day was one of the windiest recorded in
Hobart with frequent gusts of 70 knots. A few brave souls led by Wayne
Bates went to the top of Mt Wellington and experienced/suffered some of
the highest winds ever recorded there.
In order
to open the car door you had to push with both arms and legs. Fisty
(Andrew Fist) only had shorts, sandals and a jumper but somehow managed
to avoid hypothermia...probably due to the beer and Jim Beam consumed
late each night/early morning during the week at the Wayne Bates Tapas
Bar (alias Beltana Hotel).
Final
day
A number of the Beltana crew were heavily afflicted by the
"Beam virus" which struck the night before and this combined with the
lightest conditions of the series did not make for good decision making.
Despite
this, Wayne wrapped up the championship with a 2nd and 3rd.
Race 7
Maree Early showed some of her pre championship form to win
comfortably from Wayne. Dean Francis from Adelaide showed a dash of
light weather form to finish 3rd. Any one of about 10 boats could have
filled the placings with about 200 metres to go. Michael Johnson
dropped from 3rd to 8th in the last 80 metres after sailing around the
outside of a big shift and failing to cover his nearest rival Alan
Riley who reached down to the line on a gust from nowhere.
1st Maree
Early, 2nd Wayne Bates, 3rd Dean Francis
Race 8
- 5 knots 360 degrees
This race should never have been started. The wind was
swinging wildly before the start with occasional tantalising gusts of
about 15 knots from the west making it difficult to set a course.
Despite pleas from many sailors to abandon, officials started the race
in about 5 knots which soon dropped to almost nothing. The 'windward'
leg turned into a farce with boats running 10 metres from boats that
were beating, or boats pointing in the same direction but on different
tacks. A light southerly eventually kicked in and officials shortened
the course to finish at the end of the second 'reach'.
1st Jeremy Fish, 2nd Maree Early, 3rd Wayne Bates
This meant
that 2 races could now be dropped which did not effect the first 5
places but did effect positions of boats lower down who had DNFs.
Wayne more than deserved his win
and paid tribute to his family, fellow competitors, drinking mates and
in particular the Tasmanian sailors such as Andrew Bradshaw and Chris
Keil and Lindisfarne SC for organising and hosting the series. Wayne
also paid tribute to his inspiration and hero David Boon "Boony" (ex
Australian Test cricketer) for the 'heart' to complete some of the
35-40 knot gybes. He noted that the fleet comprised a wide range of
experience and ages and it is a credit to each competitor that they
completed such a testing championship. The series was also a testament
to the quality of the Sabre design.
Barry
Eastgate
1611 Big Day Out
(It was a
big series out)
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