9 Boats entered for a hotly contested State Titles held at Teralba Aquatic Club on the weekend of the 27th/28th November 2021. We welcomed 5 of our newest members to the regatta and they showed the benefit of close club racing. Coming to Sabres from a range of backgrounds, (Lasers, VS, Spirals) this showed the class as it should be; competitive, friendly and supportive. Congratulations go to the dominant boat across the series, Dead Reckoning sailed by Troy Lewis who handled the demanding conditions the best and most consistently. 2nd was club mate and finish line “snatcher” Warren Ruprecht in Just in Time, the man primarily responsible for the growth of the class at Taree.
Heats 1 and 2 were cancelled under the safety rule (for both entrants and the starters) by the Teralba Race Committee, a sensible decision given the south Westerly was recorded as gusting to 33 Knots!! So a sad Saturday was filled in in other ways with a couple of nutters going for a “sail” regardless.
With three races scheduled for Sunday and the NOR listing 3 as a series we reassembled early Sunday morning. Heat 3 was started in a freshening breeze with gusts 12-18 from the South. The fleet was reasonably bunched for the first lap but Shake, Rattle Roll which led all the way, was able to handle the freshening breeze the best and cleared out to win by 24 seconds from Dead Reckoning and Just in Time a further 34 seconds behind. There was only 2 mins and 49 seconds from first to last to reflect the close racing that was a feature of the regatta.
Heat 4 was started straight away and saw Dead Reckoning hit the lead and stay there. Several places changed hands but as the breeze lightened the fleet split with the Kogarah Bay boats choosing the deader side of the work. A tight finish saw places hard fought in the drifting conditions at the finish line but Dead Reckoning held on.
Heat 5 was sailed after the general regatta had finished and the clear water was now being churned up by a freshening Southerly, gusting beyond 20 Knots. With all 3 heats to count, Dead Reckoning only had to finish 2nd to win the title. Again he showed his power at the start to jump away. His main rival, Shake, Rattle, Roll, suffered a catastrophic in backwards capsize after losing the mainsheet but Dead Reckoning hit the lead. Despite inroads being made by Playtime and Firefly, he held on to win by 22 seconds from a fast finishing Just in Time, who snuck into the frame by staying wide over the run home. It was a tiring, and as I said earlier, highly competitive and enjoyable regatta. The 5th heat saw the whole 9 boats finish within 1 minute and 8 seconds!!
Our thanks go to the Teralba club, the officials and volunteers for their welcome and for fitting us in around their annual regatta.