The first day of the International Etchells Australasian Championship was exceptionally challenging with breeze from west, round to sou’east, and sou-west over the course of the day.
“It was lovely Moolooalaba winter weather” said Malcolm Page, tactician on RacerCC currently placed second in the International Etchells Australasians.
“It was pretty toasty being a southerner, and the wind was better than predicted, although pretty shifty, as it was west off the land”, he surmised.
“GT [Graeme Taylor] was probably the boat of the day but he had a little issue in the middle of the day with a disqualification for being over the start line. The middle race was really shifty with 40-50 degree shifts. JC was exceptional to do well in that race. We were sailing from fully hiked to being on the leeward side. It was seriously tricky”.
“Plenty of stuff to work on as always” he finished.
While RacerCC is currently placed in second, and the team on Magpie had two firsts, there is no denying who sailed exceptionally well today on average, and that was AUS1475, Flying High.
“Today was a very long day,” said Seve Jarvin, the tactician on Flying High.
“The wind was all over the place and the race committee did a good job to get the three races in. We were lucky to get off the start line well in two races, and the team sailed amazingly. Special mention to our super crew Sebastian I think he would be the lightest crew ever on an Etchells at 26kgs”.
“Was a great day on the water in tricky conditions” said Graeme Taylor, skipper of Magpie.
“JC did an awesome job. We need to be a little less eager to prove ourselves, as in race two”.
There are still a number of races to be sailed over the course of the weekend, and drops yet to be in play stay tuned to our social media channels for live updates.
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Image credit – Keynon Sports Photos
Fast Facts
- The Etchells class was originally designed as a three-person keelboat with the potential of being an Olympic class, but it was never selected. The designer, Skip Etchells could have never dreamed of the class that he would create when they were first launched in 1966.
- We now see Olympians, America’s Cup racers and the top of our sport line up in this one-design class, which really pegs the skill of sailors against their fellow sailors.
- John Bertrand AO, skipper of Australia II, chooses to race an Etchells for some of the toughest, and closest racing that you will see in sailing.
- The Etchells sailboat is 22 feet long waterline with a crew of three or four people. It features a high-performance design with a sleek hull, a fixed keel, and a large sail area.
- The boat’s strict one-design rules ensure that all Etchells boats are nearly identical in terms of design, weight, and equipment, placing a premium on skill and tactics rather than equipment.
- The racing is what is referred to as “around the cans” racing in sailing. The fleet will start over an imaginary start line, do a specified number of laps, and then cross the finish line.
- Etchells class racing is known for its competitiveness and attracts both amateur and professional sailors. The class has a strong international presence, with fleets located in various countries. The Etchells World Championship is a highly regarded event in the sailing community, showcasing the skills of top sailors from around the world.
- The place that you finish, is the number of points that you get, and at the end of what will hopefully be eight scheduled races, the boat with the lowest score will be crowned the Australasian Champion.
- Consistency is king, and no doubt the fleet will put on a fantastic show for locals over this June long weekend.
For video and live updates, head to Etchells Australia on Facebook or @etchellsaus on Instagram.
Contact
Nicole (Nic) Douglass
Media Manager – International Etchells Class Australia
