By Ian Grant.
Whitsunday Sailing Clubs Klaus Lorenz and Ollie Annear will face a huge step up in class when they contest the Australian 420 dinghy championship on Brisbane’s Moreton Bay from December 27th to January 3rd.
During the past year Klaus Lorenz sailing the singlehanded Optimist dinghy finished third in the Australian championship contested on the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club courses on the Pittwater (North of Sydney).
Since then he and his good mate Ollie Annear have made the career decision to focus their careers on the 420 Class and possible future selection in the Australian Youth Team.
This represents a huge challenge for the teenage Airlie Beach crew who stand alone as the only 420 crew currently racing in North Queensland.
However they have shown the personal commitment to practice at every available opportunity including after school sessions on Pioneer Bay to make sure they will be competitive.
Practice time is important and while they face a tough task the crew understand that top fleet results are achieved by the crews who spend the endless hours on the training track.
When Klaus Lorenz announced that he and Ollie Annear were stepping up to race in the 420 class there were no promises or misconception about their results.
“We will face a total new learning curve however Ollie and I have been good sailing mates and that is a good start”. Klaus Lorenz said.
They will face a supreme test of tactical racing skill when they line up for the 2011-12 Australian championship on the Moreton Bay Boat Club courses over the open waters of Deception Bay.
But both sailors who spent their Optimist dinghy careers racing in similar conditions on Pioneer Bay will be aware that most of their rivals will also be racing on unfamiliar waters.
However Klaus understands the importance of achieving smart starts in clear wind and sea space and this will be a tactical priority when they test their boat speed against the best crews in the Nation.
The teenage Whitsunday sailors have already been welcomed into the friendly fellowship of the 420 class sailing family and will not be alone when the battle lines are drawn to decide the new National champion.
They will have access to advice from the Queensland Academy of Sport coach Adrian Finglas who as a former Australian 420 champion has helped to guide the Queensland team to achieve outstanding results at the national championships.
By Ian Grant.
The storm tormented Tasman Sea is certainly not the place to discuss the events of the day over a quiet lunch but apparently no one has told the legendary veteran skipper Bob Robertson.
Some time ago the self appointed ‘Knight of Queensland ocean racing’ stated he was done with the unfinished business of trying to win the gruelling 628 nautical mile blue water classic.
However the burning desire to equal the feat of Mackay navigator Bob Thomas who with his skipper Ed Psaltis of Sydney crewed Midnight Rambler to win the dramatic race in 1998 has prompted Sir Robbo to again face a supreme test of his personal tactics later this year.
He recently bought a new Beneteau First 40 class sloop and has christened the impressive challenger Lunchtime Legend which indicates the ‘Old Salt’ from Queensland’s Sunshine Coast has committed to a serious investment to have the chance of making space for a Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race trophy on his mantelpiece.
Lunchtime Legend still relatively short of racing trim with the builders dust in her bilge finished fifth in her class at the Audi Hamilton Island Race Week in August.
At the time her proud owner skipper said “This is the first step toward a last shot at the Sydney to Hobart”.
Naturally the dual winner of the Brisbane to Gladstone race and many other major places in Australian coastal classics including a third in the Rolex Sydney Hobart believes he has the experience and endurance to become a serious challenger when the fleet heads south on Boxing Day.
“I guess when you approach the sundown-side of sixty you could be classed among the pretenders but Lunchtime Legend has the crew experience and the potential handicap rated speed to be rated among the serious contenders”. Bob Robertson said.
Sure he was excited when he told this columnist of his intentions during a (QLD) quiet little drink on the deck of the Hamilton Island Yacht Club last August.
As proved in the past the veteran Sunshine Coast ocean racing sailor has never backed away from becoming involved in a tactical ‘dog-fight’ to protect his reputation.
He has personally endured the physical and mental torment of numerous Hobart races and after several years of enjoying a family Christmas and New Year with a boating holiday on Moreton Bay has laid up the retirement plan to refresh the experience of enjoying a post race celebration on Hobart’s historical Constitution Dock.
One of his Hobart Race rivals who should remain nameless has quoted ‘Sir Robbo’ as having made more comebacks than opera legend Dame Melba, however depending on luck and experience he may have the chance to sing the Queenslander song as part of the ‘quiet little drink’ during the post race celebrations at the Custom House Pub.
words – Andrew Gough
photo – Andrea Francolini
Not until the final draw of the official Yachting Australia Awards dinner last night did Queensland 420 and now 470 pair Angus Galloway and Alexander Gough released what their accomplishments meant, when they took out the Youth Sailor of the Year Award.
In a competitive category of entries including; Women’s Match Racing skipper Olivia Price, Australian Youth Sailing Team members Matthew Wearn, Ashley Stoddart and International Cadet sailors Anton and Julian Sasson, the experienced Queenslands claimed the prize and were extremely grateful.
The 420 team’s success came in Europe this year where they won both Kiel week the Junior Europeans, and finished a respectable 3rd in the ISAF Youth World Championships.
“We would both personally like to thanks Gill the Queensland Academy of Sport, Yachting Queensland and our club RQYS for their support, but we would also like to thank family and friends for getting us to this point in our sailing career and thank them for their support” Galloway said after the dinner. “Another huge thank you must go to our longtime coach Adrian Finglas, he has got us to the point we are today”
By Ian Grant.
The year of 1998 remains indelible in the minds of Australian sailors particularly those who experienced the mood swing of Bass Strait in its wildest moment.
Both Bass Strait and the Tasman Sea have never been rated as the most pleasant places to be when the storm winds torment the sea surface turning the challenge of the crossing into a test of personal survival.
Mackay seafarer Bob Thomas who has often said he prefers to sail in the warmer waters off Mackay and in the Whitsunday Islands has the career distinction of winning the navigators trophy when he and the co owner of Midnight Rambler Ed Psaltis won the 1998 Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race.
That enormous struggle to beat the threat of growling white crested waves and the roaring gales remain with every sailor who was at sea when the wild weather turned the 1998 blue water classic into a massive rescue mission.
What the fleet can expect in terms of weather this year has not interrupted the pre-race preparations for the crews of the Whitsunday Sailing Club entries Merit (Leo Rodriguez) and the Terry Archer helmed Questionable Logic.
They have lodged their entry which is yet to be officially confirmed by race management and safety officers.
However Merit which flew the now famous spinnaker with the words –We would rather be sailing in the Whitsundays- last year and Questionable Logic are expected to be official competitors when the fleet set sail on Boxing Day.
Meanwhile the year 1998 is remembered by Whitsunday Sailing Club officials and their happy team of volunteers who successfully hosted the Hog’s Breath World Hobie 16 catamaran championships on Pioneer Bay.
The regatta committee headed by Don Algie, Miles Wood and Geoff Smith set the foundation in place for the Whitsunday Sailing Club, Pioneer Bay and Airlie Beach to be internationally exposed as a World standard sailing venue.
Naturally South Africa’s Blane Dodds and Steve Arnold winners of the open men’s championship and the Australian crew of Kerry Ireland and Jacinta Tonner the open female champions both unanimously agreed that the venue was a perfect choice.
Sure their compliments at the time were appreciated by the club officials who understand they have a top class dinghy and yacht racing facility yet apart from hosting the Australian Sabot and Tasar championships and the annual Airlie Beach Race Week the excellent venue appears to have fallen from favour with the class associations.
Generally the decisions favour the clubs who support class racing but most of those clubs fail to compare with the Whitsunday Sailing Clubs access to a tourism related community which offers a selection of accommodation, restaurants and fast food outlets within a casual walk from the rigging area.
By Ian Grant.
OceanBuro the Sunshine Coast based professional sailing company have successfully introduced a strict one-design sports boat to the Australian yachting scene.
There were the expected sceptics when the high profile SB3 Dart made its initial debut under the Oceanburo banner however the class has continued to attract attention with fleet numbers growing throughout Australia.
The strict design pedigree and the flighty nature of this ‘clone’ class where the hull, sails, rig and mechanics are identical which provides all crews with an even chance off the start line has and will continue to attract the attention of the sailor who is searching to master a supreme personal challenge.
Queensland class stalwart Rod Jones held a personal vision that the exciting SB3 Dart would successfully fill an important place on the Australian regatta circuit.
His personal passion and vision to develop a one-design class of sailing for all Australians will be rewarded when the World championship (the first to be contested outside of Europe) is decided at Hamilton Island in December 2012.
Meanwhile the Australian crews which are expected to include Olympic helmsmen Nathan Outteridge (49er) and Matthew Belcher (470) will have a selection of major regattas to refine their skills before they face the starter’s orders on the windy Whitsunday Island waters.
“There is a growing interest in the class and we are expecting strong fleet numbers to contest the major regattas including the 2012 Australian championship in Tasmania next February”. Rod Jones said.
The talented ocean racing skipper Rod Jones who combined with his Mooloolaba mate Greg MacAllansmith and the multiple World championship winning helmsman Glenn Bourke to finish 4th in the 2011 SB3 Dart World championship in England are naturally accepted as the crew to beat after their runaway Queensland championship win at Hamilton Island last August.
However while this trio are presently ranked as the crew to beat they know from experience that past reputations can only be protected with winning on the race course.
The intense regatta campaign for the Queensland champions in Club Marine Blue commences with the Geelong Race Week on Corio Bay in late January followed by the Australian Championship on the River Derwent in February and their State championship defence at the Southport Yacht Club Sail Paradise regatta in March.
They have including the New South Wales championship at Port Stephens in their racing log for April as the final regatta before contesting the Wintersun championship series off Mooloolaba Beach during June and July.
By then the Club Marine Blue racing team of skipper Glenn Bourke, and his Sunshine Coast sail handlers Rod Jones and Greg MacAllansmith should have a guide on the boat speed and tactical standard they will have to produce to improve on their fourth at the 2011 Worlds when the tactical ‘slug fest’ for the 2012 World crown begins off Hamilton Island in late December.
You must have heard or read about the two former America’s Cup yachts being repaired in the Mackay Marina Shipyard. They belong to the Australian 12m Historic Trust and are on their way to Sydney; and need volunteer crew for the journey.
All members are invited to come along to the clubhouse this Friday evening at 6.00pm (21st October) to meet the president of the Trust, Ben Morgan. Even if you are not able to volunteer your services for the delivery trip to Sydney, Ben will be a very interesting person to meet and talk to about the activities of the Australian 12m Historic Trust. It will be held as an informal gathering in the ‘yachties corner’ of the clubhouse bar.
Ben is also about to do some sea trials of the two boats, and will be looking for some extra day crew for a media publicity event for the trust. Details of when are not finalised, but it seems most likely the two 12m yachts will accompany the club fleet for the Bailey Islet race on Sat 29th for the media event. Have a chat to Ben on Friday evening if you are interested in crewing for a sea trial.
You can get further info on the Australian 12m Historic Trust at their web site http://www.australian12m.com/ See also Ben’s email to all members of YQ & YNSW
Bob Critchley
Vice Commodore – Mackay Yacht Club
Ph 49546605, Mob 0408157521
Email – r.j.critchley@bigpond.com
KA-5 Australia & KA-14 Steak n Kidney
My name is Benjamin Morgan and I am the President of the Australian 12m Historic Trust. A newly formed volunteer association who’s charter is to acquire, restore and preserve Australia’s former America’s Cup 12m racing yachts. We have recently acquired the 1977 and 1980 America’s Cup challenger KA-5 Australia and the 1987 America’s Cup yacht KA-14 Steak n Kidney. Both yachts have just undergone a 2 month refit in preparation for their voyage from Mackay Harbour to Sydney.
This will be the last time that these two historic racing icons will travel down the eastern coast of Australia. We are planning to depart from Mackay on or around the first week of November 2011.
Our voyage to Sydney will have our two crews stopping each night at various ports and harbours down the Queensland and New South Wales coast – leading up to our arrival into Sydney Harbour. The two yachts will be operated by our organisation and used for a range of public events, charity events and schools training programmes.
It is planned that our arrival to Sydney Harbour will align with either a Saturday or Sunday, estimated to be either the 12th-13th or the 22nd-23rd of November 2011.
I will be providing email updates of our southern voyage and information regarding dates and times for ports we intend on visiting. We are anticipating extensive media coverage of our voyage south with Television, Newspaper and Radio coverage of our progress and expected arrival times.
A voyage plan is being prepared as I type and will be released in the coming week via email. This plan will contain details of the expected ports we intend on visiting and our estimated arrival times, stay time and departure times.
I would like to warmly invite all yacht club members down the eastern coastline to participate in our historic voyage south. You can do so by greeting our two yachts with spectator boats, yachts and watercraft – flying Australian Flags and Boxing Kangaroo flags.
During our time in each port, the two historic yachts will be open to the public for inspections and we of course welcome all yacht club members to visit our crews and to come on board.
Should you wish to know more about our historic voyage, please contact Ben Morgan on 0415 577 724 or reply to this email. Read more…
Please find below the link to the 2012 Australian Laser National Championships microsite.
http://www.rqys.com.au/index.php/2012-australian-laser-championship/
NOR, Entry List and other event information can be found.
Also attached is the Poster for the event.
Many thanks.
Kind Regards,
Debbie Stoddart – Secretary
M: 0410 665 850 | F: (07) 3204 4665 | E: sailing@qldlasers.com | P O Box 596, Kallangur Qld 4503
By Ian Grant.
Sandpiper skipper Colin Pruden has learnt to accept a minor role when he is invited to enjoy a meal with his sailing rival and father in law John Galloway.
The proud Sandpiper skipper naturally attempts to protect his space on the Whitsunday Sailing Club courses when Sandpiper goes head to head with the John Galloway skippered Queensland Marine Services but that changes during the friendly ‘banter’ at the meal table.
Both Queensland Marine Services and Sandpiper have a long history of successful racing on Pioneer Bay and naturally John Galloway and Colin Pruden are happy with their individual results.
However Colin Pruden who married Kathryn Galloway has learnt to understand that sailing families will always protect their reputations on the race course and John Galloway has always been known to be a fair and tough competitor.
Some time ago Colin Pruden told this columnist that he was a lone voice when both families talked sailing over a meal.
“We have managed to rib each other a bit which is accepted as par for the course”. He said.
Generally John Galloway has enjoyed holding the ‘bragging rights’ and that continued when daughter Kathryn guided by the tactical experience of her father successfully helmed Queensland Marine Services to a comfortable win in the Whitsunday Sailing Club Lady Skippers championship event on Pioneer Bay.
The daughter-father combination revealed the value of their long term sailing experience to ward off a strong challenge from the Michelle Webb skippered and Jeff Brown owned 007 while skipper Colin Pruden was forced to face some further verbal torment when Sandpiper filled third place.
“Really it’s all good fun and I’m well prepared to take the punishment”. He said.
However the new generation Sandpiper crew are confident of bridging the gap.
During a recent television interview with Channel 7 a relatively confident Colin Pruden spoke about the importance of understanding the local conditions after finishing with a deserved Silver Medal at the Audi Hamilton Island Race Week.
That result was a career highlight showing that the past generation Kim Swarbrick designed S111 Sandpiper can still race competitively in open company.
But a challenge remains for the Sandpiper crew to allow their happy skipper the opportunity to share the conversations when he enjoys the post race family feast with his wife’s family.
Presently the father and daughter combination have shown their class to rule the waves on Pioneer Bay leaving the vocal Sandpiper skipper to sit in silence when the family meet at the meal table.
Good afternoon everyone,
As per our discussions at the last committee meeting, I have put together a PRELIMINARY Notice of Race for theMoretonBay24hr Race 2012.
The aim of this event:
- to support a foundation/charity each year that the event is held – PRIMARY FOCUS
- to provide the opportunity for sailors inMoretonBayto experience / develop skills in an overnight sailing event in protected waters and within close proximity to safe harbours, support facilities etc
- to provide a possible lead up event for competitors in theBrisbanetoGladstoneevent
- to have fun
This year the Brain Foundation has been nominated as the charity for fund raising. This is to help support research into MSA which happens to be a cause close to a long term supporter and sailing friend amongst us all.
25-26TH February 2012 has been selected as it does not conflict with any other major events on the Calendars. Is 5 weeks out form the Brisbane to Gladstone Yacht race.
At this stage we are looking for feedback for support of the event. Also any ideas, suggestions etc that people believe may help the event / entrants.
Everyday Hero is an online company specifically set up to provide on-line websites for fundraising events. I have spoken to them and will set up an event website for donations and team fundraising to take place. They look after the donation, paperwork, receipts etc and guarantee at least 93% of the funds raised make it to the charity selected. More information about this will follow should feedback and support for the event be promising.
Thanks for your time.
Look forward to hearing back from you all.
Dave Moran
MBTBC Sailing Group Captain
0412 878 448