Please select your home edition
Edition
Elvstrom Sails Australia

Audi Hamilton Island RW - Beau Geste takes title with a day to spare

by Lisa Ratcliff on 27 Aug 2016
2016 AHIRW - Team Beau Geste Andrea Francolini Photography http://www.afrancolini.com/
The new format Australian Yachting Championship title concluded on the final windy day of Audi Hamilton Island Race Week, Saturday August 27, and two winners from the 2015 series returned to glory after five days of racing in the Whitsunday islands playground.

Rating Division A & B

Karl Kwok and Team Beau Geste’s final blast around the Molles Islands group in 28 knots SSE breeze was merely the victory lap for the Hong Kong/New Zealand team’s third consecutive Australian Yachting Championship title.

“Three in a row, the trilogy…. we are very lucky. The team worked hard,” said Kwok. On their hidden strength he reckons, “the core of the crew have been racing 52s for three sessions; Hamilton Island, Airlie Beach and before that some were on the Vespa 52 program in America. And all of us remember sailing here so well, we are no stranger.”



On their plans for the 2017 title, Kwok says the team hasn’t talked yet. “The best sailing for us living in Hong Kong is Australia and New Zealand.”

Beau Geste wrapped up what was the IRC Australian Championship at Hamilton Island in 2015 with the same boat and in 2014 they won at Newcastle with Kwok’s previous Beau Geste.

Matt Allen’s TP52 Ichi Ban finished second to Kwok on IRC and Phil Turner’s RP66 Alive, sailing for Tasmania, won the ORCi series.

Rating B IRC winner Stephen Barlow and his crew on Barlow’s Farr 40 called Forty campaigned brilliantly to cement the IRC win from Peter Sorensen and Botany Access Cocomo.

Barlow had designs on the Australian title that were no secret, and to achieve the result he drew together a bunch of professional sailors who happened to be old mates, as a one-off. “We get on well as a bunch of blokes, which is a big part of my life,” Barlow said.

Craig Neil’s JV42 Elena Nova won the ORCi top prize in Rating Division B.

Rating Passage

Ray Roberts’ chartered Sydney 38 Team Hollywood aced the Rating Passage series, winning from Rob Date’s refurbished Victorian Adams 10, Scarlet Runner, by four points under IRC and also taking out the ORCi first place.



“Winning seems easy at the end, but it was a tricky and close week of racing,” Roberts admitted. He’s put together many prize-winning campaigns over the years, including three or four division wins at Audi Race Week, but it’s been ages since Roberts won an IRC title. “I won the first ever IRC national title in 2000, it was connected to the Sydney Olympics,” he recalled.

Racer Cruiser

Canberra sailor Matt Owen’s extraordinary success at Audi Race Week over the years continues with yet another division win, this time in the Racer Cruiser category, giving him back-to-back national titles at Hamilton Island where he escapes each August from the ACT’s winter chill.

This year Owen skippered the Southport based Sydney 32 called Onyx on behalf of its owners, the Hutcheson family. “They are long-time family friends and we are very proud they let us punters from Canberra use their boat,” Owen said. “We showed them what their boat can do.”

At half the size, the only time Charles Curran’s 60-footer Sydney and Onyx really came together was on the series scoresheet, duelling for the top spot, though today Owen spotted his nemesis: “It was the first time we saw Sydney on the race course, it’s hard to race against the benchmark when they are in a different suburb.”

An 18th in today’s fast passage race moved Sydney into third overall after five races, the Edwards/Green owned Beneteau White Noise slipping into second.

The newly added Racer Cruiser category is scored under a performance handicap system, which means a boat’s handicap rating may be adjusted throughout the series based on performance.

Multihull Racing

Simon Hull’s foiling GC32 Frank Racing dominated the inaugural Multihull Racing championship division and despite electing not to race in Saturday’s fresh conditions, the Kiwi team takes the inaugural Multihull Racing Australian championship title home to New Zealand.

“We are thrilled to take out the championship,” Hull said today while packing the boat for shipping. “I think the standard of racing among the high-performance multis has been very impressive - it was a fiercely fought championship. The conditions played into our hands, they were good foiling days other than today, which would have been pretty severe.”



Second was George Owen’s Grainger 10, APC Mad Max, and third Chris William’s Lombard Tri, Morticia.

Summing up this year’s Australian Yachting Championship, president of the national body Australian Sailing and competitor Matt Allen said, “Hamilton Island has again delivered a wonderful week of racing, a mix of challenging courses and strong currents which always tests the crews. Our thanks to Glenn Bourke and his team who ensured a great week for everyone.



'It has also been a fantastic celebration of sailing with the Australian Sailing Team joining us on their return from Rio. They have been overwhelmed by the warm welcome they received from the sailing community,' Allen added.

Dates for the 2017 Australian Yachting Championship are confirmed, Thursday 23 to Sunday 26 March, conducted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia. The format will be three windward leeward races on both Thursday and Friday, then a passage race on both Saturday and Sunday.



Results:

Rating Racing Div A

Series Results [IRC Div A] up to Race 7 (Drops = 1)
Place Ties Boat Name Sail No Skipper From Sers Score Race 7 Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   TEAM BEAU GESTE IVB1997 Karl Kwok RNZYS 6.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 [2.0] 1.0 1.0
2   ICHI BAN AUS001 Matt Allen CYCA 11.0 2.0 2.0 [5.0] 2.0 1.0 2.0 2.0
3   SECRET MENS BUSINESS YC3300 Geoff Boettcher CYCSA 23.0 5.0 3.0 4.0 3.0 [5.0] 4.0 4.0
4   CONCUBINE YC45 Jason Ward CYCSA 24.0 3.0 5.0 [7.0] 6.0 4.0 3.0 3.0
5   ALIVE 52566 Duncan Hine DSS 26.0 6.0 6.0 2.0 4.0 3.0 5.0 [6.0]
6   PATRICE 360 Tony Kirby CYCA 32.0 4.0 4.0 6.0 7.0 6.0 [7.0] 5.0
7   THE GOAT 421 Seb Bohm Bruce Foye CYCA 35.0 7.0 7.0 3.0 5.0 7.0 6.0 [7.0]
8   WILD OATS XI AUS10001 Mark Richards HIYC 49.0 8.0 8.0 9.0 8.0 [9.0] 8.0 8.0
9   SCALLYWAG HKG2276 David Witt RHKYC 52.0 9.0 9.0 8.0 9.0 8.0 [10.0R] 9.0

Rating Racing Div A

Series Results [ORCiO Div A] up to Race 7 (Drops = 1)
Place Ties Boat Name Sail No Skipper From Sers Score Race 7 Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   ALIVE 52566 Duncan Hine DSS 7.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 [4.0]
2   ICHI BAN AUS001 Matt Allen CYCA 10.0 1.0 2.0 [3.0] 2.0 2.0 2.0 1.0
3   CONCUBINE YC45 Jason Ward CYCSA 19.0 3.0 4.0 [5.0] 4.0 3.0 3.0 2.0
4   PATRICE 360 Tony Kirby CYCA 23.0 4.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 4.0 [5.0] 3.0
5   THE GOAT 421 Seb Bohm Bruce Foye CYCA 24.0 5.0 5.0 2.0 3.0 5.0 4.0 [5.0]
6   WILD OATS XI AUS10001 Mark Richards HIYC 36.0 6.0 6.0 [7.0] 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0
7   SCALLYWAG HKG2276 David Witt RHKYC 41.0 7.0 7.0 6.0 7.0 7.0 [8.0R] 7.0

Rating Racing Div B

Series Results [IRC Div B] up to Race 7 (Drops = 1)
Place Ties Sail No Boat Name Skipper From Sers Score Race 7 Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   8001 FORTY Stephen Barlow RSYS 10.0 3.0 3.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 [5.0]
2   5845 BOTANY ACCESS COCOMO Peter Sorensen MHYC 16.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 5.0 3.0 [7.0] 2.0
3   H1010 IKON Bruce McCraken HBYC 17.0 4.0 1.0 [5.0] 3.0 4.0 4.0 1.0
4   12450 BUSHRANGER Gerry Hatton RPAYC 19.0 [6.0] 4.0 4.0 2.0 2.0 3.0 4.0
5   HKG1088 CORUM Todd Anderson RQYS 22.0 5.0 [7.0] 3.0 4.0 5.0 2.0 3.0
6   65007 ELENA NOVA Craig Neil CYCA 30.0 1.0 [7.0N] 6.0 6.0 6.0 5.0 6.0
7   RQ2404 NOT A DIAMOND David Redfern RQYS 40.0 7.0 6.0N 7.0 7.0 7.0 6.0 [7.0]

Rating Racing Div B

Series Results [ORCiO Div B] up to Race 7 (Drops = 1)
Place Ties Sail No Boat Name Skipper From Sers Score Race 7 Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   65007 ELENA NOVA Craig Neil CYCA 7.0 1.0 2.0N 1.0 1.0 1.0 [2.0] 1.0
2   RQ2404 NOT A DIAMOND David Redfern RQYS 11.0 2.0 2.0N 2.0 2.0 2.0 1.0 [2.0]

Rating Passage

Series Results [IRC Div 1] up to Race 5
Place Ties Boat Name Sail No Skipper From Sers Score Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   TEAM HOLLYWOOD 7027 Ray Roberts CYCA 8.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 2.0 3.0
2   SCARLET RUNNER SM9 Rob Date SYC 12.0 2.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 1.0
3   EAGLE ROCK 7744 Ross Wilson CYCA/SYC/SSCBC 21.0 5.0 4.0 4.0 6.0 2.0
4   PONYO 6838 David Currie HIYC 22.0 6.0 3.0 2.0 7.0 4.0
5   TSA MANAGEMENT MH60 Tony Levett MHYC 28.0 3.0 5.0 6.0 8.0 6.0
6   ESPRESSO FORTE 8181 Laurence Freedman CYCA 31.0 4.0 8.0 9.0 1.0 9.0
7 3.0S TRITON 6377 Michael Cranitch CYCA 37.0 9.0 7.0 5.0 3.0 13.0
8   CARTOUCHE B10 Steven Fahey RBYC 37.0 7.0 6.0 8.0 11.0 5.0
9 7.0S B52 B52 Daniel Farmer RQYS 48.0 8.0 11.0 7.0 10.0 12.0
10   CHANCELLOR 8824 Ted Tooher CYCA 48.0 11.0 9.0 11.0 9.0 8.0
11   DRAKES PRAYER RQ6165 Rod Johannessen RQYS 50.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 13.0T 7.0
12   SAHARA 211 James Crowley RQYS 54.0 12.0 13.0 13.0T 5.0 11.0
13   OCEAN GEM 8810 David Hows SYC 63.0 14.0F 13.0N 13.0T 13.0T 10.0

Rating Passage

Series Results [ORCiO Div 1] up to Race 5
Place Ties Boat Name Sail No Skipper From Sers Score Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   TEAM HOLLYWOOD 7027 Ray Roberts CYCA 5.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
2   TRITON 6377 Michael Cranitch CYCA 13.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 5.0
3 2.0S DRAKES PRAYER RQ6165 Rod Johannessen RQYS 17.0 3.0 5.0 3.0 4.0T 2.0
4   CHANCELLOR 8824 Ted Tooher CYCA 17.0 4.0 3.0 4.0 3.0 3.0
5   OCEAN GEM 8810 David Hows SYC 24.0 6.0F 5.0N 5.0T 4.0T 4.0

Racer / Cruiser

Series Results [EHC] up to Race 6 (Drops = 1)
Place Ties Boat Name Sail No Skipper Sers Score Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   ONYX L320 Matt Owen 18.0 2.0 [10.0] 2.0 9.0 4.0 1.0
2   SYDNEY 6070 Charles Curran 23.0 7.0 [18.0] 1.0 8.0 2.0 5.0
3   WHITE NOISE SM3535 Daniel Edwards / Milton Green 24.5 5.0 4.0 6.5 [13.0] 6.0 3.0
4   FAREAST 28R AUS067 Noel Leigh-Smith 32.0 4.0 1.0 9.0 6.0 12.0 [17.0]
5   BORN TO MENTOR L53 John Sinclair 33.0 9.0 [15.0] 5.0 12.0 5.0 2.0
6   PENSIVE MYC10 Bruce Davis 37.0 3.0 14.0 4.0 10.0 [19.0T] 6.0
7 3.0S FUSION 313 Greg Outridge 39.0 1.0 2.0 3.0 [19.0T] 15.0 18.0
8   PANTHER AUS070 Steve Orourke 39.0 14.0 11.0 [18.0] 2.0 1.0 11.0
9   ROCK N' ROLL AUS320 Kim Williams 40.0 6.0 9.0 [15.0] 3.0 9.0 13.0
10   HAYWIRE HY135 B Young / T Bartram 42.5 [21.0F] 6.0 6.5 7.0 19.0T 4.0
11 1.0S MAC 2 USA153 John McDougall 46.0 13.0 12.0 13.0 1.0 7.0 [14.0]
12   LEEWARD 6833 Steve Ball 46.0 10.0 3.0 [19.0] 15.0 8.0 10.0
13 7.0S WHALEWATCHINGSYDNEY 202 Ian Ford 50.0 15.0 [17.0] 10.0 5.0 13.0 7.0
14   PETER LEHMANN BREAKT 6834 Ben McGrath 50.0 8.0 5.0 11.0 18.0 [19.0T] 8.0
15   XC3SS AUS216 Peter Woodhead 54.0 16.0 [16.0] 8.0 4.0 11.0 15.0
16   ZEN 3838 Mark/Mike/Mal N.A. 57.0 11.0 13.0 [14.0] 11.0 10.0 12.0
17 3.0S MARGARITA PEARL 31M Gary McCarthy 61.0 [21.0C] 8.0 17.0 17.0 3.0 16.0
18   HAMILTON MENTOR L1 Roen Quinn 61.0 [21.0F] 7.0 12.0 14.0 19.0T 9.0
19   NAUTICAL CIRCLE A169 Ian Prentice 77.0 12.0 19.0 16.0 16.0 14.0 [21.0C]
20   HYDRAPLAY USA176 Justin Hickey 105.0 21.0C 21.0C 21.0C 21.0C 21.0C [21.0C]

Multihull Racing

Series Results [OMR] up to Race 6 (Drops = 1)
Place Ties Boat Name Skipper Sers Score Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1   FRANK RACING Simon Hull 8.0 [17.0F] 1.0 1.0 1.0 4.0 1.0
2   APC MAD MAX George Owen 12.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 [4.0] 1.0 2.0
3   MORTICIA Chris Williams 15.0 [17.0F] 4.0 3.0 3.0 2.0 3.0
4   RHYTHMIC Philip Day 26.0 4.0 6.0 [10.0] 6.0 6.0 4.0
5   FREQUENTFLYER Christopher Wren 27.0 5.0 5.0 7.0 5.0 [9.0] 5.0
6   TOP GUN Darren Drew 30.0 1.0 9.0 [12.0] 8.0 3.0 9.0
7   STARDUST Eric Cook 34.0 6.0 10.0 5.0 7.0 [10.0] 6.0
8   ZERO Garry Crick 37.0 3.0 11.0 6.0 10.0 [12.0] 7.0
9   THE BOAT WORKS Julian Griffiths 40.0 17.0F 2.0 2.0 2.0 17.0R [17.0F]
10   LEITNING STORM Michael Leitner 41.0 7.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 [17.0R] 10.0
11   PURPLE HAZE Danny McMillan 47.0 9.0 8.0 [14.0] 11.0 8.0 11.0
12   CROSSHAIR Gerald Valk 48.0 11.0 13.0 9.0 [13.0] 7.0 8.0
13   CARBON CREDIT Peter Hawker 55.0 12.0 14.0 11.0 [15.0] 5.0 13.0
14   PECCADILLO Charles Meredith 58.0 8.0 12.0 13.0 14.0 11.0 [17.0F]
15   EARTHLING John Sticklan 64.0 10.0 15.0 15.0 12.0 [17.0R] 12.0
16   JAGUAR Leonard Surtees 82.0 17.0C 17.0F 17.0R 17.0C [17.0R] 14.0



Allen Dynamic 40 FooterRooster 2026Switch One Design

Related Articles

Race to the Arctic Concludes in Svolvær
Polar Low, 40-Knot Gusts and Arctic Glory The inaugural Race to the Arctic concluded in spectacular fashion on Sunday as the fleet reached Svolvær after nearly 800 nautical miles of offshore racing along the Norwegian coast.
Posted today at 4:31 am
2026 18ft Skiff European and Mark Foy Championship
Exciting young talent emerging in the 18s at Lake Garda Australia's World 18ft skiff champion Yandoo team of John 'Herman' Winning, Fang Warren and Lewis Brake took out 2026 European and Mark Foy International Championship after four days of competition on Lake Garda, Italy.
Posted today at 3:53 am
Epic start to the 6th edition AEGEAN 600
A brisk Meltemi breeze of 25-30 knots prompted reefed mainsails and small jibs A brisk Meltemi breeze of 25-30 knots prompted reefed mainsails and small jibs for this year's fleet at today's start of the 6th edition of the AEGEAN 600, organized by the Hellenic Offshore Racing Club (HORC) and Olympic Marine.
Posted on 5 Jul
Energy management on Ferrari Hypersail
The concept set to redefine ocean navigation Ferrari Hypersail, the innovative 100-foot flying monohull designed to challenge the oceans, today unveils its onboard energy concept.
Posted on 5 Jul
Melges 15 European Cup at Lake Garda overall
Two more races held in an Ora breeze on the final day The Melges 15 European Cup at Fraglia Vela Riva, Lake Garda, Italy concluded with a 15 knot Ora wind and two races, bringing the series up to eight races over the three day event.
Posted on 5 Jul
505 UK Nationals and Pre-Worlds at HISC overall
Wind changes but quality remains constant The second day of the 505 UK National Championship gave the fleet of over 80 boats a variety of conditions for the final three races of the series.
Posted on 5 Jul
Foiling Week 2026, nine days in the foiling galaxy
Malcesine hosted the 13th edition of Foiling Week Racing, the Foiling Sport Congress, clinics, trials, public experiences and dedicated board disciplines shaped the 13th edition of Foiling Week.
Posted on 5 Jul
2026 29er World Championship Kiel day 2
Kiel turns extreme the fleet face demanding conditions Racing at the 29er World Championships in Kiel opened the second day with a demanding start across Course Areas Alpha, Beta, and Charlie, as fleets headed out for the fourth qualifying race.
Posted on 5 Jul
GKSS MatchCup Sweden & Nordea Women's Trophy overa
Poole reclaims Match Cup as Courtois defends Women's Title American match racing star Chris Poole and his Riptide Racing team reclaimed the GKSS Match Cup Sweden title on Saturday, while France's Pauline Courtois/ Match in Pink successfully defended the Nordea Women's Trophy.
Posted on 5 Jul
RS21 World Championship 2027 makes UK debut
The message is simple: #JoinTheRevolution The countdown is on. As preparations accelerate for the RS21 World Championship 2027, excitement is building for what's set to be the biggest and most competitive event in the class' history.
Posted on 5 Jul