Sail Mandurah in March - Ready to roll

by Laurie Flynne on 28 Feb 2013 Sail Mandurah in March Regatta. Organisers and competitors are looking forward to start of the inaugural event, which will be held on this long weekend. With Severe Tropical Cyclone Rusty across the North-West coast, weather scenarios are now more predictable, and the prospect of family-friendly fun on Mandurah’s dazzling sailing waters is virtually assured.

Ten Sports Boats will contest the ASBA Western Australian State Championships, which is being conducted in conjunction with the Sail Mandurah in March regatta. Evan Lutey and Mitch de Vries’ Thompson 750 The Duck’s Nuts is back to defend the title it won last year, but pressure from the two Shaw 650s Octopussy and Shaw Thing, plus a nest of four Viper 640s (Velocity, Kiss My Asp, Snake Charmer and Fizz), will be intense

To add interest, the Sporties’ regatta results will be split into two divisions: the 'lightweight' Shaws and Vipers and the 'heavyweights', which will see The Duck’s Nuts compete against The Fifth Seven, One Goat and Excitabull.

The Solings will also be contesting their State Championships, with the local Mandurah Soling fleet making up the bulk of entries. A surprise charter is on the cards – regatta organisers are remaining tight-lipped about details.

Dufour yachts contesting the first ever WA Dufour Muster dominate the Cruisers with Spinnakers division, with Gordon and Di Dunbar’s Dufour 40 Spritzig2, fresh from an impressive victory at Geographe Bay Race Week, an obvious favourite. Chartered Accountant Chris Higham’s nippy Dufour 34E Numbers Game will keep the Dunbar team honest, as will Bali Race veteran Andrew Dawson, sailing his Dufour 365 Knot Dreaming.

The Jib and Main division features the Mandurah debut of Fremantle Past Commodore Gary Martin’s beautifully restored 1929 International 9-Metre Acrospire IV. The big yacht’s 54 foot length presented a penning challenge, which was solved when a prominent Mandurah member agreed to lend his T-head berth for the weekend. The wily John Holder, sailing his Farr 11.6 Plus 16, will be as competitive as ever. Locals Chris Clifton, sailing the Viking 30 Freyja, and Club General Manager Tim Donkin’s Space Sailer 27 Sea Urchin II, are planning to apply local knowledge to see off the visitors’ challenges.

The Multi-hull fleet looks diverse, with Peter Van Ruth’s Schionning 1050 White Magic set to lock horns with Joel Brown’s little Windrider 17 Tri Me and Jim Booker’s Farrier 25 trimaran Cabaret. Organisers would like to have attracted more multi-hull entries, and will persist with this division in future editions of the event.

It is still possible to enter Sail Mandurah in March at the discretion of the Race Committee. The entry fee of $150 includes berthing for the regatta.

All the information on Sail Mandurah in March, including a link to the Results page, can be found on the MOFSC Sail Mandurah in March