Perth’s Swan River provides for awesome Etchells.

by John Curnow on 16 Mar 2014 Five races in a day in the kinds of conditions you see in the brochures, but more than often do not get to race in. Yes please! Sure it was hard work, and not just for the crews. Think about all the volunteers! However, you do get a handy break in the middle of the day when you have to vacate the premises to allow all the club racing to take over the back yard, more appropriately named, Melville Water.

At the 2014 Etchells West Australian Championship, Mark Lovelady from Heart Starter said, 'Lots of short races today to keep you thinking. We had good speed, but were just not getting off the start line well enough. Once underway it was OK, but kept running out of runway, so to speak. The fleet assembled here is fantastic. Come to think of it, Etchells are the best fleet to be involved with.'

'We’re the wrong end of where we thought we’d be, so tomorrow we do need to pull something out. This afternoon was a bit of an issue for us. We led the first race this morning to the top mark and then gybed away to oblivion, so ended up mid-fleet or more very quickly. Thankfully we have boat speed and were able to claw a lot of it back.'

'The Rat is going like a jet and so very impressive. We’d love to be close with them in the morning', said Lovelady. Heart Starter is also crewed by Mark’s brother Grant and Travis Keay. They currently occupy sixth place overall.

So there you have the answer. The Rat, which is Grantham Kitto, Brad Moore, Tim Ward and Rachael Mullins are in the lead, which is not necessarily what Grantham had thought prior to the regatta, but will be more than delighted to take with the kind of company also out on Perth’s glorious Swan River. In second place is AUS 1382, which is crewed by Peter Chappell, Simon Sutherland, James Stout and Peter Nicholas. Chappell said, 'This is our first hit out for everyone as a crew. James Stout is a young lad from 420s. Pete Nichols has done a lot of yachting, if not in Etchells, and Simon Sutherland is very handy on a boat, indeed.' Given where they are at on the scoreboard, he’d be right.

Screaming Plum is in ninth place after the first day. On board are Greg Kerr and Luke Paterson, with Doug Kerr helming. He said, 'It started well for us with a second place, but went badly from there. Tricky conditions prevailed and we did not sail as well as we would like, but it’s a great regatta. The results can hurt, but that’s sailing, so we have to look at philosophically. In 2011 we won, and last year we were second, so we can do it. It’s certainly very hot competition out there at the moment, with wonderfully close racing to be had. The Rat is sailing so well and so consistently. There are two more races to come, so we’ll see what we can generate out of it in the morning.'

The morning’s races were conducted well and truly in less than 10 knots. More like fives really. The first one of which commenced in the 0900hrs area. By the end of the day when they returned to the track it was over 15 and still Sou’west. Principal Race Officer, Kim Laurence said from the host club, Royal Perth, 'Got our last race underway just in time (approx 1700hrs after the track was vacated by the club racing) and then wouldn’t you know it, it was a general recall. Accordingly, we went to Code Flag U immediately and they all got the message. What great weather we were able to enjoy. We now have a series, so we’ll see what the morning brings. We have a 0830hrs start on Sunday, but it’s looking like five knots or less, which could make two more races a little tight. Our cut off will be 1230hrs, so as to allow for the club racing that occurs in the afternoon.'

There were two protests in, which will be heard this evening and hence ‘provisional’ in the results could be telling. There were two protests received, which will be heard at RPYC this evening. One will not affect the top standings, whilst the other is quite material to them. At the time of writing, there was no news of the outcomes, so it seems to be a busy time for Chief of the Jury Phil Moiston and his team. At any rate, until clarified, one must view the overall picture with a mind to slight but potentially significant changes.

Moving back to the water, Dean McAullay, the Rear Commodore RFBYC said, 'Nice right hand shifts on the beats, when everyone thought it would go left. Once we got in front, we were able to stay in front'. Apart from that role, he is part of the regular crew of The Croc, who are former Australian Etchells Champions and the winners of Race Five today.

Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club Fleet Captain Bruce Maloney sails All Care, No Responsibility. Of the name he said, 'Take it any way you like, but it’s all in jest. Somewhat rhetorical you could say. It may well be the way I live my life. I started in Etchells five years ago and I was at the back of the fleet. Now I am closer and it is interesting how you can go from fourth to 15th in an absolute blink. My aim is not to fall back and stay up with the top crews.'

'Mark Lovelady’s son Tom is up on the bow and Daniele Barbi is on main. He’s from Italy and been here a couple of years now. Daniele has been with me for a while and Tom has filled in for the injured Rob Senior. The guys really step up to it for such an occasion and we are having a good time. Our objective is to really compress up to the front and it is such a good thing to sail with so many accomplished yachtsmen', said Maloney. All Care, No Responsibility sits in 21st place this evening.

The 2014 Etchells Western Australia Championship is once more providing for close racing. To see how the Swan River will turn on the hot competition, you’ll have to follow it closely. See http://www.etchells.org.au for all the details.