AUS Etchells – 40deg shifts, 40deg+ Celsius and 40+ knots!

by John Curnow on 13 Jan 2016 If ever there was just one word that was going to describe the third day of the 2016 Etchells Australian Championship, then change would be it. Change in the leader board. Tick. Change in the course. Tick – several times over… Change in sea state. Tick. Change in the temperature. Tick – hot went to pyrolytic... Well, you get the picture.

Perhaps it was obvious at the mid-regatta weigh in. The Olympic Room at the Royal Brighton Yacht Club was busy. Yes. Combined masses had changed. Some need not have worried and yes, there were others who needed to make significant changes, quickly. A couple of grams here and there did got most through, but there were other sailors that involved more drastic measures.


One crew, who probably knew they had a small issue already, which is why they checked in early, spent two hours in the sauna. They did come back out under weight and definitely over cooked. Red is great if you’re a lobster and pretty ordinary if you’re human. Rehydration was the key and snooze was not a bad feature either.

It seemed to have worked, somehow, for their efforts out on the track had not suffered one iota. Perhaps it was the thermal equivalent of altitude training. After the hot room, perhaps Melbourne’s 42.2degC ambient temperature may have seemed somewhat relaxing.

Whilst all of this was going on a much more gargantuan fight was occurring overhead. Way up high, a strong Northerly was trying to have its way, which it was at Melbourne’s airport, yet further South at the bottom of Port Phillip, they had a different plan. As a result, the middle, which is where Brighton is, had nothing, then a tad, then nothing again and so it went.

The result was that at 1100hrs the Answering Pennant got another airing – like it needs one…. Many used the time to drink even more water and apply yet more sunscreen. All good things on a day like this. Some that were just delighted to be back out there included Top 40 (Billy Merrington, Ian McKillop and Richard Macgarvie) who had been holed the day before and repaired overnight.

Encore (Peter Conde, Brian Hillier and Peter Elkington) had installed a replacement rig, after dropping the old one whilst leading the last race of the day before. Animal House (Dirk Van Der Struyf, Gordon Blauuw and Matt Smith) had also repaired a cap shroud that had left the spreader during the same last race of the previous day. Repairs were successful and Dirk was very much elated that they had not bent the rig in the process.

The Northerly finally won out, and after a prudent pause to ensure it was here to stay; the Wilson brothers dropped the AP at 1315hrs and sent the fleet to sea. They would be racing half past two. Yet as crews walked to their boats, many thought that the now marching wind strength would exceed class limits (25 knots) very quickly. Someone heard, and like an air conditioning left on with the fan speed at deafening, the remote got pressed, the beeps sounded and the roar died down.
Many wished it was a cool as the blast from the AC, so it just shows that there is no pleasing some…

At any rate it could have been eight knots and could also have been 18. You needed to be quick to see which one it was and picking a direction was more of a guide than a rule, but around 300? seemed like a respectable median, then. 285? was next and yep, several others were used as it clocked left to its final mark at 220?.

Early on it flicked back right, especially if you were working the beach along Elwood, but its journey to the wet was inexorable. The flicks to the right died off and were replaced by wallops to the left. You did need to go with that, so the beach lost its appeal to sailors, just as much as it would have gained some for landlubbers.

As for changing directions on the scoreboard, well some scoffed the chocolates and others broke teeth on the boiled lollies. It required a leg-by-leg analysis, which we won’t go into here, but you can see some of it at https://www.youtube.com/user/EtchellsAustralia.

Magpie won the first race, but it was great to see Iris III (Peter McNeill, David Gleadhill and Simon Reffold) get a second and That’s Life (Ian Crisp, Mal Blom and Marcus Sill) grab fourth. Chris Hampton, Andrew Palfrey and Ian Walker on Tango made seventh and the Jukes of Hazzard (Brendon Jukes, Brian Jukes, Nigel Jones and Matthias Houvenagel) took tenth place.

Some of these crews have been featuring at many a mark rounding, but maybe not getting the final result they would like.
In the second race, others who had misfortune yesterday, got some payday today. This includes Animal House with a second place and Encore with a third. However the race was won by the accomplished Bruce Ferguson, Cameron Miles and Malcolm Parker on, Whisper. They, just like Incentive, which is Jay Griffin, Henry Kernot and Jack Dawson, have threatened to place well so many times, but just fallen short, so perhaps there is more to come over the final two days.

Now did anyone say this was simple? Race Management must have laid and moved the marks a dozen times. Sorry team, but counting after the first few got boring, so I took some poetic licence whilst you were all hauling in the marks anchors, moving and then throwing them out once more, and then again, etc. It would have been hot and thirsty work, but not thankless, so well done volunteers. Earned your drinks, for sure!


The media team would like to sincerely thank Mike Phelan for his efforts behind the helm of Peter Rattray’s launch, Rat Race. It’s the reason we have both still and motion pictures for all to review, and that includes the on board judge, Andrew Waterman. Perhaps we have just uncovered the reason why everyone seems to playing so nicely at this regatta… Good job sailors!

In the end it all meant that after five races, Magpie, which is Graeme Taylor, Richie Allanson and James Mayor took a three-point lead to the top of the table. Triad (John Bertrand, Billy Browne and Jake Newman) are in second with 16 points and in third is, Racer X, (Mark Thornburrow, Malcolm Page, Michael Huang and John Rankin) on 18 points.

Three more races are scheduled to round out the championship, with two listed for Thursday and then one on the final day, Friday. Whichever crew from the 48-boat fleet does win will be a complete champion. They will have sailed well in light and heavy, flat and choppy, so there is no extra prize for that, but no doubt some extra pride. Dare I say it, maybe 40% more…