FOUR WINNERS IN FIVE HEATS OF ETCHELLS WINTER CHAMPIONSHIP

by Peter Campbell on 9 Jun 2001 With four different winners in five races, only three points separate the top three boats after two days of extraordinarily close competition in the Suncity Homes Australian Winter Etchells Championship being sailed off Mooloolaba on
Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

The popular resort area north of Brisbane certainly lived up to its name, with the so-called “Winter” Championship being sailed in weather more akin to summer, although winds were again light and variable for the three races sailed today.

Colin Beashel, the five-times Olympic yachtsman and two-times past World Champion in the International Etchells class, joined the winner’s circle in race four, while Brisbane sailor David Rose caused an upset in race three.

However, the outstanding performance of the day came from Sydney sailmaker and America’s Cup tactician Michael Coxon who notched up his second win of the regatta in race five to head the leaderboard at the end of day two.


After five races Coxon, a director of North Sails in Sydney, has steered North Sydney Station, into placings of 1-12-2-7-1 in the record 51-boat fleet, and discarding his worst race, has 11 points on the board.

However, he is just one point ahead of his North Sails Brisbane manager, Mark Bradford, who has sailed consistently at the helm of Racer X, placing 2-2-3-13-5 for 12 points after discard.

Just one point further back is 2000 Australian National Etchells Champion, Jan “Clogs” Scholten, also from the Sydney sailmaking business, who has placed 8-1-5-4-3, to be on 13 points.

Colin Beashel, returning to the Etchells class after five years of dedication to his Olympic campaign in the Star class, is fourth overall on 19 points, placing 3-8-12-1-7 for 20 points.

Steering Pacesetter, Beashel recorded the biggest winning margin of the regatta in race four which eventually started after two general recalls and an abandonement because of a starting signal failure.

The race quickly developed into a duel with Beashel and Bertrand, two of the heroes of Australia II’s victory in the 1983 America’s Cup at Newport, Rhode Island, Beashel the mainsheet trimmer, Bertrand the helmsman.

However, Beashel covered Bertrand’s every tack and gybe to beat his one-time skipper by 44 seconds.

Despite this second Bertrand, now back sailing with the Melbourne Etchells fleet, is sixth on 37 points, sailing Two Saints and a Magpie, just two points behind another Melbourne yachtsman, Jake Gunther steering Dr Evil.

Bertrand, after a luckless first day in which he was “black-flagged” for breaking the start in one race and seemingly disadvantaged because of a mark rounding identification problem, showed a glimpse of his sailing skills with a second to
Beashel in race four, but could only manage a ninth and a 13th in the other races today.

In seventh place overall on 43 points is wellknown maxi yacht owner/skipper Grant Wharington, also from Melbourne, who figured in a great duel in race five with Michael Coxon.

Wharington, helming Satu, took the lead from first windward leg leader Gordon Hinds, sailing Cadi, on the first spinnaker run, with Coxon closing the gap in North Sydney Station.

The highly experienced crew of Coxon, Michael Jarvin and Ed McCarthy from the Sydney fleet wed outstanding light weather spinnaker handling skills, particularly in the gybes, firstly in race three in which they grabbed second place by two seconds and then in winning race five by five seconds.

In fact, margins of seconds between boats highlighted the close windward/leeward courses, with all finishes downwind across a tight line.

Brisbane sailor David Rose, steering War of the Roses, led all the way in race three after taking a “flyer” to the right-hand side of the course on both the first windward leg and then the first spinnaker run, but his other results have
been at the back of the fleet and he is 27th overall.

With three races to sail, two on Sunday and one Monday, the Suncity Homes Australian Winter Etchells Championship has again proven to be one of the competitive events on the calendar for Australia’s largest one-design keelboat class.

As series leader Michael Coxon commented “with three races to sailing, anyone of the top four boats would win the Winter Championship here at Mooloolaba in what is proving to the be the most competitive Etchells events of the year.”

Entries this year have come from most fleets in Australia and from New Zealand, with more international entries expected next year in the lead-up to the World Championship which Mooloolaba Yacht Club and the Mooloolaba Etchells fleet will host in November 2004.



Further information: Peter Campbell – 0419 385 028 or email:

Peter_Campbell@bigpond.com