Etchells World Championship 2011 crowns a winner

by Etchells Worlds on 11 Jun 2011

Etchells World Championship 2011 Day 3 Tim Wilkes http://www.TimWilkes.com

Etchells World Championship 2011 regatta is a nine race series with a single throwout score. San Diego Yacht Club’s Bill Hardesty, Steve Hunt, Mandi Markee and Craig Leweck only needed to achieve wins in eight races to secure the World Championship title.

As the team finished Race 8 coming in second, they had a 19 point lead overall with a 19 point throwout score (so regardless of their final race finish, they will maintain the best overall score in the regatta).

USA 979 Team Hardesty’s fate was not so clear as Race 8 developed, rounding the first three marks in eighth, seventh, and seventh position respectively. The title of ‘2011 Etchells World Champion’ remained in play. The wind shifted right on the last downwind leg, and USA 979 made its move by passing five boats to round the last leeward gate in second place. At the finish they were able to maintain second place for the race by holding off the Greek boat 1368 (George Andreadis) who sailed a great race as well.

Until this development foiled the hopes of the other two boats at the top of the score sheet (USA 1227 Vince Brun and AUS 1026 Noel Drennan), the story of Race 8 was USA 946 Craig Healy who sails out of St. Francis Yacht Club and San Francisco Yacht Club. Healy and crew rounded every mark in first place, extended to a lead of 50 seconds at the last windward mark rounding, over a minute at the last leeward gate and cruised to one of the largest time victories of the week.

The race day began with the postponement flag raised at noon as the Marine layer blanketed the course and kept the wind light and shifty. Towards the end of the hour the thermal wind began to fill from the southwest and filled in at 7-9 knots from 255-260. The Race Committee set up a Course 1 (W-L-W-L-F) 1.7 miles long at the 255 axis. The fleet started cleanly with five boats OCS. Throughout the race the R/C shifted the course right five degrees at the top of leg three, and bottom of leg four to match the right progression of the wind.

While the announcement of the USA 979 was bouncing around on Facebook and Twitter, it wasn’t recognized by the winning crew until Steve Hunt and Mandi Markee went to the scoreboard back at San Diego Yacht Club and saw the numbers. With smiles and a toast of their beer cups, they headed down to the boat to spread the word. Hardesty came up shaking hands across the docks to see for himself as well.

Congratulations to Bill Hardesty on his second Etchells World Championship (2008 in Chicago) and the first Etchells World title for all three crew members. Past Champions Chris Busch (as a crew for Hardesty in 2008), Vince Brun (as a skipper in San Diego in 2000) and Noel Drennan (as a crew in Hong Kong 1997) will all fight for second place in Saturday’s final race.

San Diego Yacht Club will host an International buffet dinner awards banquet on Saturday night after the final race.

Boat Information						Race - Click Race # below for fin times.
Place	Bow	Country		Sail	Skipper	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Total
1	79		USA	979	Bill Hardesty	1	1	- 19	7	1	6	1	2		19
2	26		AUS	1026	Noel Drennan	- 21	9	8	2	8	3	5	3		38
3	27		USA	1227	Vincent Brun	3	4	2	4	7	- 14	9	12		41
4	23		USA	969	Chris Busch	4	18	5	- 38	3	12	7	4		53
5	66		USA	666	Don Jesberg*	25	- 51	3	5	4	4	2	18		61
6	46		USA	946	Craig Healy*	10	3	- 32	3	17	17	26	1		77
7	80		AUS	1278	Michael John Hiatt	20	2	1	36	6	8	- 48	8		81
8	60		USA	1060	Dennis Conner	15	5	30	1	- 36	9	6	16		82
9	52		USA	1152	Keith Whittemore	23	14	4	12	2	16	17	- 53		88
10	75		USA	1375	Argyle Campbell*	19	11	- 45	11	12	25	3	9		90
11	85		USA	1285	Bruce Golison	- 37	8	16	8	15	10	10	28		95
12	16		USA	1216	Brian Camet	9	23	21	19	13	18	- 33	7		110
13	04		USA	904	Will Stout	36	32	11	9	5	1	- 57	17		111
14	68		USA	1168	Peter Vessella*	5	7	23	14	26	34	- 63	14		123
15	48		NZL	1348	Andrew Wills	2	33	25	6	9	19	- 41	31		125
16	08		USA	1308	Senet Bischoff*	8	21	13	27	- 50	24	25	10		128
17	81		FRA	1281	Frederic Laffitte*	16	28	24	28	- 39	5	4	29		134
18	30		USA	1350	Bruce Burton	- 63	22	7	20	23	26	16	22		136
19	35		USA	935	David Ullman	24	19	14	17	27	15	20	- 49		136
20	86		USA	986	Bruce Nelson	32	- 43	15	21	20	2	18	35		143
21	33		AUS	1337	Rupert Henry	26	- 40	10	22	19	36	11	38		162
22	69		USA	1018	Chris Snow	22	10	28	23	40	11	30	- 60		164
23	78		USA	1378	Marvin Beckmann	7	30	37	- 44	28	31	12	23		168
24	98		USA	985	Andy La Dow*	27	36	36	10	30	7	- 58	27		173
25	10		USA	1066	Jon Rogers	6	55	- 56	34	14	27	34	19		189
26	21		USA	1221	Wade Edwards	12	- 65	9	24	51	40	22	32		190
27	18		AUS	1223	Chris Hampton	- 43	37	17	33	22	39	8	39		195
28	28		USA	1283	Andrew Whittome*	30	34	18	13	60	23	- 84 bfd	33		211
29	06		USA	706	JJ Fetter	47	17	- 68	35	25	32	13	43		212
30	31		GRE	1368	George Andreadis	33	24	49	30	43	- 59	31	5		215
31	07		USA	552	Tom Malone	48	29	47	- 50	16	21	21	36		218
32	20		BER	1394	Mark Watson	58	27	43	18	10	- 61	38	26		220
33	84		USA	984	Steve Wright*	41	25	44	- 48	24	47	14	25		220
34	93		AUS	1293	Ian Crisp	55	31	29	15	38	35	19	- 62		222
35	37		USA	1137	Shannon Bush	35	12	35	42	31	54	23	- 55		232
36	89		AUS	1389	Robert Hanna	52	20	22	52	29	58	- 84 dns	6		239
37	96		GBR	962	Rob Goddard	14	45	33	31	46	- 51	27	44		240
38	56		USA	1234	David Levy	31	16	53	- 55	42	50	24	24		240
39	99		USA	669	Ted Hardenbergh*	38	52	6	58	- 61	20	54	13		241
40	94		USA	794	Steve Pacelli	11	- 59	42	46	59	30	56	11		255
41	51		USA	926	Nico Landauer	59	44	20	16	21	22	- 75	75		257
42	40		AUS	1384	Stephen Orourke*	65	13	26	54	- 76	37	37	48		280
43	22		USA	1224	Peter Sulick	29	- 53	38	29	48	52	47	42		285
44	47		SUI	1187	Seamus McHugh	49	- 84 dnc	59	39	47	46	35	15		290
45	14		USA	1149	John Pedlow	50	63	39	- 76	32	45	40	21		290
46	58		NZL	1058	John Melville	39	58	50	47	34	- 75	15	51		294
47	54		USA	556	David Steffan	44	6	57	49	44	43	59	- 61		302
48	87		GBR	987	Robert Elliott	34	50	60	40	66	29	28	- 73		307
49	19		USA	966	Michael Laport*	- 84 dsq	26	69	71	11	13	84 bfd	37		311
50	50		AUS	1150	Bill Steele*	53	41	27	26	57	48	- 64	64		316
51	62		USA	1262	Philippe Kahn	18	38	46	53	69	56	39	- 71		319
52	39		USA	1220	Mark Teborek	- 64	56	52	25	35	55	62	40		325
53	57		AUS	1237	John Savage	45	48	62	56	45	- 64	55	20		331
54	12		USA	1126	Rick Kaiser	62	46	64	37	56	28	- 67	41		334
55	03		NZL	1379	Gavin Gerrard	28	49	61	51	41	44	60	- 65		334
56	17		AUS	1117	Ian Anderson*	69	60	48	32	33	69	29	- 77		340
57	74		USA	977	Tom Oller*	- 73	71	31	61	49	33	50	47		342
58	73		CAN	973	Kirk Palmer*	17	62	55	- 74	52	38	51	69		344
59	83		USA	983	Kevin Hoyt*	42	39	- 67	66	58	53	42	45		345
60	44		USA	1044	John Downing	61	42	41	69	- 71	62	43	30		348
61	05		USA	1305	Michael Gavin	13	15	40	41	- 84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc		361
62	09		USA	909	Marshall Harrington*	51	57	- 71	60	37	41	61	56		363
63	15		USA	1315	John Gilmour	56	67	66	- 73	18	42	52	70		371
64	77		AUS	1277	Peter Coleman*	46	66	- 79	68	53	78	44	34		389
65	01		USA	1301	Peter Shumaker	66	69	34	57	67	63	- 70	57		413
66	41		USA	1241	Ken Womack*	57	61	63	45	65	- 76	49	76		416
67	32		USA	1069	Elizabeth Altman	- 79	74	12	78	73	49	69	63		418
68	11		USA	1111	Patricia Stadel*	76	70	58	65	- 79	57	45	54		425
69	43		AUS	1343	Nick Kingsmill	67	- 84 ocs	51	70	55	60	71	52		426
70	53		USA	583	Kjeld Hestehave	- 75	75	70	62	72	68	32	50		429
71	29		USA	294	Larry Schmitz	40	64	65	- 79	63	65	68	68		433
72	88		USA	889	Thomas Corkett	71	68	- 77	59	62	67	36	72		435
73	38		USA	385	Gary Baker*	74	- 77	54	43	75	66	72	59		443
74	49		BER	1249	Tim Patton	60	54	76	- 77	74	74	53	67		458
75	45		UAE	1386	Jan Muysken*	68	35	- 78	64	77	73	66	78		461
76	24		AUS	1124	Michael Morris*	77	73	- 81	72	54	70	65	58		469
77	02		USA	1002	John Chapman*	78	78	80	- 81	80	71	46	46		479
78	36		ITA	836	Marco Cimarosti	70	47	72	67	68	80	- 84 bfd	80		484
79	55		USA	674	Tom Stanford	72	- 76	73	63	70	72	73	66		489
80	97		USA	897	Bill Melbostad*	54	72	74	80	64	79	- 84 dns	74		497
81	25		AUS	1025	Glenn Norton*	76 rdg	76 rdg	75	75	78	77	74	- 79		531
82	34		GBR	1354	David Franks	- 84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc		588
83	42		AUS	1385	Jason Ward	- 84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc	84 dnc		588

The Etchells Fleet 13, in conjunction with the San Diego Yacht Club is hosting the 2011 World Championship which are being sailed on the Pacific Ocean June 6 to June 11, Event website

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