Please select your home edition
Edition
Cyclops Marine 2023 November - LEADERBOARD

Kids and veterans the true heroes of Heron racing

by Pamela Johnston on 2 Feb 2012
Jerome Watts and Oliver Gorman tackle the top mark Rhys Llewellyn
After nine days of sailing at the recent Heron National Championships held at Lake Macquarie, it was clear who the heroes were – the kids.

Day after day, it was the junior skippers and crew – as young as four – who were the most eager to head out in all weather conditions to race around the orange buoys in the 62-strong fleet.

Equally impressive were the veterans, some aged in their 70s, who were often the first teams off the beach.

As the winner of the 53rd national Heron series, Greg Harris (41) from Narrabeen Lakes Sailing Club (NLSC) NSW, says, ‘Heron sailing is all about the kids and families’.

'That is the best thing about Heron sailing, everyone is involved: kids, mums, dads, grandparents,' says Harris.

In fact, he attributes some of his success to his eight-year-old crew, Kai Johnston.

'I credit a large part of this win to my fantastic crew, Kai Johnston, who only started crewing at the beginning of this season, but has become really professional at the tender age of eight,' says Harris.


Second place went to Paul Armstrong and his young crew, William Armstrong (7), from Dobroyd Aquatic Club (DAC) NSW, and third place went to Brien Hennessy and Rosalie Hennessy (8), from Perth Dinghy Sailing Club in WA.

The first veteran, Bill Peterson and his crew Nina Peterson, also from NSW, ranked 10th overall.

The first junior team, Jerome Watts (14) and Oliver Gorman (12), from Georges River Sailing Club (GRSC) NSW, placed 21st overall. The second junior team was Matt Doyle and Matthew Arthur from DAC, and third was Georgia Llewellyn and Eleanor Macgregor from NLSC.

Watts says that while it was a very testing regatta, he and his crew sailed better than they ever have before and, more importantly, had plenty of fun on and off the water.

'We definitely sailed our best, but the real highlights of the regatta were the social events. You just can’t find a more fun class of boat than the Heron,' he says.

With Mother Nature throwing every sort of weather pattern at the fleet, it offered everyone the chance to sail in all conditions and evened out the strengths and weaknesses of each team and their boats.

Twenty knot breezes gave the heavy boats a fighting chance, light breezes saw the smaller teams head further up the pack, while storm squalls and chop that created dizziness akin to spinning in a washing machine tested the entire fleet.


On two of the six race days, the 11-foot Herons even had 40-foot yachts and Etchells to be mindful of as each class raced around the same course. It certainly made for some interesting and challenging meetings on the water.

Other trophies went to:
1st Handicap - Tony Cope (VIC), Isabella Cope
1st Unplaced Interstate Boat - Richard Gibson (SA), Sophie Bredhauer
1st Unplaced NSW Boat - Ian MacGregor, Annie MacGregor
1st Family - Matthew Brown (QLD), Julia Brown
1st Lady - Emma Duncan (QLD), Rory Brown

For series results, go to the 'news' section on the Narrabeen Lakes Sailing Club website, www.narrabeenlakessailingclub.com.

Sea Sure 2025Hyde Sails 2024 - One DesignHenri-Lloyd Dynamic Range

Related Articles

29er Class open for championship bids
Inviting venues to submit proposals for the events The 29er Class Association is delighted to announce that bids are now open to host our upcoming major championships.
Posted today at 8:32 am
Switch UK Championship at the WPNSA Day 1
Finn Dickinson leads Sam Whaley by a single point Imagine stepping in to the Dolorian and arriving at the first ever National Championship of your class. Would those present be aware that they were in the throws of making history and how long in to the future will this journey take us?
Posted today at 5:51 am
2025 J/70 Corinthian Worlds at Massachusetts day 3
Light winds lead to leaderboard shake-up Mild breeze combined with a strong tide equaled a shake-up in the standings at the J/70 Corinthian World Championship in Marblehead, Massachusetts USA.
Posted on 26 Sep
2025 Formula Wing Worlds Sardinia day 3
Women's battle heats up in the big waves A change of wind and wave conditions on day three of the Formula Wing World Championships in Cagliari brought a change of fortune for some key players.
Posted on 26 Sep
52 Super Series 2025 Porto Cervo day 4
Sled look to close out regatta win, American Magic Quantum Racing on the cusp of swansong 7th title The penultimate day of racing proved to be a sharp contrast to the two previous days of strong Mistral winds presenting the 13 teams from ten different nations with a different challenge as the conclusion of the 2025 season approaches.
Posted on 26 Sep
Melges 24 Worlds 2025 at Trieste, Italy Day 4
No wind again today, everything will be decided tomorrow The high-pressure system over the Northern Adriatic, and particularly the Gulf of Trieste, left no chance for the 2025 Melges 24 World Championship today, as Day 4 ended without racing.
Posted on 26 Sep
Multihull Cup 2025 Day 1
Allegra takes win in calm but enthusiastic start On what proved a mellow if challenging introduction to the delights of the Multihull Cup for the trio of first timers taking part, it was the Mallorcan event veteran Allegra which showed the fleet the way to go.
Posted on 26 Sep
Offshore Double Handed Worlds Qualifying Race 2
Worlds Apart, Side by Side The second qualification race of the 2025 Offshore Double Handed Worlds started from Cowes, Isle of Wight in a crisp northeasterly, 10 knots under clear skies. But what began as a gentle gradient breeze soon turned into a punishing test of endurance.
Posted on 26 Sep
Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez starts tomorrow
245 competitors vying for 19 trophies Saturday 27 September heralds the start of the 27th edition of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez. A great many of the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez's 245 guests have already made the famous port in France's Var department.
Posted on 26 Sep
Sailors shift focus to The Ocean Race Atlantic
The new transatlantic race connects two iconic cities - New York and Barcelona As The Ocean Race Europe came to a close in Montenegro, sailors and teams started to turn their attention to the next event in The Ocean Race calendar - The Ocean Race Atlantic: New York to Barcelona.
Posted on 26 Sep