ADCO Etchells Australasian Winter Championship - Final showdown

by ADCO Etchells Australasian Winters media on 10 Jun 2012 The final day of the 2012 ADCO Etchells Australasian Winter Championship began in overcast conditions. Rain fell intermittently as the fleet made their way offshore, hoping to complete the last two races of this year’s series.

Graeme (GT) Taylor and his Magpie crew sat in third place on the leader board overnight. GT was today hoping to do what no skipper had done in the event’s 15 year history – win the championship twice.

But to achieve this Taylor would have to defeat current leader Matthew Chew (Gen X Y) and Hong Kong sailor Mark Thornburrow (Racer X).

Race 5 of the series got underway in 10 –12 knots of breeze with light rain falling. The sea state, although a little lumpy, had eased back from yesterday’s tough conditions.

It was a clean start and Mark Thornburrow, four up from the pin, got the best of it while series leader Matthew Chew and fellow podium contender Peter McNeill (Iris 11) were buried. Etchells World Champion Tom King (Iron Lotus) started eighth up from the pin but fell back into the second row.

In strong conditions, at the top mark for the first time, Dirk Van Der Struyf (Animal House) rounded ahead of David Rose (This Will Make Her Scream) followed by Michael Stovin-Bradford (Touch Pause Engage), Roger Hickman (Sun Tzu), Mark Sanders (Rebound), Glenn Norton (Walk on Water) and Mark Johnson (Roulette). Colin Beashel (North Star) was ninth with Taylor back in tenth.

Thornburrow and Chew were both well back in the scattered fleet and experiencing multiple wind shifts.

At the top mark for the second time Van Der Struyf continued to hold the lead from Johnson, who gained fives places to be second. Hickman had also advanced as had Mark Bulka (Perfect Balance), Christopher Hampton (Tango 1990) and Colin Beashel (North Star). Rose fell back. Then followed an improving King. Taylor held ninth just ahead of Jeanne-Claude Strong (Yandoo XX).

Dirk Van Der Struyf (Animal House) took race 5 from Mark Johnson (Roulette) and Roger Hickman (Sun Tzu). Mark Bulka (Perfect Balance) was next, then Tom King (Iron Lotus), Graeme Taylor (Magpie), Colin Beashel (North Star), Christopher Hampton (North Star), Mark Thornburrow (Racer X) and David Rose (This Will Make Her Scream).

Matthew Chew finished back in 16th place.

By the end of race 5 the breeze had dropped to around 12 knots and was continuing to drop further.

The Race Committee was unable to set a course for race 6 of the series due to the shifting, unstable breeze and had no choice but to call a halt to the day's racing.

With a drop coming into play after five races of the series had been sailed, skippers were able to discard their worst result.

For overnight leader Chew this meant he could drop his race 5 result (16).

First season skipper Matthew Chew and Gen X Y crew Ashley Deeks, Brian Donovan and Paul Wyatt are the 2012 ADCO Etchells Australasian Winter Champions.

Chew, part of Jason Muir's 2009 Etchells World Championship crew was a happy skipper. Shouting across the water as the boat sailed up the Mooloolah River and back to the boat park for crane out Chew said ‘Very pleased with these results! We are a new crew but in the conditions we sailed a very consistent series.’

Mark Thornburrow (Racer X) finished second behind Chew. ‘Its cold and wet but it was great racing. Very pleased the way our new combination is coming together but Matthew and his crew deserve the win.’

Third placed Graeme Taylor (Magpie) said ‘We gave it our best shot, but we just were not consistent. That last race was certainly very difficult, it got very shifty.

'Half way up the first beat we were in good shape, we went back to shut the left out and the right came good. We were 12th at top mark and fourth at the bottom, but then we were on the wrong side of the next big shift.

'But there is always next year.’

In its 16 years the Etchells Australasian Winter Championship has now produced 16 different winners.

Will tradition continue in 2013?

Mooloolaba Etchells Fleet Captain Trevor Martin thinks so. While waiting his turn in the crane queue this afternoon Trevor commented 'It seems the combination of very strong fleets and a wide variation in conditions means this is a tough nut to crack.

'Congratulations to Matthew Chew and his Gen X Y crew, our 16th winners. And here's to a sunny Sunshine Coast next year.'

Mooloolaba Etchells Fleet Inc.
ADCO Australasian Winter Championship 2012
7th June  to  10th June 2012
All Boats
Series Summary

Pl	B#	Crew	From	1	2	3	4	5	Tot
1	17	Matthew Chew, Ashley Deeks, Brian Donavan & Paul Wyatt	Brisbane	4	1	4	2	(16)	11
2	11	Mark Thornburrow, Simon Cooke, Sam Sakai & Bucky Smith	Hong Kong	6	4	2	1	(9)	13
3	33	Graeme Taylor, Steve Jarvin & Ben Morrison-Jack	Mornington	1	(10)	1	8	7	17
4	27	Mark Bulka, James Arnold & Steve Young	Melbourne	2	3	9	(11)	4	18
5	10	Tom King, David Edwards, Ivan Wheen & Owen McMahon	Sydney	3	8	5	(9)	5	21
6	02	Mark Johnson, Christian Brook & Nikolas Burfoot	Sydney	9	5	(40\DNF)	6	2	22
7	20	Peter McNeill, Simon Reffold & David Gleadhill	Lake Macquarie	8	9	3	3	(17)	23
8	12	Colin Beashel, Richard Allanson & Garry Gudmunson	Sydney	5	2	(14)	13	6	26
9	06	Christopher Hampton, Matthew Johns & Sam Haines	Melbourne	(17)	6	7	5	8	26
10	24	Jeanne-Claude Strong, Tiana Wittey, Neville Wittey & Marcus Burke	Sydney	7	7	6	(24)	12	32
11	09	David Clark, John Collingwood & Andrew Smith	Melbourne	14	17	11	4	(27)	46
12	15	Ross Lloyd, Matthew Turner & Peter Williams	Melbourne	11	12	13	12	(25)	48
13	05	Dirk Van Der Struyf, Graeme Johnson & Richard Rowell	Swan River	(25)	14	21	15	1	51
14	03	Roger Hickman, Kate Besley, Daniel Williams & Daniel Morrow	Sydney	13	(21)	15	20	3	51
15	34	Jake Gunther, Tony McPhail & Stuart Skeggs	Melbourne	12	18	16	7	(19)	53
16	16	Philip Coombs, Stuart Schafer & David Eickmeyer	Melbourne	15	13	8	19	(24)	55
17	21	Dean Blatchford, Greg Torpy & Keith Jensen	Lake Macquarie	20	20	(24)	10	14	64
18	29	David Turton, David Biggar & Shayne Farnell	Mooloolaba	(31)	16	10	28	13	67
19	22	David Rose, Josh Torpy & Edward Cowan	Brisbane	(40\DNF)	24	12	23	10	69
20	23	Graeme Alexander, Errol Candy & Chris Jackson	Mornimgton	21	11	20	18	(23)	70
21	13	John Warlow, Craig Alcock & Bradley Ginniven	Brisbane	(26)	19	19	14	22	74
22	37	James Chilman, Stephen Girdis & Gary Van Lunteren	Brisbane	10	22	22	26	(32)	80
23	28	Noel Paterson, Sarah Board, Mark Buchbach & Hamish Crossan	Brisbane	18	23	(25)	25	15	81
24	39	Gary Smith, Michael McAullay & Andrew McAullay	Swan River	16	15	26	(40\DNF)	26	83
25	35	Mark Sanders, James Howarth & Scott McInally	Gold Coast	19	26	29	(40\DNF)	11	85
26	01	Michael Stovin-Bradford, Andrew Gordon & Keith Short	Sydney	(30)	25	18	29	21	93
27	08	David Healey, James Hallam, Timothy Robba & Jennifer Skeahan	Brisbane	27	(30)	17	22	29	95
28	04	Peter Coleman, Iain Gartley & Wayne Dixon	Melbourne	28	27	23	17	(30)	95
29	25	Trevor Martin, Paul Braithwaite & Darrell Civic	Mooloolaba	22	(31)	30	27	18	97
30	31	Paul Minter, Glen Thomson & John Minter	Cronulla	24	(33)	27	21	28	100
31	14	Ian Anderson, Joshua Willis & Robin Braender	Swan River	23	29	33	16	(40\DNS)	101
32	18	Jack Ellis, David Buckland & Luke Cable	Melbourne	33	34	31	32	(40\DNS)	130
33	36	Grant Chipperfield, Fenge Shave & Ross Wade	Melbourne	(40\DNF)	40\DNC	28	30	33	131
34	30	Gregory Forgan-Smith, Bruce Pitt, Ludvig Bengtsson & Stuart Lorimer	Gold Coast	32	28	32	(40\DNC)	40\DNS	132
35	38	Hayes Michael, James Dagge & Liam Hayes	Brisbane	35	36	(37)	31	31	133
36	19	Glenn Norton, Brett Heath, Peter Rattray & Richard Hodgson	Melbourne	(40\DNF)	40\DNC	36	40\DNF	20	136
37	26	Todd Trevillion, Roger Gain & David Ritchard	Sydney	29	32	(40\DNF)	40\DNF	40\DNS	141
38	32	Stephen Toms, David Smith & Patrick Largier	Brisbane	34	35	34	(40\DNF)	40\DNS	143
39	07	Mal Blom, Toby Abbot & Iain Davidson	Melbourne	(40\DNF)	40\DNC	35	40\DNF	34	149

All results provisional.

Event website http://www.mooetchells.yachting.org.au/