Please select your home edition
Edition
Rooster 2025

ILCA NZ Nationals - Day 3: Another beautiful day on the Sound

by Nick Page 22 Jan 2022 03:28 PST 23 January 2022
NZ ILCA National Championships - Day 3, Queen Charlotte Yacht Club, Picton © Christel Hopkins

Patience was the name of the game for the beginning of Day 3. The fleet was on course for a 1pm start as scheduled, with a light easterly blowing. The first race started, only to be abandoned a few minutes later when the breeze completely died.

After a bit of a wait a good NW breeze developed and allowed all three scheduled races to be completed. Blowing directly off the northern shore of the sound the breeze was rather fickle, varying in strength from around 8 to 15 knots, always gusty and shifty, making for another physically testing day for all the sailors. It was again warm with clear blue skies, attracting a few extra spectators onto the course. We again enjoyed very close racing in all the fleets, with places changing frequently as the shifts and pressure lines came through. It was certainly not a lottery though and the leaders generally consolidated their positions in all fleets.

In the ILCA 7's it was again a two out of three bullet day for reigning World Champ Tom Saunders, but he did prove human, slipping to third in the second race of the day after misjudging the tide and hitting the top mark. This race was led for a long time by Luke Deegan but it was finally George Gautrey that got the gun from Luke and Tom. So with only tomorrow's two scheduled races remaining Tom is in a strong position at the head of the fleet with George a clear second. Behind them it is a tight battle between Luke Cashmore and Luke Deegan for the final podium spot, with Samoan Olympic rep Eroni Leilua still in with a shot as well from 5th overall. In the Masters the top three are close and have a significant points advantage over the rest of the Masters field. Andrew Dellabarca (GM) again had a strong and consistent day to hold a narrow lead in the Masters fleet from Chris Decke (M), with leading Apprentice Master Tim Pitcaithly close behind.

In the ILCA 6's Caleb Armit (YB) enjoyed a stellar day, taking out all three races to build a really strong lead on the fleet. Second placed George Lane (O) had a tougher day with a few errors creeping in (he shared the pesky mark problem with Tom). Dylan Forsyth (YB) just held onto third overall but Zach Stibbe (YB) moved strongly up the leaderboard with a great 2/3/2 record today to sit 4th overall. The leading 4 women all has slightly up and down days but Olivia Christie (OW) did enough to lie 5th overall and lead the women with Annabelle Rennie-Younger (OW) and Greta Pilkington (YG) tied on points only 2 behind Olivia, while Emily Overend (OW) is very much still in contention only a couple of points further back.

In the ILCA 6 Masters Phil Wild (AM) again dominated, winning 2 races, but allowed Werner Hennig (GM) through to win the first race of the day. So going into the final day Phil has a good lead from Master Ed Tam with Werner in 3rd. Pete Thomas in 6th overall is the leading GGM while Helen Spencer continues to be the leading Master Woman ahead of Hamilton teammate Lucia Chagas.

Two races are scheduled for the final day tomorrow, hopefully with an earlier midday start if the wind gods cooperate.

For full results click here

Related Articles

Laser Wars: Australian builder rejects ultimatum
Performance SailCraft Australia claims boats to the new moulds will be shorter than current ILCAs Performance SailCraft Australia (PSA) claims boats to the new moulds will be shorter than the current class. Posted on 31 Aug
2025 ILCA Under-21 Worlds at Dún Laoghaire overall
Breezy final day crowns three champions on Dublin Bay The weather co-operated once again on Dublin Bay to deliver a nail-biting conclusion to the 2025 ILCA Under-21 World Championships today, where three new world titles were decided at the end of a full 12-race programme. Posted on 30 Aug
Major ILCA builder loses Builder Approval
Performance Sailcraft Australia (PSA) is no longer an ILCA-approved Builder The International Laser Class Association (ILCA) has announced that Performance Sailcraft Australia (PSA) is no longer an ILCA-approved Builder under the ILCA Class Rules. The Class Assoc has not given any specific reason for its withdrawal. Posted on 30 Aug
2025 ILCA Under-21 Worlds at Dún Laoghaire Day 5
Penultimate day brings pressure to leaderboards Despite further tricky conditions with the offshore breeze on Dublin Bay today, racing got off to a smooth start though there were plenty of upsets in both the ILCA 6 Women and ILCA 7 Men's events, leaving just two races on Friday to secure best outcomes. Posted on 28 Aug
2025 ILCA Under-21 Worlds at Dún Laoghaire Day 4
Gold fleet compresses while wind still rules the waves On the first day of Gold fleet racing for the Men's event at the 2025 ILCA Under-21 World Championships today, the leaderboard tightened significantly, while in the Women's event a clear leader extended her advantage. Posted on 28 Aug
2025 ILCA Under-21 Worlds at Dún Laoghaire Day 3
Tough third day as the event reaches halfway stage The switch of wind direction to offshore brought new challenges to both the Race Committee and the 212 sailors from 38 nations competing today, where the full race schedule was completed, bringing the event to the halfway stage. Posted on 26 Aug
2025 ILCA Under-21 Worlds at Dún Laoghaire Day 2
Fast and furious conditions on Dublin Bay Dublin Bay delivered a full test of stamina and skill on day two of the 2025 ILCA Under-21 World Championships, with some clear leaders beginning to emerge. Posted on 25 Aug
What the ILCA Senior Europeans leaves in its wake
After six days of challenging and varied conditions The 2025 ILCA Senior European Championships & Open European Trophy in Marstrand closed after six days of challenging and varied conditions, with new European champions crowned in the ILCA 7, ILCA 6 Women, and ILCA 6 Men fleets. Posted on 19 Aug
2025 ILCA Senior Europeans in Marstrand overall
Both racecourses delivered challenging but fair racing, rewarding consistency and composure The 2025 ILCA Senior European Championships & Open European Trophy came to a close today in spectacular fashion, as the new European champions were crowned across all three fleets. A sunny sky and classic Marstrand conditions prevailed. Posted on 17 Aug
2025 ILCA Senior Europeans in Marstrand day 5
Penultimate day delivers a full mix of conditions The penultimate day of the 2025 ILCA Senior European Championships & Open European Trophy delivered a full mix of conditions, from light and shifty in the morning to heavy and demanding by the afternoon. Posted on 16 Aug
Cyclops Marine 2023 November - FOOTERAllen Dynamic 40 FooterMackay Boats 728x90 BOTTOM