Elliott 5.9: Opportunity for new crew to take over Youth Development boat, “Class Act”
by Gareth Howard - Elliott 5.9 Association 13 Dec 2023 23:50 PST
14 December 2023
Elliott 5.9 Assoc offers 'Class Act' for a new Youth Development crew for 2024 season © Elliott 5.9
The Elliott 5.9 Class has just completed its first successful season with its Youth Development boat, “Class Act” and are now looking for applicants to take on this opportunity for the 2024 season: Elliott 5.9 Youth Development Boat
Elliott 5.9 Class Association president, Stu Clarke, said “It has proved to be a very successful formula and we are pleased how the season panned out. We had the odd teething problems at the opening regatta, but with good support from within the class, we have ironed out all the bugs and have a very competitive boat on the water”
Stu also added, “there’s great support in the class with sail makers, riggers, boat builders etc and it’s this combined class support that has developed the concept to what it is now. It’s a really cool package”.
As far as seeing success from the program, Stu commented “It was really exciting to see that the class development boat led directly to a second youth team sailing ‘Nyx’ at our last regatta in Sandspit. The class is really pleased to continue with a role in youth development. We also have Jack Carter, who has just completed a refurbishment of ‘Order 66’, and this will be another up and coming crew on the water next year.”
The crew from Glendowie Boating Club, ably led by Ollie Davisdon, were the inaugural crew to make use of the Youth Development Boat and they competed in every event of the Harken Elliott 5.9 Traveller Series. They will now also be holding on to the boat to compete in the upcoming Elliott 5.9 Nationals that will be held at Marsden Cove 7 - 9 March 2024.
Ollie sums up their experience: “The Harken Elliott 5.9 Traveller Series has been an exciting experience for us! We enjoyed all aspects of the series from travelling around the country to the social events. The very high standard of sailing along with friendly camaraderie of the existing crews has made for some challenging yet fun sailing. Racing ‘Class Act’ this year has been a rewarding experience and we are looking forward to continuing to part of this class next year”
As Ollie has mentioned, a really exciting outcome for the class is that Ollie and his team now have access to their own boat, Nyx, and will again be a part of the class in next year's Harken Traveller Series.
After the Nationals, the boat will again be available for the next development crew for next season's Traveller Series. The Harken Traveller Series will start in April and continue through to October. It will consist of 5 regattas based around the North Island with full dates and locations to be available soon.
Applications or expressions of interest for the boat are now open and full details can be found here: Elliott 5.9 Youth Development Boat
For more information on the Elliott 5.9 Class Association visit www.e59.org.nz
About The Elliott 5.9
The Elliott 5.9 emerged in the early 1980’s as a high performing trailer yacht and continues to deliver competitive one design racing in a welcoming fleet of world-class sailors and novices alike. The boats started a revolution with their well-balanced and cost effective design, and quickly became the boat of choice for top club training schemes and a breeding ground for NZ’s America’s Cup, Ocean Race and Olympic champions.
Sailed by a crew of three, the Elliott 5.9 remains a low maintenance sailboat with an efficient single spreader fractional rig, a well-balanced sail plan and practical deck layout. Whether sailing among mixed trailer yachts, sport boat fleets or in a one design setting, the 5.9 is celebrated for its responsiveness and outstanding value.