Etchells Australia National Championship 2024 at the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron - Day 2
by Sydney Etchells Fleet 9 Jan 16:16 PST
7-11 January 2024
2024 Etchells Australian Championships © AeroMedia
Day 2 of the Etchells Australian Championships, looked very promising from the outset, clear skies and an early southerly breeze greeted sailors. With the prospect of 3 races the RO had Race 3 under way on time on southerly course set further up Sydney Harbour than yesterday.
After what was a tight first beat, the fleet spread out, with eventual leader Mark Bradford in Pie taking a good lead down the final run. Robin Deussen from Adelaide in Shoulda Gone Left came in second and Billy Merrington in First Tracks was Third. JC Strong finished 4th, on her way to a very consistent day. But its always good to see new names up the leader board, and Jan Muysken in African Queen rounded out the top 5.
The weather gods made life a little more difficult for race to and after a course change and a delay racing was eventually under way under slightly more gloomy skies, in a dying South Easterly breeze.
One of the great things about the Etchells class is the one design nature of the boat, which means teams can charter a boat, step on and be competitive straight away, and that is what Jamie McWilliam and his team from Hong Kong did in this race, leading from the outset in the Sydney fleets foundation boat, Wobbegong 2.
JC Strong finished in 2nd, with Graeme Taylor finishing 3rd, importantly for him as he was granted redress and average points for race 2 due to the outcome of a protest hearing that morning before sailing. Mark Thornborrow finished 4th and Chris Manton in Tiger22 rounded out the top 5.
Unfortunately the RO couldn't squeeze in another race due to a shifting breeze and the fleet headed back to the club. No night sailing on Day 2, so the crews could enjoy the regatta dinner hosted by the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron.
In the overall standings, JC Strong on Flying High is leading, from GT on Magpie and Mark Thornborrow on Racer CC. Only 1 point separates top 3 boats.
Earlier starts for day 3 today, with the RO looking for 3 races. From a series point of view drops will start to kick in and we may see some changes on the leader board to night.
Full results available here.