The 73rd Australian Titles
Lane Cove 12ft Sailing Skiff Club Inc.
21st - 24th March 2008
The Norman Booth Trophy
Report
The 73rd Australian Titles at Lane Cove. I heard a kid describe it as “uber sweet” but he was wearing fluro so I’m not sure we can trust him. There were 34 boats, including cherubs, that had travelled from as far as Perth to complete.
The fleet was split in two with boats rigging at the club and at Woodford Bay. There were breakfasts provided, a legion of volunteers, generous sponsors and reasonable weather.
Day 1
Have you ever taken your mates to a pub that you like and it’s really quiet and your mates get bored and then start blaming you for the fact that they aren’t enjoying themselves? Well, that was sort of like Day 1.
It looked for all intents and purposes that we were getting a good Southerly for race 1. Jack Winning (who could be called Mr Lane Cove if it wasn’t too confusing) went big rig and in doing so was the only boat to wear the right rig. Everyone else went second rig and they should have been right but weren’t.
Wolfie took a whole lot of stick before the race about the size of the course and the number of “marks” we would have to round. He would take a similar amount of stick after the race as well. It probably wasn’t his fault that the breeze dropped out but you have to blame someone.
Maybe if we had started on time it wouldn’t have been as bad. We don’t get many general recalls in 12 footers so I am going to do the only logical thing and blame the Cherubs for the 3 Generals and the black flag. Maybe a bit of inexperience let them down or they just got a bit nervous on the big stage but they will learn from it.
For the record O won. I would love to describe the action for you but it was so confusing I haven’t got the literary skills. 34 boats pottered around in the dieing Southerly and if you saw a mark, you went around it … just in case. Nick Barnard had an awesome race in Pink Bits, starting brilliantly and hanging on to finish 6th.
Ben Austin and Dave Cleworth also had a solid start to the regatta, taking out 4th. The start was even better if you consider Ben broke a tiller extension and spent the back half of the race steering on one tack with his foot. Second was Brett Hobson in Garde and third was Murray and Ben in Gemmell Sails.
Dinner harked back to the days of Balmain on a Friday with Prawns and Chicken.
Day 2
The old girl Lane Cove might have been a bit embarrassed by Day 1, so she sent a much better day 2 for the sailors to devour. There was a lot of east in our East-Sou-Easterly and a fair bit of grunt behind it too. It was 15kts most of the day, with gusts of 18 or so. The majority of the fleet stuck their second rigs back in and it was the right call.
The day would be dominated by Brett and Alex in Garde. With a couple of pretty good starts and the rig dialled-in they took off in both races. The breeze shifted about enough to give the boys some uncomfortable moments but it was their day and they cashed in with two wins on the short courses.
Jonathan and Rich in O pushed Garde hard all day and were still right up there in the overall with a 2nd and a 3rd. There were also placings for Gemmell Sails and the Queenslanders in Gobsmacked Dwarves (2nd in Race 3 on Day 2 if you follow.)
There were quite a few “moments” throughout the fleet on Day 2. The two Press boats had a coming together at the top mark, Bill Olsen did a “stern stand” over the finish line, (we thought it would sound cooler if we called it a wheelie) and countless other 12s and Cherubs created what looked like a graveyard on some of the downwind legs.
Dinner was chicken kebabs.
Day 3
Easter Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest and I think Madame Lane Cove respects that. Let’s just say that the 45 minutes it usually takes the fleet to decide what rig to put in was not required – it was big rig – very big rig indeed.
It wasn’t quite a drifter but it made the courses feel very long, especially for those Cherubs (and the Moor’s on Geotherm) with their little spinnakers.
Brett Hobson and Alex Johnson won the first race with their new Gemmell main obviously cut to perfection. O finished 2nd and Gemmell Sails 3rd.
Race 5 on day three saw the breeze die even more. On a tight course with long runs this meant a whole lot of pain, with boats gibing on each other, stealing breeze and mark roundings busier than an Auckland nightclub on payday.
The story of Race 5 was Foxy Lady Too with Peter Polec and Jamie McCrudden. Wolfie puts a lot into the boat and put a lot into the Nationals so it was great to see them finish 3rd over the line.
Dinner was lasagne.
Day 4
And so it came down to the final race. Garde’s 5th behind Wolfie in Race 5 had left the door ajar for Jonathan and Richard in O. We all went big rig thinking it was going to be another drifter. It wasn’t. We weren’t expecting the beautiful nor-easter that turned up but it was welcome. The race was postponed to heighten the suspense.
Brett’s big rig had been gunning all weekend but the extra bit of breeze would have traditionally helped the guys in O, if Richard hadnt gone on a magical weight loss diet before the Nats. The Nor-East course turned out to be a cracker as was Garde’s first leg. The blue and white kite was up first around the top mark and they would never be headed.
Jono and Rich in O were going quick too but they weren’t able to close the gap and finished up 4th in the heat, to hold onto 2nd overall. Nick and Yabs in Yabba dabba snuck in for 2nd with Tim and Boco in Gizmo finishing 3rd in the heat. Murray Press and Ben Gemmell were having a super consistent series too and locked up third overall.
Handicap had been a close fight as well between the locals. Andrew Stevenson and Brad Greenrod in ship ‘At Call Powered by Bainbridge’ managed to win the series from Mr Lane Cove and Brett Phillips in Vantage Real Estate. Ailsa Jeans and Ross Gage in MissCheif was third.
The Presentation
I remember some years ago at the Sydney Flying Squadron when Unit and Lachie held Brad Greenrod down and tried to cut his hair. Lachie got a piece before he was sent flying across the room. It was fitting then that Lachie was one of those holding the clippers as Brad Greenrod voluntarily gave up his long locks for the Shave for a Cure.
Props to Michael Spies who was a demon on the microphone and squeezed every cent out of the skiffies and Lane Cove clubbies. Combined, they raised over $1000 in about 15 minutes for leukaemia research.
Dinner was a spit roast.
Skiff-Ed