As the end of the Spring/Summer Season is now upon us and with the Winter season just around the corner, last Sunday (2 Apr), saw the final weekend of Club Championship racing in the Optimist and Laser Classes, where the winners of all pointscores were duly declared.

As the forecast had predicted, the Race Committee and competitors alike had to face up to a stiff Southerly breeze (20-25kts), to stage the final three races of the season. Capsizes were random rather than regular, a true testament to the skill on display by all sailors, as they pushed themselves and their competitors to the edge.

Optimist Review
In the Optimist Class for the 2016-2017 Club Championship on ‘Scratch’, it was a very close call as the competition between the top two sailors came down to the wire. Going into the last race of the final day, Chapman Tanner (Redback), held the slimmest of leads, (0.1 points), over fellow Optimist sailor Paul Davison (Groova2).

As fate would have it, Davison held his nerve and took the final race from Tanner by 23secs, to finish the season 0.9 points ahead and claim the Club Championship on ‘Scratch’ from Tanner, second. Vaughan O’Shea (Boat) had a steady final day to secure third place overall for the season.

On ‘Handicap’ for the Club Championship, Henry Collyer (Flying Dugong) showed the most consistency over the entire season to finish on top and take out first place in the pointscore. Henry’s worst score for the whole season, after drops were excluded, were a handful of 4-point race scores, a super effort to be able to keep ahead of the pace of handicap adjustments. To round out the top three, Davison and O’Shea placed second and third respectively for the season overall.

Laser 4.7 Review
A name that will surely feature for years to come, is that of Jack Littlechild. Having had a stellar season in the Laser 4.7, Littlechild (Fast Forward) wrapped up first place on ‘Scratch’ for the Club Championship on Sunday, to go along with his two-other stand out performances for the season; Australian Champion and Australian Youth Champion in the Laser 4.7 Class.

Pushing Littlechild right through the Club season were Mark Louis (Remarkable) and Daniel Costandi (The Force Awakens), placing second and third respectively. For Costandi, this is a fine effort having only just stepped into the 4.7 for the first time this season, having previously sailed an Optimist.

Costandi also backed up his maiden performance, by claiming first place and the Club Championship in the Laser 4.7 on ‘Handicap’. Consistent improvement is the key to win on handicap and Costandi had in bucket loads. Sealing second place was Riley Evans (Firebolter). Unfortunately for Evans, having missed three races late in the piece which claimed three significantly sized drops, Evans may have narrowed the margin and could have had Costandi looking over his shoulder on the final day for the overall lead, but it wasn’t to be. Rounding out the top three was Littlechild placing third on ‘Handicap’.

Laser Radial Review
Within the Club’s Laser Radial fleet are several sailors that have had to juggle their passion for the wind and water, as well as their studies, all season long. This makes the pecking order shuffle around from week to week, especially when the fleet acquires a bunch of new and late recruits stepping up from the 4.7 Class.

Although small on numbers, but by no means attitude, the Club Championship on ’Handicap’ for the 2016-2017 season, was a terrific battle. Finishing on top and taking the silverware was D’Arcy Kemp (The Apparatus), from Club Captain Maddie O’Shea (Pickle) second, with visiting German National and honorary Squadron member Carlotta Cruseman (Gone With The Wind) placing third.

On ‘Scratch’, it was again last season’s Champion, Oskar Hansen-Lindbjerg, locking out the Championship with a near perfect and always dominate performance. In all but one race that he started, Hansen-Lindbjerg took the bullet each time. It was in the first race of the final day of racing that he came to a disastrous (and somewhat hilarious) tangled engagement with an Optimist race mark, therefore causing him to have a singular black mark on his scoresheet, a lonely DNF. He certainly smartened up his act after that, claiming the next two bullets that day.

Displaying great international talent and determination all season long was Cruseman, revelling in the warm weather that Sydney is renowned for, hoping to never return to her homeland in Germany for another winter sailing season ever again. Overcoming gear breakages and new surroundings, placing second overall on ‘Scratch’ for the season caps off a very successful period for the bubbly international. There’s no doubt that the lure of sailing in Sydney will have her back for more in the years come.

Finally, duking it out for third overall on ‘Scratch’ for the season were Kemp and O’Shea, finishing each race never more than two places apart. Although the difference separating their final standings was just over 8 points, the fight and the rivalry was always a spectacle in each race that they started together, with O’Shea rounding out her season with a brilliant final day of racing. It was however, too little too late for O’Shea, having to settle for fourth overall in the season, with Kemp nailing third place overall.

As such, the racing for the Spring/Summer season has been run and won and Daylight Saving has fallen by the wayside too. Attention now turns to the Winter Season with a once a month, Sunday morning, racing series scheduled. Additionally, the Annual Prize Giving is almost a month away and will be held at the Club on the evening of Friday 19th May. To be sure to make a night of it, purchase your tickets early, which are now available and on sale via the online booking form.

For further information, click on the links below;

Club Dinghy Racing – Results, Winter Notice of Race, Winter Sailing Instructions, Winter Entries available at: http://www.rsys.com.au/sailing/dinghy-racing

Annual Prize Giving – Book Tickets now for the Youth Annual Prize Giving, Friday 19th May 2017 at: http://www.rsys.com.au/sailing/sailing-calendar/event/1444-

Youth Winter Training – Winter Green Fleet, Winter Optimist Fleet, Winter Laser Fleet available at: http://www.rsys.com.au/youth/squads

Photos by Locky Pryor