18ft Skiff Australian Championship on Sydney Harbour – Race 3

18ft Skiff Australian Championship on Sydney Harbour – Race 3

by Frank Quealey 27 Jan 23:40 PST
28 January 2024

NSW champion Yandoo elevated her lead on the midway mark of the Australian 18ft Skiff Championship as we speak with an excellent win by her crew within the Smeg Race 3 of the sequence, sailed on Sydney Harbour.

Skippered by Tom Needham, changing the injured John ‘Woody’ Successful, with Fang Warren on the sheet and Lewis Brake within the bow, the staff had been excellent within the testing 15-knot South-East wind to file a close to all-the-way win over the top quality fleet.

Yandoo crossed the end line 3m13s forward of Rag & Famish Lodge (Harry Worth, Josh McKnight, Finn Rodowicz) after the pair had staged a detailed battle over the primary half of the course.

Andoo (John Successful Jr, Seve Jarvin, Harry Smith) completed third, 19s behind Rag & Famish Lodge, with defending champion Finport Finance (Keagan York) in fourth place, adopted by Vaikobi (Kirk Mitchell) and Smeg (Nathan McNamara).

With three extra races to finish the Australian Championship, and every staff nonetheless to discard its worst race outcome, the progress factors are:

Yandoo with a complete of 4 factors, adopted by Rag & Famish Lodge on 9, Andoo 10, Vaikobi 12, Smeg 20 and Balmain on 21.

Yandoo was at all times in, or close to, the lead because the fleet sailed from the beginning line in Taylors Bay to the climate mark in Rose Bay.

The complete fleet elected to sail to the suitable hand facet of Shark Island as they labored into the mark the place Yandoo held a 7s lead over Rag & Famish Lodge. Vaikobi was in third place forward of Finport Finance, Andoo, Smeg, Fisher & Paykel (Jordan Girdis) and The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines (Jacob Marks).

The 2 leaders staged an ideal battle over the following two legs of the course. Firstly, on the spinnaker run from Rose Bay to the underside mark off Robertson Level after which the work to the mark off Clark Island, the place solely 14s nonetheless separated Yandoo and Rag & Famish Lodge.

Though trailing by multiple minute, it was simply as tight within the battle for third place at that stage with Vaikobi holding a 5s edge over Finport Finance, intently adopted by Andoo, Smeg, Fisher & Paykel and Balmain (Henry Larkings)

There was nonetheless little between the 2 leaders as they battled the angle of the wind on the tight attain/spinnaker run from Clark Island to Chowder Bay however over the loop throughout the harbour to Rose Bay and again to Taylors Bay, Yandoo opened up a wholesome lead which the staff prolonged over the ultimate three legs of the course.

Whereas Yandoo’s victory was decisive on the end, the battle for the minor placings was tight all through the course with positions altering repeatedly over each the windward and spinnaker legs.

Smeg gained as we speak’s Ferry Patrons Trophy handicap part of as we speak’s race, which can be one of many races included within the Australian 18 Footers League’s Season Level Rating sequence, and now additionally leads the Season Level Rating sequence with a complete of 92 factors, adopted by Fisher & Paykel on 99 and Yandoo on 108.

Race 4 of the Australian Championship will likely be sailed subsequent Sunday (4 February). The League’s spectator ferry will comply with the motion, leaving Double Bay Public Wharf at 2.15pm. Tickets can be found 18footers.com/18-footer-racing/spectator-ferry

In case you desire, you may nonetheless be a part of the League’s ‘Different Ferry’ within the clubhouse and luxuriate in all of the racing motion LIVE on the huge display broadcasting the SailMedia Livestream digicam cat protection. It is a actually distinctive approach to rejoice the nice racing and all 18 footer supporters are welcome to come back all the way down to the clubhouse ‘Different Ferry’.

If you cannot get out onto Sydney Harbour, or come to the membership’s ‘Different’ Ferry’, you may nonetheless watch it LIVE by going to the Membership’s 18footers.com web site and clicking on the TV hyperlink.

Australian Championship Outcomes after Race 3: