Results Metros Double Bay
Ready for action at Double Bay SC. PNG and Cook Islands boats on the right
The Metropolitan Championship was concluded at Double Bay Sailing Club over the weekend. There were 123 competitors with eight countries represented along with sailors from NSW, ACT, Victoria and Queensland. With a number of elite level sailors training in Sydney the visitors were well represented in the podium positions.
Winds were good – a nice NE’er on Saturday and on Sunday a better than forecast southerly. The 4.7 and Radial fleets completed six races while the Standards wore themselves and RO Col Chidgey out with multiple black flag general recalls on Sunday and only completed five races.
On Saturday the Harbour was record busy with the huge Middle Harbour Yacht Club Regatta add to that the ferries, grand hot water boats and the odd seaplane. Our RO tried to set a course in Rose Bay away from the rather more crowded parts of the Harbour. The wind in Rose Bay was problematic and after an attempt to set a start line and course and, with some prompting from the Rose Bay ferry skipper, Col Chidgey moved to Plan B with a course between Clarke and Shark Islands which worked well.
On Sunday after a delay ashore to allow the wind to settle a useful southerly came in and a course off Double Bay worked well with little interference from the other maritime traffic.
The Standard rigs were dominated by the visitors with Colin Cheng from Singapore the run away winner followed by Chen Huichao from China with Fredrik Westman from Finnland 3rd. Thomas Vincent from McCrae YC in Melbourne, a regular competitor in our events, was the first under 21. In the Radials DBSC local Finnian Alexander won in a close contest with Middle Harbour ASC’s Stuart Plenderleith. Third was Australia’s top ranked woman Laser sailor Ashley Stoddart from Royal Queensland YS. In the 4.7′s Laura Thomson from Albury Wodonga YC was the run away winner from RPAYC sailors Nathan Bryant and Joshua Bull.
Thanks to our RO Col Chidgey and his on water team who jointly had a busy time setting and re-setting courses and start lines and managing the multiple starts and recalls. Thanks also to the great team at Double Bay Sailing Club for their organisation of the event.
There is a good write-up of the event on the DBSC web site here.
