Tasmanian Marblehead State Championship

Don't know how long it's been, but we got some wind today.

Started with brisk B rig weather, however, just before the start of the day, a mixture of C and C2 rigs were on the water.

We had 8 sailors for the Tasmanian Marblehead State Regatta, and in all, 17 races completed for the day.

Througout the day, the wind persisted, and in fact increased till about 2pm. Some sailors pulled out from not having a C2 or lower to use, but we even got a B2 rig on the water for one race, showing the level of wind we were experiencing.

By the end of the day, we mostly had our B's on, so most sailors used at least 3 rigs as the day progressed.

The day was expertly run by Pro Jeff Byerley along with our two volunteers, Ian Hey and Dave Woolley.

By the lunch break, it was evident that Ray had a tight hold on the day, with five race wins, a second and a DNF. The masterclass continued after lunch, with the Grunge sailing the fastest I have seen an RM sail. Cracking those sheets a little bit and letting it fly certainly made for some fast heavy weather sailing. A true credit to him and a thoroughly deserved win on the day, with just 22 points.

Second to fourth place was separated by just 3 points Some very close racing.

Stuart Dawes pevailed amongst that group, to take out second place on 45 points, with John Cole-Cook just two behind in third, on 47 points.

We again ran a handicap segment within the regatta, and John Cole-Cook took home first place on handicap, with 2 net points (based on his event seeding compared to his finishing position).

Second place on handicap went to Stuart Dawes, with 1 net point for the event.

Third place on handicap went to Phil Turnbull, Rod Marshall, John Hall and Ray Joyce, who all finished on 0 net points.

Congratulations to all competitors today. An excellent regatta, sailed in great spirits and heavy winds. Thanks for Pro'ing the day Jeff Byerley, and also to our observers Ian Hey and Dave Woolley.

On an aside, some of our members had a working bee at Montrose Bay Yacht Club yesterday, pulling in the buoys for maintenance. Big thanks to Rod Marshall, Ray joyce, Andrew Wardrop, John Hall and Peter Sylvester.

Also, our annual subs are now due. We have had about half our membership pay so far, and at the end of this week, I'll be sendng out invoices to those who have yet to pay as a reminder to get them in as soon as possible. We are about to spend a significant amount of funds for our part in a successful grant application to replace the Aluminium dinghy at Montrose, so every dollar that comes in is certainly appreciated.

Coming Up

Wednesday is DF95 Mid Week Handicap, at the dam with button press at 11am

Next Sunday is IOM Scratch at the dam, button press at 10am.

Kyle