Words: Jane Austin - Images: Peter Watson
The River Derwent produced challenging conditions for the iWest/Nautilus Marine Tasmanian Yachting Championship which was sailed from the Derwent Sailing Squadron over the weekend.
The championship was sailed over two days, offering an opportunity for some of Tasmania’s offshore entrants in the Sydney, Melbourne, and Launceston to Hobart races a chance to finesse their crew work and boat handling before boat deliveries commence.
Race Officer Ian Ross provided outstanding race management in widely variable conditions which offered the fleet a taste of everything – from drifters to thunder squalls to fresh north-westerly winds. The fleet sailed six races in total which were a mix of windward/leeward races and short passage races, providing an excellent training opportunity.
In Division 1, Midnight Rambler (Ed Psaltis) won four races on IRC and, after dropping his worst result of a fourth, took out the division on 7 points. Whistler (Drew Latham) finished in second place on 10 points, with Filepro (Tim Gadsby) on 11 points. Jazz Player (John Dryden) took out Division 1 on PHS on 11 points from Filepro on 12 points and Midnight Rambler on 16 points.
In Division 2, the team on Young Lion (Scott Brain) put on a masterful display, coming first in every race on IRC, and won under PHS with Invincible (Finlay Crisp) coming second in both categories. Off-Piste (Paul Einoder) finished in third place in IRC while Jiyuu (Peter Davis) finished third in PHS.
The event was a thrilling prelude to the Australian Yachting Championship which will be sailed in Hobart for the first time from 3-5 January 2020 and will include several interstate entries.
