ILCA.nz supports New Zealand's ILCA racing sailors.
The ILCA sailing dinghy was previously called the Laser.
And ILCA.nz was previously called The New Zealand Laser Association.
Come and join us if you race an ILCA.

2023 Auckland ILCA Champs Results & Report

Wed 29 Mar 2023 9:57pm

2023 Auckland ILCA Champs, 1st & 2nd April at Tamaki YC.

The Open and Youth raced both Saturday and Sunday. The Masters regatta was just the Saturday.

Conditions on Saturday kept everyone honest with a 12-14 knot northerly coupled with an incoming tide flowing across the course and a typical tricky chop that made the venturi pretty important upwind and wave catching technically difficult on the runs.

The strongest breeze was experienced by the RAYC team which launched out of Okahu Bay, unaware of the calamity of bad luck that the race committee were working hard to address and ended up milling about for an extra hour while the rest of the fleet chilled out on the TYC ramp.

In the 28 strong radial fleet, Greta Pilkington unleashed her devastatingly quick downwind speed to end the day with a commanding lead including three bullets and a second from four races – the only waves she missed were the few that washed by while she righted her boat after death rolling on the last race of the day.

Top Youth Louie Poletti, now based in Auckland, bounced back to from a slow start to be second at the end of the day.

In the masters event, Phil Wild (M) made some good recoveries to defend the masters title and finish the day 3rd overall while local favourite Phil Bennett (AM) strung some impressive results together to be 2nd master, 6th overall and Raglan sailor Dave Johnson (M) just behind to be 3rd master, 7th overall. Pt Chev battler Kirsty MacDonald (GM) defended her women’s masters tile ahead of Georgina Wooldridge (GM) and Marie France (AM) respectively. It was also great to see participation in this category increasing.

The top of the full rig fleet saw a tight battle between Samoan Olympic representative (and proud dad) Eroni Leilua and previous Radial Auckland Champ champ, Matthew Rist, locked in a dead heat after day one.

In the masters event, big Tony Nicholson (GM) claimed the title with a consistent performance to sit 3rd overall ahead of Doug Anderson (GM) in 2nd ( 4th overall) and Karl Nicholson (M) in 3rd (5th overall).

Sunday was very different with a light to variable breeze wafting down the harbour with tide continuing to run in over the course of the day.

With flat water, brutally patchy and shifty conditions, the race committee (Garth, Sandy Grigg & Bob Blakely) called upon its combined 230+ years of experience to run three short sprint races and successfully complete the race schedule.

The conditions certainly levelled the playing field with fleets congealing on the runs giving everyone a chance of slipping through.

In the radial fleet, Greta did more than enough to take out the event, no doubt employing some of her European experience of sailing in tight fleets in light conditions.

A consistent performance saw Phil Wild sneak into 2nd overall with Louie Poletti finishing 3rd overall.

Daniella Wooldridge claimed first female youth ahead of Naiomi Ferrissey and Chloe Turner respectively.

Special mentions have to be made to Josh Edmonds (AM) who surged up the leader board to 4th overall with the best performance of the day (2, 3, 1) and to Stefano Santella who took out race six.

In the full rig, the close battle resumed between the two highly ranked sailors with Eroni Leilua eventually winning the championship by one point over Matthew Rist.

Cook Island representative Villi Ratalulu (Y) completed the regatta to finish 3rd overall.
 

North Island Freshwater ILCA Champs - Report and Results

Sun 12 Mar 2023 9:31pm

A tremendously successful weekend in Taupo, with 50 ILCA's meeting for the inaugural North Island Freshwater Championship, held as part of the Bayleys Taupo Centreboard Regatta. The ideas was to have a late season get-together for all NI sailors and it worked a treat, with fleets of 25 ILCA 6 and 25 ILCA 7 enjoying typically challenging Taupo conditions. 4 races in 5 to 12 knot SW breezes were completed on both Saturday and Sunday. Both fleets were a mix of youth and experience, and while the cream rose to the top in both fleets there were plenty of challenges for everyone in the shifty conditions. A strong local turnout was bolstered by sailors from all over the island, which made for a great spectacle and there was a fantastic atmosphere around the club all weekend.
 
In the ILCA 7 Dylan Forsyth ended up the decisive winner, but he was made to work for it in every race. GGM Barry Cutfield and Master Michael Gray both elegantly showed the benefits of age and wisdom can overcome youthful athleticism, winning the third race and eighth races respectively, and generally several of the masters were in the mix in every race. Consistency as usual though ruled the overall results and it was George Pilkington who ended up second overall to Dylan, with perennial top GM Andrew Dellabarca third and the leading master overall. Others who had a really impressive and consistent weekends were leading GGM (and the oldest and clearly thus wisest sailor in the fleet) John Pitman from New Plymouth in 4th overall and Worser Bay's Simon Beck 5th overall.
 
In the ILCA 6, Olympic squad member Greta Pilkington was pretty dominant all weekend, discarding a 2nd for a decisive overall victory. She was followed by a tight bunch who fought out the minor placings all weekend. Hamilton's George Lane ultimately secured second overall ahead of Worser Bays Olivia Christie. Leading Master was  Dave Johnson from Tauranga in 4th overall and leading youth boy was Winston Liesebach in am impressive 5th. Just being at the regatta from Napier was an achievement as they had to negotiate a torturous long trek from Napier because of the Napier Taupo road still being closed after the floods. Miya Prescott from Tauranga had a great weekend, showing real consistency to be 8th overall and leading youth girl. Leading women's Masters was Helen Spencer, who's spectacular 4th in race 2 achieved the almost unbelievable, leaving Helen speechless for at least 30 seconds!
 
So overall a wonderful venue, lovely conditions and a great atmosphere delivered a really successful inaugural North Island ILCA Freshwater Championship, so good that its already in the calendar for a repeat same place, same time, next year so put it in the diary now!
 
Nick Page

2023 New Zealand Masters Games - Report & Results

Fri 24 Feb 2023 4:56am

The New Zealand Masters Games were held in Whanganui in early February where circa 5000 aging weekend warriors descended on the otherwise out of the way city in the Manawatu. The event location alternates each year between Dunedin and Whanganui. The sailing discipline was a nine-race series over three days held downstream in the river out of the well-resourced Whanganui Sailing Club. Long time organiser, Lindsay Stevenson, along with his team, did a fantastic job in making the most of what they had to work with as the river was in flood with all sorts of things careering down the heavily silt laden water way. The Race committee also had the added constraint of having to get races away within a tight window before they ran out of water.

While numbers were significantly down on previous years, the small “laser” fleet punched above its weight with multiple class national champion, David Feek, former YNZ supremo and youth world silver medallist, Craig Gilbert, respected Javelin sailor David Brown and radial sailor Phil Wild, all in the mix. Day One was light air – to the point where out of towners are still trying to figure how the fleet made it around the highly tide affected course. However, the RO and team showed the fleet who’s boss and got in three solid races. The second day was light to moderate with the fleet zipping around the track quick enough to be back on shore in time to go check out some of the other sports going on. The third day was forecast to get hectic with gusts up above 25-30Knots….which did happen over the last few legs of race nine: while the laser fleet got around relatively unscathed, there was carnage at the last turning mark in the paper Tiger Fleet where one boat got stuck upside down and the skipper of another was cleaned out by the boom, requiring medical assistance (thankfully he was fine the following day).

The event will be held in Dunedin next year which is likely to boast a very strong fleet. However, in a couple of years time, if you’re up for something different and would like to check out a classic Kiwi town with good entertainment put on in the evenings, maybe give this a go.

Phil Wild

2023 New Zealand ILCA Nationals, Murrays Bay - Results & Report

Thu 19 Jan 2023 7:06am
New Zealand ILCA (Laser) Nationals - Day 4

Photos on LiveSailDie

Champions Crowned

Two races today for all fleets completed a very successful contest, with all races completed on schedule. Today the fleet had the lightest breezes of the series, with a weak NE sea breeze which never really got much over 5 knots and consequently pretty flat water. The breeze just held in long enough for all fleets to complete the two races, with the final fleet having to have their course for the second race shortened before the breeze completely disappeared.

In the ILCA 6 Open fleet the women reigned supreme, with a women's trifecta at the head of the 60 boat fleet. 

Annabel Rennie-Younger, who was tied for the lead going into todays races, had a consistent day to wrap up the title by 9 points. Greta Pilkington, who had a stellar day with two bullets, jump up to second overall in the rankings, while Olivia Christie, who was joint overnight leader, struggled a bit with the light conditions and had a couple of tougher races to end up third overall. 

Continuing the strong women's showing in the large fleet, Naomi Ferrissey wrapped up the youth girls title with two solid races, ending up an extremely creditable 11th in the overall fleet. Manly's Maddie Rist was second youth girl ahead of Daniella Wooldridge. In the youth boys George Pilkington held on to take the title ahead of a fast finishing Louis Poletti, who's third and forth places today were the second best on aggregate in the fleet behind Greta. George finished forth overall and Louis sixth, split by leading male open sailor George Lane in fifth.  Ethan Fong was third youth boy just a point behind Louie.

In the 40 boat ILCA 7 fleet the title was there for the taking for Luke Deegan after his exceptional day yesterday and he made no mistakes, with two top 4 placings seeing him finish 12 points clear at the top of the table to convincingly take the title. He was followed by a pair of U21 sailors, both showing real talent in their first season in the ILCA 7. Caleb Armit had two good races today to finish a clear second ahead of Dylan Forsyth in third. Forth overall and thus winner of the ILCA 7 Masters title was Scott Leith, who's first and third today was only bettered by fifth placed Luke Cashmore, who was first and second in todays races, but having to carry an OCS from earlier in the regatta prevented him having a chance of taking the title.

Dean Barker continued his impressive return to the ILCA fleet today, ending up second overall in the Masters to Scott, although only just as he finished tied on points with top GM and last years Masters title holder Andrew Dellabarca. Top AM was Tim Pitchaithly, just 4 points back from Dean and Andrew. He was closely followed by Cris Brodie who was second in the Grand Masters while Barry Cutfield was top GGM.

In the 25 strong Radial Masters fleet Phil Wild had the series wrapped up with a race to spare, winning todays first race and then having the luxury of sitting out the last race. Top AM Josh Edmonds was second overall ahead of Master's David Johnson and Ed Tam in third and forth overall. GM Werner Hennig finished the series on a high, winning the final race to lead the Grand Masters division and secure 5th overall ahead of fellow GM and Hamilton club mate Scott McDougall in 6th. GGM Pete Thomas was a creditable 8th overall while Georgina Wooldridge had a couple of solid races to wrap up the women' masters title from Helen Spencer and Kirsty MacDonald.

So another highly successful ILCA nationals has seen a record ILCA 6 youth turnout, new champions in almost every division, a really strong women fleet and most importantly lots of happy faces after 10 great races. Thanks to Murrays Bay for being a wonderful host for the contest and especially to race officer Dave West, who delivered us great races in spite of the often challenging conditions. We look forward to next years contest in Napier and a continuation of the 50 years of Laser/ILCA tradition of exceptional quality one design racing.

Nick Page
ILCA.nz

New Zealand ILCA (Laser) Nationals - Day 3

 
Experience to the fore
 
Another really successful day, with all scheduled races completed. The weather for day 3 of the NZ ILCA Nationals pretty much followed the forecast, with the mornings 10 knot SW breeze shifting to the S soon after the start of racing and staying there for the afternoon, and unlike yesterday it never got much over 10 knots. The breeze was again patchy and fairly shifty all day, providing plenty of challenges for the fleets. The wind against the incoming tide made the starts tricky, and general recalls, black flags and OCS's featured quite frequently in todays results. 
 
If day 3 is traditionally "moving day" then Luke Deegan from Pupuke sure took it to heart and moved. He simply dominated the ILCA 7 fleet today with 3 bullets, and takes a solid 10 point lead into tomorrows final two scheduled races. Overnight leader Luke Cashmore was one to suffer starting line blues, with 2 OCS's in the 3 races unfortunately dropping him out of title contention. It was a good day for the U21 sailors, with Caleb Armit and Dylan Forsyth having really solid days to lie second and third overall and Matthew Rist having top 4 results in races 7 and 8. Caleb and Dylan have opened up a good points gap over top Master Scott Leith, who is forth overall. Leading AM Tim Pitcaithly is eighth overall while leading GM Andrew Dellabarca and second placed master Dean Barkers also had solid days today, each with three consistent top performances to lie tenth and eleventh overall. Nick Page narrowly held onto the lead in the GGM's.
 
While holding onto a dominant lead in the ILCA 6 Masters Phil Wild finally showed he is not infallible, with second overall Josh Edmonds (A)  taking the bullet in the last race today. Master David Johnson from Tauranga also has a great day to move to third overall, opening up a nice points margin on fourth placed Ed Tam. Werner Hennig remains the leading GM. In the Women's Masters Georgina Wooldridge continues to lead despite the efforts of  second placed Helen Spencer from Tauranga, who reportedly lost focus in the last race while she focused on her key issue for the day, getting the correct beach trolley when she got back to the beach!
 
Starts proved a major challenge for the large 60 boats ILCA 6 Open fleet, with several general recalls and an unfortunate crop of OCS's and Black flags. Cool heads prevailed however and experienced Women Olivia Christie and Annabelle Rennie-Younger stamped their authority on the fleet, both recording 3 top results to be tied on point at the top of the fleet. They are followed in third overall by Open sailor George Lane, another to deliver consistently strong results in all todays races. After sailing exceptionally well on the first two days George Pilkington found todays condition more challenging and while he continue to be the leading Youth Boy he now sits 4th overall. It was a similar story for Ethan Fong, who remains second in the Youth Boys while Louie Poletti from Picton was able to move up to third Youth boy courtesy of 3 good results today. In the Youth Girls Naomi Ferrissey from host club Murray Bay nailed it again today and sits twelfth overall. She takes a big points advantage into the final day over Maddie Rist and Daniella Wooldridge.
 
The weather models disagree on what we might get tomorrow, but it look light and challenging from whatever direction we end up with. We will all be hoping to get the last 2 scheduled races in before the 3:30 cutoff to round out a highly successful event.
 
Nick Page

New Zealand ILCA (Laser) Nationals - Day 2

 
A BIG day on the water

Today was BIG. 3 races, big shifts, big gusts, big waves, big opportunities, big winners; it was a tough but rewarding day at Murrays Bay for day 2 of the ILCA Nationals.

 
Sailors arriving in the boat park were greeted with a light SW breeze and all looked set for a nice day on the water, and so it proved to be, although I suspect significantly more challenging that many expected as they headed out from the beach! By the 1pm start time for the first of todays 3 races the wind had freshened to about 8-10 knots, but it was shifting significantly from S to SW and there were big holes in the breeze. These conditions continued throughout the first race and into the second, but as the second race progressed the wind freshened significantly to around 15-18 knots, still very shifty and with occasional big gusts. The wind against tide sea built to a really difficult chop, regularly filling the cockpit of even the top sailors, and the conditions became quite challenging, particularly for the less experienced and older sailors. 
 
With 5 races now completed the discard came into play today, allowing many sailors to get rid of various indiscretions on the start line etc.
 
While many found today challenging a few excelled. In the 60 boat ILCA 6 Open fleet youth sailor George Pilkington found the lighter conditions in todays first race difficult, but then did a horizon job on the fleet in race 4 and also won race 5 to lead convincingly overall at the halfway stage go the regatta. He is followed overall by a trio of our top women sailors, all of whom had a consistent day. Annabelle Rennie-Younger is second with Greta Pilkington and Olivia Christie tied on points 3 back from Annabelle. Ethan Fong (Y) from Wakatere also had a really strong day, taking second in two races to be second youth boy, 3 points ahead of Zach Stibbe from Otago . Naomi Ferrissey had a tough first race but was strong in races 4 and 5 with top 10 results to continue to be the leading youth girl, ahead of Maddie Rist and Daniella Wooldridge.
 
In the 40 boat combined ILCA 7 fleet the racing was extremely close all day, with 3 different winners for the 3 races meaning that so far every race has had a different winner. In race 3 it was overnight leader Luke Cashmore who got the bullet, and a second and third in the other two races see him continue to lead overall. 
 
After a tough reintroduction to the ILCA fleet in the first 3 races Americas Cup skipper Dean Barker (M) showed his true mettle, winning race 4 today and then holding off many of the young guns again to be 6th in todays last race and move up the standings overall. The third race of the day was won by Luke Deegan, who is second overall, closely followed by top U21 sailors Caleb Armit and Dylan Forsyth in 3rd and 4th. 5th overall and convincingly leading the masters is Scott Leith. Tim Pitcaithly is the leading AM in 9th overall while  Grand Masters Andrew Dellabarca and Cris Brodie are having a really close battle for the GM crown, lying 10th and 11th overall. Nick Page is the leading GGM in 19th overall, having managed to stay upright all day.
 
In the ILCA 6 Masters fleet Master Phil Wild continued his domination, winning all 3 races to lead convincingly overall. Ed Tam (M) and Josh Edmund (AM) continued their close battle for second, with Ed winning the day to lie 2nd overall just a point ahead of Josh, with Tauranga's David Johnson (M) close on their heels. Werner Hennig leads the GM's while GGM Pete Thomas is keeping all the young bucks in sight in 8th overall and Georgina Woldridge leads the Master women.
 
Tomorrow we again have 3 races scheduled and similar SW winds are again forecast, although many will be hoping for slightly more forgiving conditions!
 
Nick Page


Glorious Sunny Auckland delivers on Day 1

After a bit of a wait the forecast westerly managed to push the light easterly breeze out and we enjoyed the scheduled 2 races in a typically challenging 10 knot off shore breeze under sunny skies and with lovely warm temperatures.
 
Race officer Dave West set great courses for the fleet of 124 for todays 2 races. The ILCA 7's raced as a single fleet of 40 while the ILCA 6 were split with the ILCA 6 Masters starting separately from the large Youth, Women and Open fleet.
 
The ILCA 7 combined Open and Masters fleet led off. A light patch on the starting gun caught out many of the favourites at the boat end of the line, allowing Bluff Yacht Club's Darryl Park to lead at the first mark. The cream however soon rose to the top on the downwind legs and it was U21 sailor Dylan Forsyth who eventually claimed the race ahead of Luke Cashmore and Luke Deegan, both of whom had fairly miraculous recoveries after getting caught out on the first beat. In the second race Master Scott Leith flew the flag for the host club, taking the race ahead of Luke Cashmore and Christchurch sailor Charles Corston. Two seconds has given Luke Cashmore a tidy overall lead after day 1, 5 points clear of a close bunch of 3; Luke Deegan, Caleb Armit and Dylan Forsyth. Scott Leith is the Leading Master. Defending Masters champion Andrew Dellabarca is 2nd master overall and is the leading GM, Tim Pitcaithly the leading AM while Barry Cutfield from Ohope leads the GGM.
 
In the ILCA 6 Masters Phil Wild (M) from Manly took out both races but it was close racing with Josh Edmonds (AM), Ed Tam (GM) from Worser Bay and Tauranga's David Johnson (M) all getting top 3 places. Leading the Masters women is Georgina Wooldridge, just a few points clear of Helen Spencer and Bridget Gordon, both from Tauranga.
 
In the 60 boat ILCA 6 fleet it was a great battle between the leading Youths, Women and Open sailors. Many sailors found the size of the fleet and the conditions challenging and consistency hard to find. The first race was won by Akarana's Stefano Santella (Y) from Annabelle Rennie-Younger, recently returned to the ILCA after stint in the 470, with youth George Pilkington 3rd. Both Stefano and Annabelle had problems in the second race however, while George took it out to lead overall. Second in the second race was George Lane from Hamilton, who also sits second overall, one point clear of a consistent Zach Stibbe from Dunedin. Greta Pilkington leads the Women and is 4th overall, with Naiomi Ferrissey from host club Murrays Bay the leading female Youth.
 
Tomorrows forecast is for pretty much more of the same, with a fresher offshore breeze, so we can can hopefully look forward to getting tomorrows 3 scheduled races completed and to plenty of opportunities for everyone in what is again likely to be a shifty and challenging day.
 
Nick Page
 

2022 South Island ILCA/Laser Champs Results & Report

Sun 18 Dec 2022 3:48am


The 2022 TMC South Island ILCA (Laser) Champs were held in the south of the South Island in Dunedin. They were hosted by the Vauxhall Yacht Club on the Saturday and Sunday 10th, 11th December.


 

There were 26 entries, 8 Full and 18 Radials, with each fleet having their own start. It was good to see sailors coming from all over the South Island and even an entry from Auckland (guess who). There was a good mix of ages, with the Youth well represented in the Radials and the master’s dominating the Full Rigs. Racing was out in front of Vauxhall Yacht Club in the upper harbour, in the middle of the city making for good viewing. 7 races were scheduled and duly completed, 4 Saturday and 3 Sunday.

Racing on Saturday was in light and shifty winds after a short delay. The wind conditions meant that a good start was important, and the shifts had their winners and losers. Though as usual a group in each fleet mastered the conditions better than the rest. The day ended with only 3 points separating the top 3 in both fleets. With Darryl and Peter leading their respective fleets. Local sailors dominated the Radials, but the out-of-towners did better in the Full Rigs. It was then back to the club rooms for a post-race BBQ and catch up.

The forecast for Sunday was no wind until midday, so the fleet was kept ashore until the wind swung round to the northeast and filled in for a pleasant 10 to 12 knots. It was then just a quick sail out to the course for 3 more back-to-back races that produced some close racing as the conditions suited most people. The slightly stronger winds created a few changes in the Radials standing with plenty of close racing. It was then back to Vauxhall Yacht Club for a post-race meal catch up and prize giving.

In both fleets we had new names for the trophies this year. In the Full Rig fleet it was Daryl Parkes (Bluff Yacht Club) year, followed by James McAlister (Otago Yacht Club) and Nick Page (Pupuke Yacht Club).

In the Radials the second day resulted in a change in the top 2 places. Jenny Armstrong (Otago Yacht Club) had a good second day to lead Peter Graham (Vauxhall Yacht Club), and son Zach Stibbe (Otago Yacht Club). This also gave Jenny the clean sweep with first Master and first Women.

A great weekend was had by all in the deep south. Vauxhall Yacht Club were their usual great hosts and made sure everyone was well feed and watered. The weather played its part providing 2 days of mixed racing and giving the race officer (Martin Balch) a few challenges. The sailing was a good warm-up for those going to nationals in January. Those staying local there are still 3 more rounds of the Southern Traveler series to go. Next Years South Islands will be in the Christchurch area.

Thank you again to all those that made the effort to attend, those that gave time to run the event and the sponsors who help make it all possible.

Rob English

 

 

2022 ILCA North Islands Results and Reports

Sun 27 Nov 2022 6:42pm

After missing a year due to Covid we were happy to be back in Napier for our ILCA North Island champs on the November 26th and 27th. 

In recent years Napier Sailing Club has hosted us as part of their Summer Regatta which has become a signficant fixture on the national sailing calendar. The clubs volunteers do a fantastic job on and off the water. This year there were more than 160 boats across 9 classes. ILCA 6 & 7, Paper Tigers, OK's. together on the outer course. Zephyers, Europes, Optimists, O'Skiff and Starlings on the inner course. NSC now have to host the trailer boat classes on a different weekend.

Andrew, our race officer, gave us a Triangle/Windward-Leeward course finishing at the top. He cleverly balanced T1 and T2 wing and bottom mark variations to try to separate the fleets. On Saturday the sunny Noreaster setlled in before our 11:30am start, giving us a stable 5 to 8 knots all day for 4 races. Despite a forecast for showers on Sunday we had similar light sunny NE conditions for 2 of 3 races. Only the final race had a stronger 15 knot breeze and full hiking.

'Managing the fleet' was the big tactical challenge for the weekend. Especially when the 17 downwind ICLA7's met 49 reaching ILCA 6's at the bottom mark in the light conditions

In the ILCA6 the conditions suited the Fiji Olympic rep Sophia Morgan on Saturday. But she was sharing bullets with Greta Pilkington who managed to sneak past on the Sunday to win the overall regatta by one point. George Lane stayed consistent to come 3rd overall, pipping Ed Tam in 5th for the masters trohpy. George Pilkington had a bullet in the breezier final race to get 4th overall and the male youth trophy.

The ILCA7 result was more cut and dried, as Caleb Armit won every race. But it wasn't as one sided on the course where Dylan Forsyth and Matthew Rist pushed Caleb quite hard. Tim Pitcaithly was the eventual masters winner, after he and Andrew Dellabaca traded blows with the leading group. The rest of the masters were a step back to fill out the fleet.

Thanks again to Napier Sailing Club for a great weekend.

Mike Knowsley

2022 North Harbour Masters Report - Lake Pupuke

Sun 13 Nov 2022 8:14am
A typical Pupuke gusty and very shifty SW breeze, averaging around 10 knots, greeted the fleet for the 2022 North Harbour Masters. The conditions for the 5 race series tested everyone, and consistency proved extremely difficult for most of the fleet of 21 Masters, 13 in the ILCA 7 and 8 in the ILCA 6.
 
The exception was Phil Wild (M), who managed to take out every race in the ILCA 6, some by a close margin but some pretty comprehensively! The battle for second was however close, with GGM Kevin Welsh just pipping GM Don McGlashan by a point, while Legend Barry Knott was 4th. Georgina Wooldridge was the leading women's master in 5th overall.
 
In the ILCA 7's the final result was determined on count back, with both Rohan Lord (GM) and Cris Brodie (GM) scoring two bullets, but the title coming down to Rohan's third best result being a 2nd while Cris' was a 3rd! The best of the rest were GGM's Mark Hursthouse and David Giles, who ended with a nice margin over the rest of the fleet. David took the bullet in race 2, but a UFD in race 3 and a difficult 4th race left him unable to match Mark overall. Everyone in the rest of the fleet really struggled for consistency, with the next half dozen only separated by a couple of points, led by top Master Greg Wilshire.
 
As usual the fleets enjoyed top class race management from PRO Garth Briden and an entertaining prize giving from Commodore John Dowsett. 
 
This was the first regatta of the season for many, and with the North Islands in a couple of weeks and then the Nationals at Murrays Bay coming up in January it provided a good way to clear out the cobwebs and a very enjoyable days racing.
 
 
Nick Page
 

Waikato – Bay of Plenty Regional Update for 2022 ILCA.nz for AGM

Wed 26 Oct 2022 5:57pm
Waikato – Bay of Plenty Regional Update for ILCA.nz for AGM 25 March 2022
 
Last season we scrambled through Covid lockdowns & traffic lights, awaiting a fresh season, esp in Waikato.
 
Winter ILCA sailing happened in Tauranga (fortnightly) providing a regional gathering point for ILCA6 racing. Sailors came from Ohope, Taupo, Rotorua, Ngaroto, and Hamilton.
Keeping everyone to a single ILCA6 fleet kept numbers around 8-12 and competition strong.  Over & above the individual scoring, we informally ran a masters v youth competition (recording the best 3 places). This made for some good spirited competition, humour, and the odd patch of match racing.   At Queen’s Birthday a strong regional contingent attended Ohope’s annual regatta which is a major boost for their regatta.
 
In July, Tauranga’s Teagan Denney attended the youth worlds as the female youth rep.  Tom Saunders, also Tauranga, continues to hold his top position on the World ILCA stage.   Both are outstanding role models & inspiration for our youth.  Ex World Champ Nik Burfoot is now coordinating coaching in Tauranga; thereby making it an attractive drawcard for up & coming youth in ILCAs; rather than having them graduate from starlings & spread across several fleets.
 
As the summer season gets underway, ILCA club racing has vibrant fleets in key places. Tauranga now draws a strong fleet of 10-12 ILCA6s each Sunday. They continue to encourage everyone to remain in ILCA6s so that it is a tight competitive single fleet. Several youth are now entering/eyeing AON squad over the next couple of seasons.  And the masters continue to push them for excellence. 
 
Taupo continues to hold a combination of ILCA6s & 7s, with several members investing in newer boats.   In mid-March 2023 Taupo’s regatta will also be used as an ILCA North Island Freshwater Champs, hoping to attract sailors from across the NIs. This may offer a NI wide regatta for end of season.
 
Hamilton continues to hold its core of strong masters, very skilled at picking wind shifts on a lake. George Lane continues to win open ILCA6 events, keeping HYC on the NZ radar.  They are rebuilding the starling fleet and getting outcrop regattas.that will likely move into ILCAs next season.  
 
At Ngaroto and Raglan a core of club ILCA7s meet for club racing, but not much travelling beyond.  Two families in these contexts are now travelling their ILCA6 youth beyond to Auckland and Tauranga in order to connect with other youth, and increase their competitiveness.  The dads are also racing ILCA6s outside their clubs, and will likely take these experiences back to their local clubs.  They are now committing to NIs in Napier and look forward to the free entry for Nationals as a helpful incentive.
 
As a combined region, we considered setting up a 5 regatta ILCA Traveller Series this summer; but instead have focussed on encouraging attendance at two key regional regattas; Tauranga (late Feb) and Taupo (mid March); with Ohope offering a pleasant Queens Birthday winter option.
 
Recently across the region ILCAs made a commitment to support the Rotorua Sprints regatta in mid-October.  Tauranga fleet committed to forego club racing points being counted, in order to encourage attendance at Rotorua.  We look forward to Rotorua getting its ILCA sailors to hopefully Tauranga & or Taupo regattas as a reciprocation.
 
We’ve talked of a coaching weekend, but with busy schedules, regattas booked, and Tauranga already offering strong youth coaching, we haven’t found a date to book.
 
Female ILCA6 sailors continue to feature as strong competitors amidst these ILCA6 fleets; and are attentive to encouraging one another. Having singular ILCA6 fleets benefits youth & women. Where clubs mix ILCA6s & 7s, we recommend having prizes for both fleets; but also consider having separate starts.  Good ILCA6s are unfairly buried by average ILCA7s off the start line; which becomes a disincentive for racing an ILCA6; and risks them changing to a different boat.
 
Overall, regional networking over several seasons is paying dividends with ILCA vibrancy in a number of clubs.  We strongly encourage reciprocation if clubs want others to attend their home regattas.  Having a core of masters in ILCA6s provides fleet stability as youth age in and depart out of the fleet.  Creating good spirited competition, with humour and encouragement for the youth, also adds attraction & retention in the fleet.
 
Thanks again to ILCA.nz for offering support to the region. We look forward to being a strong presence at NIs & Nationals.
 
Helen Spencer
Waikato-BoP Rep
 

2022 Stack Winter Champs - Report and Results

Wed 19 Oct 2022 1:21am

Murrays Bay held the long running Stack Winter Champs over the weekend 15/16 October and turned on a wide range of conditions at what will be the venue for the upcoming ILCA 2023 Nationals.  The event was run very well with RO, Nick Olson and team dealing with some tricky conditions not to mention a cold snap that really made it feel like it was still winter.

While full rigs weren’t able to compete the radial fleet was strong with an excellent turn out from competitors from all over the country as far north as the Bay of Islands/Taipa and as far South as Dunedin with Queen Charlotte, Tauranga, Napier, Hamilton as well as Auckland all well represented.

Day one was Easterly, lightish and got lighter through the day.  Reigning female National Champ, Greta Pilkington, leveraged her recent European experience to be the stand out performer with two wins: gliding past some old hack to take the lead and extend in the first race.  Zach Stibbe  snuck into second on the line with Phil Wild in 3rd.  Race two softened even more and saw a lot of place changes throughout the race – most notably was Greta who worked her way up into the lead with George Lane second and George Pilkington in 3rd.  Racing was then abandoned for the day.

Day two was 15-20knots from the SW and garnered a great deal of excitement on shore from those keen to smash the beats and send it on the reaches.  Interestingly enough, it was the older hands who had the legs over the course of the day.  Race one saw a lot of place changes with initial race leader opting to sail another course, a couple of capsizes here and there and shifts typical of a puffy south wester.  Lane showed consistency and was quite happy to watch numerous boats around him mess things up and found himself in the lead with a couple of legs to go.  George Pilkington repeated his previous solid top 3 place with second and Wild getting back to 3rd.  Race four was certainly the one for the old boys of the fleet with Wild, Lane and Dunedin sailor Peter Graham rounding out the top three.  By now, most of the fleet were hurting but only half way through the day.  Lane sailed sensibly and consistently to take race 5, George Pilkington in 2nd and Zach Stribbe powered into 3rd on the last beat.  The last race saw Lane again sail well to take another gun with Graham in second and Greta storming through into 3rd.  To top things off after four breezy races, everyone then got to enjoy the relaxing 40min slog back to the beach – gotta love the southwester!

Overall, consistency was crucial as the score card showed that between the top three overall place getters, there was only one race between them outside of the top 5 over the entire event (when Greta capsized????).

  • 1st George Lane         7pts       1st
  • 2nd Greta Pilkington   15pts     2nd , 1st Female
  • 3rd  Phil Wild              15pts     3rd
  • 4th  Zach Stibbe         20pts     4th, 1st Male Youth
  • 10th  Maddy Rist        48pts     10th, 1st Female Youth

It was great to have a strong fleet represented by so many parts of the country and sets a great scene for the upcoming national champs in January 23.

Phil Wild

 

Murrays Bay held the long running Stack Winter Champs over the weekend 15/16 October and turned on a wide range of conditions at what will be the venue for the upcoming ILCA 2023 Nationals.  The event was run very well with RO, Nick Olson and team dealing with some tricky conditions not to mention a cold snap that really made it feel like it was still winter.

While full rigs weren’t able to compete the radial fleet was strong with an excellent turn out from competitors from all over the country as far north as the Bay of Islands/Taipa and as far South as Dunedin with Queen Charlotte, Tauranga, Napier, Hamilton as well as Auckland all well represented.

Day one was Easterly, lightish and got lighter through the day.  Reigning female National Champ, Greta Pilkington, leveraged her recent European experience to be the stand out performer with two wins: gliding past some old hack to take the lead and extend in the first race.  Zach Stibbe  snuck into second on the line with Phil Wild in 3rd.  Race two softened even more and saw a lot of place changes throughout the race – most notably was Greta who worked her way up into the lead with George Lane second and George Pilkington in 3rd.  Racing was then abandoned for the day.

Day two was 15-20knots from the SW and garnered a great deal of excitement on shore from those keen to smash the beats and send it on the reaches.  Interestingly enough, it was the older hands who had the legs over the course of the day.  Race one saw a lot of place changes with initial race leader opting to sail another course, a couple of capsizes here and there and shifts typical of a puffy south wester.  Lane showed consistency and was quite happy to watch numerous boats around him mess things up and found himself in the lead with a couple of legs to go.  George Pilkington repeated his previous solid top 3 place with second and Wild getting back to 3rd.  Race four was certainly the one for the old boys of the fleet with Wild, Lane and Dunedin sailor Peter Graham rounding out the top three.  By now, most of the fleet were hurting but only half way through the day.  Lane sailed sensibly and consistently to take race 5, George Pilkington in 2nd and Zach Stribbe powered into 3rd on the last beat.  The last race saw Lane again sail well to take another gun with Graham in second and Greta storming through into 3rd.  To top things off after four breezy races, everyone then got to enjoy the relaxing 40min slog back to the beach – gotta love the southwester!

Overall, consistency was crucial as the score card showed that between the top three overall place getters, there was only one race between them outside of the top 5 over the entire event (when Greta capsized????).

  • 1st George Lane         7pts       1st
  • 2nd Greta Pilkington   15pts     2nd , 1st Female
  • 3rd  Phil Wild              15pts     3rd
  • 4th  Zach Stibbe         20pts     4th, 1st Male Youth
  • 10th  Maddy Rist        48pts     10th, 1st Female Youth

It was great to have a strong fleet represented by so many parts of the country and sets a great scene for the upcoming national champs in January 23.

Phil Wild

 
Syndicate content