Trials to select three Starling sailors to represent Wakatere at the North Harbour matching racing selection trials were held Nov 21st. Seven sailors started out in winds averaging around 15-20kn which proved challenging especially during pre-start manouvres.

Logan almost losing it against Chris (for more photos see the Gallery)

A round robin series was held first with everyone sailing against each other. Unfortunately Liam found the going a bit tough and was unable to complete this series, while Etienne (who had borrowed Alex's boat) broke a boom and had to pull out also. He was offered Liam's boat but thought he'd broken enough already.

After the round robin, Chris was on top having beaten everyone. Logan had the bad luck to break his traveller and then the saddle that his sidestay attached to, losing his rig over the side. This gave Chris an easy win over Logan who beat everyone else to be a clear second.

The three others who completed the round robin also finished equal, with Matthew having beaten Mahia, Mahia beating James and James beating Matthew. A one off fleet race between them was held to decide the two to go through to the semis. In a close race, Matthew just beat James which meant Mahia was out.

Because Logan's boat was unsailable, Mahia lent him his one so the semis could be sailed. Chris chose James and beat him 2-0, leaving Logan to race Matthew, winning 2-1.

Logan and Chris decided they had done enough and would fight it out at the North Harbour trials the following weekend. Perhaps if Logan had his own boat to sail we might have seen some tough races in the final.

That left Matthew and James to fight it out in the best of three sail off for 3rd and 4th. The racing was close with the result decided in the third race. After changing the lead several times it all came down to a poorly executed gybe by James just before the finish that let Matthew through to win 2-1.

All in all it was a long fun day of racing, and for those who hadn't match raced before a great learning experience. Chris and Logan's experience showed with their eagerness to inflict penalties in the pre-start.

Thanks to all those who gave up their time to organise and run the event, its a lot more complicated than fleet racing and plenty of preparation was required. Special thanks to Dean and Ted on the start boat who ran the racing without any noticeable mistakes, and the three on the water judges Oscar, Pete Thomas and Kevin (who also did a lot of the organising along with Donn).

Wakatere Sailors performed well at the 2009 NI Champs with Chris winning from Logan. James, Matthew, Mahia and Alex all had some top 10 finishes to make six Wakatere competitors in the top 13.  Heather and Laauren found the racing tough but have set some standards to compare their improvements against for the future.

Racing was held over two days with wind ranging from light to moderate strength, plenty of tide to consider and some good wind shifts to exploit. Even the top guys had to work hard to get the good results and most slipped up at least once. In the end however consistently good starts and acceleration off the start line meant Chris and Logan ended up top of the board again.

Thanks to Donn and Nick for towing RIBs to support the team and James for towing the trailer.

For Event Photos see the TYPBC Website Saturday Sunday

For Wakatere Photos see the Gallery

19 Starlings turned up for the Hibiscus Coast Regatta at Manly. Wind conditions varied from 5-30kns so the top final positions overall went to the sailors who were able to sail well across the range.

Chris won again with results of (3), 2, 1, 1 from Logan (4), 1, 3, 2. Mahia was 8th with 2, 7, (16), 13, Matthew 12th with 9, (15), 9, 10 and James 13th with 10, 10, (12), 9.

For more photos see the Starling Gallery

Great to see a fleet of 12 Starlings sailing at Wakatere on Opening Day in fantastic conditions, I don't think I heard any complaints about the weather.

It was fantastic to have three of the group finishing first  equal on points, with Mahia and James both having a 1st and 3rd, and Matthew having two 2nds.

If Opening Day was an indication of what is in store for the season, its going to be a great one.

Wakatere Starling Group 2009 Opening Day (More Photos in the Gallery)