Author: Col Cameron - Mackay Model Mariners

Saturday the 29^th October saw 18 One meters line up for the 2011 NQ IOM Championships, with clubs being represented from the Gold Coast in the South to the Whitsunday’s in the North. The Townsville Model Marine Club were the hosts for the event and soon had everyone organised into 2 fleets and we were racing by 11 am. The weather was picture perfect with a fair ENE breeze blowing across the lake, the sun was shining brightly and the day was warming up to a cool 30 Degrees, The PRO – Alan Kemp – had everyone on the water and the racing started after a couple of minor hiccups from the Start tape.

With the reasonably steady breeze, it soon became apparent that the racing was going to be very close as the boat speed for everyone was similar in pace, and  it was coming down to tactics and good starts. This was highlighted when boats were leading and they hit a buoy, when the penalty had been completed they found themselves way back in the pack, so it came down to sailing cleanly and consistently. As the afternoon progressed the wind increased enough to bring in the chop which was another element all the skippers had to contend with, and it soon sorted out the flat water sailors as they struggled to tack their boats efficiently in the sloppy conditions. Saturday ended with about 6 skippers showing a more consistent form and leading the pack.

Sunday saw the same fleet start in similar conditions as Saturday, and racing was underway by 10:00 am, with wind slowly increasing in strength during the day to end with a few skippers changing to B Rig, only to have the wind die as soon as they hit the water, isn’t that always the case. BY the end of racing we had completed 18 full races or 36 heats, and everyone was tired but pleased with their efforts. Congratulations to Glenn Foley, Malcolm Kampe and Grant Cooper, for taking out 1^st, 2^nd & 3^rd respectively, the points difference between the three of them was 6 points, well done.

The highlights for the scribe from the weekend, was the willingness from all the skippers to help each other out when a boat was in trouble, I saw the boys from Gladstone, rewire winches, fix transmitters, setup & tune team mates as well as their own boats, nothing like some words of encouragement to make someone perform better, 'Onya guys'. The 2^nd best thing was to see skippers talking to each other when sailing, and sorting out their penalties quickly and efficiently, though at times we had some different interpretations of the rules but these were sorted quickly, The main rule problem was once again the port tackers coming into the top mark, tacking at the mark onto Starboard and expecting to be allowed to keep mark room. Rule 18 explains very clearly what mark room you are entitled to. The 3^rd best thing was seeing a large number of interested visitors come down and offer positive feedback on the closeness of the sailing and the sportsmanship on display. Overall a good event, sure it had some issues but the Townsville club did a good job. Thanks to all the supporters and Townsville members who gave up their time to run the event and thanks to the visiting skippers for travelling to make this event possible. See you again next year.

Final Placings HERE

Photos HERE