What a weekend – 22 beautiful Etchells competing in 7 excellent races in varied condition over 3 days. Competitors had travelled from far afield to make this a wonderful Victorian State Championship for the Etchells Melbourne Fleet and our club. The previous weekend the club hosted 80 Opti Sailors for the Opti States so this is the second regatta in a row for the staff and volunteers. At the final presentation a big thanks was extended to General Manager Phil Hall, Boating Manager Colin Burgess, Hospitality Manager Caroline Hollingsworth and all of their terrific staff. Race Officer Rod McKenna and the team of volunteers were congratulated on a fabulous job, not an easy task in the challenging Port Phillip conditions. Commodore Peter Demura welcomed competitors on the first day, and Club Captain Marnie Irving thanked them for visiting at the final presentation.
The series was hard fought, both for the Overall trophy and the Corinthian trophy (Corinthian entries are those which have no professional sailors on board). The overall series was won by Magpie AUS1486 with Richard Clarke, James Mayo and Ben Lamb. Hong Kong entry Racer CC HKG1482, helmed by Mark Thornburrow with Malcolm Page, Julian Plante and Alex Conway, finished second overall, while Flying High AUS1518, helmed by Jeanne-Claude Strong with Seve Jarvin and Sam Newton, completed the podium in third.
In the Corinthian division, with 12 of the 22 boats competing, Matilda AUS1488, helmed by Blake Robertson with Tom and Will Kelly, claimed the title after a consistent series. Lisa Rose AUS1484, sailed by Jack Abbott with Xavier Winston-Smith, John Cooley and Nicola Armstrong, finished second, while the Hong Kong entry Kung Fu Fighting, helmed by Jamie McWilliam with Peter Austin and Rachel Yip, secured third.
Here is the SailWorld article by Nic Douglass.
Magpie holds off Racer CC to win Victorian Etchells Championship
We also recommend the excellent drone footage by Terry Calley (Hippodrone).
Several of the competitors will be competing in the 2026 World Championship in San Diego and we wished them a safe trip and a great regatta.
