11 minute read
SA WOMEN’S KEELBOAT REGATTA
Well, what a triumph this spring regatta turned out to be! Hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia at North Haven, the South Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta (SAWKR) was everything organisers and competitors hoped it would be, an outstanding inaugural event. From clubs around South Australia and from across state borders, 118 women turned out to compete in the six race regatta in a mixed fleet of 21 boats. In two distinct racing areas, the main fleet in Gulf St Vincent off North Haven and the trailerables in the Port River off PASC, crews and skippers competed fiercely for the generous prizes and trophies on offer. Principal Race Officer, Lou Hutton (RMYS), ably assisted by Mark Moore (PASC), ran a tight programme that enabled all races to take place and all boats to finish. To quote everyone, it was “a wonderful regatta”. The weekend’s activities began on Friday 30 September with registrations and, for the keen, some on water practices. An intimate Smoking Ceremony welcomed us to country with words that spoke of a close relationship between women, womens’ journeys and local waterways. We paid tribute to the beautiful representation of this in the SAWKR logo designed by local Kaurna artist, Jardi Welch. PRO Lou Hutton gave an excellent briefing to all competitors regarding the regatta schedule and the anticipated weather before race flags and crew caps were distributed to excited skippers and crews. Racing was set to start at 1055 each morning with the expectation of two races per day. With light winds factored in on Day 1 and Day 2 the PRO successfully pushed for three races on Day 1 with both fleets back in time for the beer and sausage sizzle that preceded the daily presentations. Day 2 saw two races completed with a wait in between for a favourable wind shift. Day 3 offered a flourish of better wind, 18–20 knots, which better suited some of the heavier boats and made for a sparkling finish to the regatta. Division 1 boats were well-matched with Janet Thornley (RSAYS) on Balancing Act 2 and Jacqui Cole on Clockwork taking turns for first and second on PHS and AMS with Black Butterfly claiming a solid third place in both. Division 2 saw Barbara Beacham (PASC) skippering her boat Stella Rouge to a hard won victory against a determined Sarah Clough (RMYS) on team Georgia with Anne-Marie Meegan and Helen Klingsporn (CYCSA) co-skippering Sahara to claim third overall. The CYCSA’s new fleet of Elliott 7s were a joy to watch with some fine close racing between Maddy Salter on Musto, Lesley Roberts on Foodland and Jo Mitton on Rinaldi/GFB, the three taking out podium finishes with Salter first, Roberts second and Mitton third on PHS and Line Results. Racing in the Port River, with its share of variable winds including bullets between massive structures on the western bank, was contested by boats from the Goolwa Regatta Yacht Club (GRYC) with Foxy and Elanora, and Kungari and Girlzown in paired battles over the six races. Mounting a consistent campaign over the weekend, Jo Pilmore and her crew on Foxy, went on to claim the overall win. Social activities were key to the success of the SAWKR experience and included the animated post-race sailing discussions that emerged over beer and sausages every day, the Gala Dinner on Saturday at the CYCSA and the Paella and Games Night at the Squadron on Sunday evening. Monday’s Formal Presentation Ceremony was attended by Her Excellency, The Honourable Frances Adamson, Governor of South Australia, Deputy Premier, Susan Close, Port Adelaide Councillors and other guests, along with a huge crowd of enthusiastic women sailors who had had a great weekend.
Madeline Salter, CYCSA Youth Sailing Foundation Head Coach, writes about racing Elliott 7s in Gulf St Vincent. “It was an honour to be part of the inaugural South Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta over the October Long Weekend. My team of Catherine Nolan, Victoria Young and Rose O’Donnell were one of the six CYCSA Elliott 7s to compete. Across the three race days we experienced exceptional One Design fleet racing where every move you made impacted your result. With only having sailed once together before the regatta, team Musto/Adelaide Boat Sales worked out our boat handling skills along the way to become a well-oiled machine, knowing and working with our strengths and weaknesses. Our main call for the regatta was to ‘position our boat between the mark and the other five boats’. Before the SAWKR regatta my experience racing Elliott 7s along with other skippers was limited. Throughout the regatta the camaraderie between all the Elliott 7 skippers was something I’d never experienced. We discussed our mistakes made on the race course and shared our strategies which helped us to perform well on the boats. Sharing our experiences and journeys allowed us to learn from each other, improve as sailors and form friendships with like-minded female sailors. Thank you to all the Elliott 7 crews for a competitive regatta on the water. A huge shout out to the skippers, Jo, Lesley, Karen, Sharon and Tracy, for hiring one of the Elliott 7s. Thank you to Mary Ann Harvey for helping me fill the boats with females from all over South Australia and some from Victoria. The feeling of filling the sixth boat I’ll never forget! The race management team with the lead of Lou Hutton put together exceptional racing across the six races in some trying conditions. Thank you to the volunteers for your time and patience. This regatta has given me the confidence to challenge myself in future regattas, hopefully in the Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta in June next year. Looking forward to next year’s SAWKR!”
Louise Edwards, Convenor of the Goolwa Regatta Yacht Club (GYRC) SheSails Women’s Sailing Program, commented positively on her experience sailing with her crew on the Port River. “The Trailerable Yacht Division sailing in the supposedly calm waters of the Port River was made up of four hardy teams of women, many of whom had only recently commenced sailing. All boats were transported from Goolwa for the regatta, quite some feat in itself. Fortunately the shipping traffic down the river was minimal but the winds were varied and often fickle over the three days of racing meaning teams were tested in all conditions. In many respects the Goolwa SheSails teams had unknowingly been preparing for this event since 2018 when the GRYC made it their objective to increase the participation of women in racing at GRYC from 9% to close to the national average of 35% in 2022. This has been achieved through varied initiatives including free sailing classes/coaching, a race series where the helm and 50% of the crew must be women, single-handed dinghy practice sessions on boats donated to the program, plus a program to assist in boat maintenance and ultimately boat ownership. The success of the SheSails program is apparent in that three of the GRYC boats entering the Trailerable Yacht Division are owned by women skippers and the crews are largely drawn from SheSails workshop participants.” Photos by FSR Industries for Down Under Sail
Tricia Skewes and her crew from Girlzown won the Regatta’s ‘Most Improved Crew’ trophy having overcome a series of losses in the first three races. With limited spinnaker experience and an on-the-dock master class in spinnaker strategy led her to ‘give it a go’ with improved results and an outstanding win on both personal handicap and on the boat’s ‘rating’. The overall winner for the Trailerable Yachts was Jo Pilmore and her crew on Foxy with some impressive race performances across the three days. As all who participated will attest, we are enormously grateful to all who enabled this event to be such a success including the sponsors, race officials and volunteers.
On-site accommodation in the secure grounds of the CYCSA provided a unique village atmosphere for those who took up residence for the long weekend. Helen Klingsporn reports on the experience and its impact on their enjoyment of the event. “The SAWKR was a fantastic event. Apart from the actual sailing the social aspect enabled us to really get to know our team and other crews. Sharing accommodation or having a designated hub was an important factor and it also enabled a closer relationship with the host Club and their staff. My co-skipper, Anne-Marie Meegan, ‘moored’ her caravan for the duration of the regatta on a CYCSA powered site tucked out of view and adjacent to the overflow carpark. Her three daughters set up satellite swags around the van. Crews from regional South Australia (Goolwa) and interstate (Melbourne) arrived with a mixture of well set up camper trailers and caravans and they proved to be excellent neighbours. The electronic gate keys enabled us to come and go as we pleased between the CYCSA and the Western Marina where our boat was moored. The ability to be able to use the Club facilities, bathrooms, laundry and dryer as well as dining and bar, really made the Club our ‘home away from home’. Being close to the Club meant we could relax, get a good night’s sleep and be fresh for the next day’s events. We made new friends and developed stronger bonds within our team. It was a generous initiative by the CYCSA to allow use of the camping area and Club facilities and I would highly recommend that participants in future events make use of this opportunity if it is offered again.”
Team Foxy Girlzown
Volunteers To the fourty stars who volunteered on and off water during the regatta we all say a special thank you for making sure the South Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta could be the success it was. Without our volunteers events like these would be impossible.
Boat Owners On behalf of the SAWKR Committee and all the sailors in the regatta we sincerely thank the boat owners who generously lent their boats to skippers and crews for this regatta: Adrian Wotton for School’s Out, Jay Brown and Glenda Neild for Black Butterfly, Bob Schahinger for Clockwork, Derek Morrison for Foxy and Richard Lea for Sahara.
Club Support A year in the planning and with strong support from the CYCSA and our partner Clubs, the Port Adelaide Sailing Club (PASC) and the Royal South Australian Yacht Squadron (RSAYS), the South Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta was created to develop and execute for the first time in South Australia an all-women event. Under the leadership of a strong and energetic committee; Kerry Parker and Adrian Wotton (Co-Chairs), Kirsty Hammett, Mary Ann Harvey, Jo Pilmore and Di Schwerdt with Helen Kearney co-opted from the RSAYS and Barbara Beecham from the PASC and co-opted member Jen Richardson, SAWKR has begun its work to help increase and maintain women’s participation in competitive Australian sailing. Thank you for your outstanding support, CYCSA staff, so many of you, particularly Inese Lainis, Racing Administrator, Greg Allison, Sailing Operations Manager, Adam Hays General Manager, Frank Mammone and his bar staff, Chef Camillo for delicious meals and Mellissa Vahoumis, Marketing, website and backstage magician.
Sponsors Thank you to all our sponsors including the Port Adelaide Enfield Council who believed in our mission and awarded us a significant grant to seed our dream of an all-women regatta, Nick George’s Family Wines for supplying their beautiful Koonowla Wines for the prize winners, Musto Sports Wear, Pirate Life, Bravo Sails, North Haven Marine and many others who contributed so generously over the weekend. We also gratefully thank the City of Port Adelaide Enfield, former CYCSA Commodore Tess McGrath and RSAYS member Helen Willmer for the beautiful trophies donated for the occasion.
Competitors A huge thank you to the competitors who came with their boats, their enthusiasm, their competitive edges and their camaraderie to make this first South Australian all-women’s regatta a resounding success. Well done and we look forward to seeing you all again next year!
Di Schwerdt
Clockwork
Balancing Act 2
Photos by FSR Industries for Down Under Sail
REGATTA RESULTS
Division 1 PHS 1 Balancing Act 2 Janet Thornley 2 Clockwork Jacqui Cole 3 Black Butterfly Helen Willmer
Division 1 AMS 1 Clockwork Jacqui Cole 2 Balancing Act 2 Janet Thornley 3 Black Butterfly Helen Willmer
Division 2 PHS 1 Stella Rouge Barbara Beacham 2 Team Georgia Sarah Clough 3 Sahara Anne-Marie Meegan/Helen Klingsporn
Elliott 7s PHS 1 Musto Madeline Salter 2 Foodland Lesley Roberts 3 Rinaldi / GFB Jo Mitton
Elliott 7s OD/Line 1 Musto Madeline Salter 2 Foodland Lesley Roberts 3 Rinaldi / GFB Jo Mitton
Trailerables Mixed Class YS 1 Foxy Jo Pilmore 2 Kungari Kate Andre 3 Elanora Louise Edwards
Trailerables Mixed Class HC 1 Foxy Jo Pilmore 2 Elanora Louise Edwards 3 Kungari Kate Andre
Dr Susan Close with Janet Thornley
TROPHY WINNERS Best Novice Skipper Jacqui Cole, Clockwork Most Improved Crew Tricia Skewes, Girlzown Spirit of Sailing Mary Anne Harvey, School’s Out Best Placed Owner/Skipper Janet Thornley, Balancing Act 2 Outstanding Boat of the Regatta Maddy Salter, Musto
Stella Rouge
