Dave Mitchell Wins NSW Marblehead Championship
Dave Mitchell from the Northern Mariners club sailing his Grunge design won the NSW M Championship convincingly at Kogarah Bay Sailing Club on the weekend of 21st and 22nd of October 2023.
It was a quality 15 boat fleet which included three sailors who made the trip from Tasmania that lined up for the first race in a light breeze. This wasn’t how it stayed: the forecast NE wind was on its way. By the lunch break there was 18 to 20 knots blowing and all skippers abandoned their swing rigs and were reaching for their smaller rigs. It was exciting racing with the boats surfing the waves from the top mark to the bottom gate. At the end of the day 16 races had been completed and Dave Mitchell on 17 points had a comfortable lead from Colin Court on 41 points and Kyle Stewart on 44 points. The conditions were tough on boats and those with inadequate preparation were missing races, some lots of races.
The forecast for Sunday was for a light westerly with possibly a light southerly later in the day. Fortunately, the southerly arrived early, and conditions were ideal with a moderate SE breeze blowing for the rest of the day. A further 10 races were run on Sunday to make 26 for the regatta. See the full results below.
Many thanks to Scott Condie and Owen Jarvis who shared the PROs duties and to all the KBRYC members who gave up their time to make the regatta a resounding success. Well done everyone, these events can’t happen without your help and expertise.
Results
| Pos | Name/Club | Sail No. /Design | Nett | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Mitchell NORTHERN MARINERS (NSW) | AUS 78 GRUNGE | 54.0 | 88.0 |
| 2 | Colin Court SYDNEY MARITIME MC (NSW)/NSW | AUS 80 GRUNGE | 81.0 | 145.0 |
| 3 | Kyle Stewart RISDON BROOK RYC (TAS) | AUS 59 INDIE | 88.0 | 129.0 |
| 4 | Lisa Blackwood RISDON BROOK RYC (TAS) | AUS 35 F6 | 99.0 | 150.0 |
| 5 | Bruce Benoit ILLAWARRA RYC (NSW)/NSW | AUS 21 PARADOX | 138.0 | 182.0 |
| 6 | Daniel Weizman SYDNEY MARITIME MC (NSW)/NSW | AUS 146 PRIME NUMBER | 185.0 | 249.0 |
| 7 | Patrick O'Donnell NORTHERN MARINERS (NSW) | AUS 46 PRIME NUMBER | 190.0 | 244.0 |
| 8 | Phil Page NORTHERN MARINERS (NSW) | AUS 86 QUARK | 210.0 | 274.0 |
| 9 | Maurie Fletcher NORTHERN MARINERS (NSW) | AUS 18 BOOGIE | 216.0 | 280.0 |
| 10 | Wayne Keavy KOGARAH BAY RYC (NSW) | AUS 36 DREADNOUGHT | 263.0 | 327.0 |
| 11 | Russell Harding NORTHERN MARINERS (NSW) | AUS 32 INDIE | 272.0 | 336.0 |
| 12 | Rod Marshall RISDON BROOK RYC (TAS) | AUS 81 MANTRA | 304.0 | 368.0 |
| 13 | Ian Sawers ALBERT PARK MYC (VIC)/VIC | AUS 02 F6 | 337.0 | 401.0 |
| 14 | Tim Bennett BRYC/NSW | AUS 89 PRIME NUMBER | 397.0 | 461.0 |
| 15 | Andrew Sands NORTHERN MARINERS (NSW) | AUS 43 NRW | 410.0 | 474.0 |