Hi everyone,

I am back from a training course in cold, damp UK, looking forward to next week at Manning Point!  Without a few weeks of sailing, Phil and I went down to the club at Toronto on Saturday to do some last-minute maintenance and tuning.  We had a new jib to fit, and to ensure that no moving parts or ropes looked like falling apart just at the wrong moment.  There was a really nice south-easter, 12-15 knots, blowing up the bay, so we couldn't resist, and we took Foxee out for a blast.  Hard to tell how we went in the absence of any competition, but we at least blew the Flying Ants away!!  We had some nice downwind screamers.  The boat felt great.  The only flaw was that I decided to sail up to one of the local yacht club marks, round it and set the kite.  Unfortunately we had a little "trouble" tacking onto the mark, and I was left in two minds, of course made the wrong decision, and we ended up drifting over the top of the buoy.  Now I have a couple of nice yellow skid mars to polish off the bottom of the boat!!

Aside from that, my thoughts have been focussing on who could be the favourites for this year's event.  As usual, the handicap honours could be up for grabs by anybody.  However, I do have sneaking suspicion that one of the Toronto boats (if they stay afloat consistently) could do very well here, and I bet the strong Balmoral contingent will bring forth some serious contenders.

As for the scratch title, this is shaping up as probably the highest quality fleet for a number of seasons, with a real depth of experience and talent.  Apologies if I miss someone in this, like last year when Air Force One appeared out of the blue with a brother / sister team that had not sailed together for years, and took at third place, including a heat win!  There were also a couple of Qld entries last season with young sailors showing tremendous potential.  Certainly they could trouble the leaders.  However, I will focus more on the known quantities (in no particular order), starting with last year's champ:

Final Phase (Greg Roche):  Greg's successful combination with Daniel Yaxley ended after last year's Nationals.  However, he has picked up a new young gun at Taree, and he has spent a fair amount of time on the water at Manning Point and Taree the past couple of months, commuting up from the Hunter Region.  He is playing down his own chances, but he is a crafty veteran in the best sense of the words, and he will feature in the top few in each race.

Predator (Len Mancell and Les Barlin):  2nd last year, now to race on their home turf, could this be the time for Len and Les?  They are also extremely accomplished veterans in the class.  Second-hand reports from Rochey are that they have been extremely fast upwind, and difficult to beat.

Water Rat (Rohan Nosworthy and Lindsay Mason):  National champions in 06/07.  Lindsay normally races and skippers the boat at St George, but is crewing for Rohan, who is a successful skipper in a number of classes, including NS14's.  They had a clean sweep in the 06/07 Nationals, except for the last race when they had a swim near the finish line in a smoking nor-easter.  They had a few close races, but really had excellent upwind speed at the time.  At the Touring Trophy in Toronto early November, they humbled all of us.

Xanadu (Gary Reeves and Paul Tyson):  Also former National Champs, and Gary is the reining State Champ.  I don't know if they are going to operate with standard MG or MGB rig.  Either way, they will be close to the front most of the time and, I suspect, would be a big chance for the Yardstick title if they use the MGB rig.

Tigger ....?  (Hugh Tait):  Hugh Tait is the current NS14 National Champ.  He has a new boat just on the water which he is registering both for MG and NS, and I understand he is entering the titles.  Will he know how to sail fast, particularly upwind?  I bet he will!  An unknown quantity on the MG, but he is bound to be very competitive.

Filthy Fase (Bob Taig and Hayden Domanti):  Always been in the top 5 or thereabouts the past few seasons, and a whole new quiver of sails, and going very fast at Toronto (although suffering a little centreboad case calamity that needs fixing in the next few days...get on with it Bob!).  I can guarantee that these guys will be very competitive throughout the series.

There are a few more who will have their days in the sun during the Titles:

Wizard of Oz (Rob and Sian Morton):  For a husband / wife team who sail without any like-minded MG competition on the far south coast of NSW, whenever they show up at MG regattas they just get better and better.  They have previously won a heat of the States.  They have a new set of sails ready to go, family supporting them, up there, so I am sure they will figure in the contest!

Eclipse (Lachlan Pryor):  Lachlan is a young sailor from Balmoral, who finished third with his crew Amanda at the last State Titles.  At the Point Wollstonecraft training weekend they were sailing consistently fast, so they should also feature among the leaders at different times during the series.

And then there are more:  Dave Hardaker has just launched a brand new Aero 12.  He has sold Beat Route, in which he was a very strong improver last season, and I expect some home turf advantage will work in his favour with the new boat.  I have also heard in dispatches of a mysterious further Taree local that is looking very fast and could be a contender.

There are also a number of other stalwarts, such as Mirko Cairoli and Brian Reeves, if they attend the titles, who will also give the leaders a run for their money.

I have some photos from Rochey on the new boats launched at Taree that I will add to another post.  In the meantime, whilst I am focussing on the potential front-runners in the series, the main thing about the titles is participation.  Fun and experience for everyone.  Make sure you come and say hi during our time at Manning Point.  I look forward to seeing you all there!