The Wallagoot Lake Boat Club held two handicap-start races on Saturday afternoon, in what officials said were somewhat freaky winds.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Race winners Goete Vikstrom and Darren Lydiard both made excellent strategic decisions to find the optimum path around the course.
For most of race one, there was 8-12 knot north-east seabreeze blowing on the eastern side of the lake, while simultaneously there was a 5-15 knot north-west wind blowing on the western side of the lake.
In between there was often no wind, and the way each of the winds covered the lake kept changing, so it was very tricky for sailors to stay in favourable breeze.
Both races ran for over an hour, and saw all boats finish within minutes of each other.
Race one saw Goete Vikstrom finish just seconds ahead of Josh and Jarrah Dorrough, with Darren Lydiard 40 seconds further back in third place.
Race two saw the lead change many times, with boats surging ahead then becoming becalmed.
Darren won, 20 seconds ahead of Goete, with Josh Dorrough third.
Terry Ubrihien narrowly missed out on podiums; fourth in race one and just 12 seconds behind third, and then crossing the line first in race two, but was unfortunately disqualified after noting he’d sailed a slightly incorrect course.
This weekend is sprint races in training for the annual regatta on March 10-11. For more information, please see the club’s website: wlbc.org.au.
The club is always open to new members and offers free sailing lessons for those interested in the sport.
