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Clarence River Sailing Club
Saturday 12^th September 2026
Boyd Builders Warm Up Series – Race #2

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Clarence River Sailing Club
Saturday 12^th September 2026
Boyd Builders Warm Up Series – Race #2

Racing in the Club’s 2026 Warm Up Series continued on Saturday with crews competing in Heat #2 of the four-race program. A moderate to fresh easterly breeze kept everyone on their toes and delivered plenty of fast and exciting sailing.Solid fleet numbers in both divisions ensured tight competition and results were close at the finish.

It was great to see the return of Club veterans – Karl Cooksley and Dennis Boyd. Both are former Commodores and top sailors with decades of dedicated service between them.

With the breeze settling into a steady easterly, officials decided on a re-run of last week’s course. Top mark was near the bridge, bottom mark at the Rowing Club intersected by a cross-river loop between the Marina and Convent. All marks were taken to starboard. A good choice again with crews enjoying some surprisingly fast reaches on the off-wind legs. Monohulls were assigned two laps and catamarans three. All boats got away together in a busy but orderly mass start with everyone clearing the line without incident.

In the Monohull Division it was all Lasers this week. In his first sail of the season Karl Cooksley demonstrated his vast experience in this class with a near perfect start and error-free performance for the entire race. Despite many spirited attempts, Karl fended off all challengers long enough to cross the line with a margin of just 45 seconds. Neil Burgess made some strong gains in the final stages but couldn’t quite close the gap and had to be content with second. Only thirty seconds astern, Peter Zietsch was next home and took out third place.

Hobie 18 rivals Lindsay Cowan / Tansie Higgin and Luke Denham / Felicity Higgins dominated the Catamaran Division. Lindsay and Tansie got away to a blistering start and looked unbeatable for much of the first lap. However, a very determined Luke and Felicity chased them down and got within striking distance before a series of unlucky wind shifts put an end their quest. Great tactical sailing from both crews. The results could have gone either way but on this occasion it was Lindsay and Tansie first and Luke and Felicity second. Taking out third place Mosquito crew Greg Lee and Deb Michell struggled in the lighter breeze at the start, but once it came in - took off like a rocket. Making the most of the fast reaching legs, Greg and Deb made significant gains on the fleet and had great fun doing it. A-Class skipper Ben Higgins was next home in fourth. In only his second sail in this challenging boat, Ben timed the start perfectly, was first away from the line and shared the lead well into the race before the Hobie crews broke free. Enjoying some tight match racing with the Mosquito crew in the final stages, Ben edged across the line just 30 seconds ahead of his rivals before conceding on yardstick.

See the website for full results and photos.

A big thanks to race official Bob Fish.

Sailing is on again next Saturday (19th) for Race #3 of the Boyd Builders Warm Up Series.

Visitors or anyone wanting to have a go at sailing are most welcome to come along. Start time is around 1.00 pm each Saturday.

More details on our website. https://crsc.yachting.org.au

Results

Recorded Time	Elapsed Time	YS	YS Cr'd Time	Class	Skipper	Crew	Sail No

RACE 1
Monos	2 laps
00:49:50	00:46:50	114.0	00:41:05	Laser	K Cooksely		216171
00:50:40	00:47:40	114.0	00:41:49	Laser	N Burgess		151965
00:51:15	00:48:15	114.0	00:42:19	Laser	P Zietsch		143427

Cats	3 laps
00:56:15	00:53:15	76.5	01:09:36	Hobie 18	L Cowan	T Higgins	44
01:01:05	00:58:05	76.5	01:15:56	Hobie 18	L Denham	F Higgins	16435
01:10:00	01:07:00	78	01:25:54	Mosquito	G Lee	D Michell	1833
01:09:30	01:06:30	70	01:35:00	A' Class (Vint)	B Higgins		AUS854

Bob Fish officiating