By
Graham Davis
A
sailor from HMAS Albatross, along with a “civvie” with whom he
had never sailed before, have taken out the Victorian State Tasar
sailing title.
They are LSATV Wayne Hale, 33, of NASPO and Liam Goodall, 17 from
Bendigo.
More formally known as the Victorian State Tasar Dinghy Sailing
Championships, the event was staged at the Yarrawonga Yacht Club
over the Victorian long weekend of March 6 to 8.
The five race program was conducted over an Olympic standard course
of seven nautical miles on freshwater Lake Mulwala near Albury.
A Tasar is a two person five metre fibre glass sailing craft carrying
a main and jib.
A spinnaker is not carried.
The championships attracted 39 competitors from states across
Australia including the current Australian Champion and the third
placed finisher in the 2003 World Championships, Craig McPhee
of South Australia and Rob Douglas of Batemans Bay, who finished
seventh in the 2003 World Championships.
Wayne trailered his boat to the lake.
“I didn’t have a forward hand but heard that Liam Goodall was
available,” Wayne told Navy News.
“I knew Liam was a good sailor.
He’s been sailing for ten years. His father is an A class yachtsman.
“A month before the championships I phoned Liam and asked him
if he was free to sail with me. “He agreed. The first race was
the first we had ever sailed together,” Wayne explained.
The combination worked because the pair won four of the five races
and came 12th in the other The results were enough to take the
title.
Wayne had earlier got some good training support from three Albatross
sailors, ABATV Nik Hutchesson, AB Naly Ung and SMN Vanessa Roedel.
The trio had joined Wayne by honing their skills
in this year’s Nowra Sailing Club program.
The 2005 World Tasar Championships will be held in Darwin in June
2005.
