5th, 7th and 8th May - Hobie 16 Nationals & F18 Open 2011
by Chris Dando

Entries from Australia, Fiji, and Hong Kong joined the strong local fleet for the 2011 Hobie 16 Nationals and F18 Open Championships at Varuna. Conditions over the 3 days sailing varied from a battle to find wind to a strong storm.

On Thursday, the first race was sailed in a good breeze. Khun Damrongsak started as he meant to contiue by winning the first 2 races. Also from Thailand, Khun Teerapong started the series well with places of 2, 3, 1 on the first day. The wind steadily dropped during the day but 3 good races were completed.

On Saturday excellent sailing conditions greeted the fleet as they prepared for the early start. 2 races were sailed with again Damrongsak showing the way in the Hobie 16 fleet. Jason Waterhouse for Australia was starting to show his clear ability with a 3rd and 2nd. The fleet came ashore for lunch. Unfortunately the wind also seemed to want a break as well. As the boats started the 3rd race of the day, it was a fight upwind against a strong tide with the wind being very patchy. There were big gains and loses around the course with boats searching for that elusive gust. Jason again managed to make the right decisions to win. Luckily the wind returned for the final race of the day, and Tong Shing from Hong Kong started to step up his game with a win from Damrungsak in 2nd. The F18's joined in the racing for a Sat & Sun regatta, with Gary Baguley just emrging the overnight leader from Morten Jakobsen and Stefan de Vos.

The final day dawned with a good breeze but the clouds were building ominously. Both fleets got in 3 races in excellent sailing conditions. Damrongsak continued his domination of the Hobie 16's with Jason and Tong Shing close behind. The storm hit in the 4th race of the day as the leaders were approaching the windward mark for the last time. The wind picked up to 25 knots plus with heavy rain. Many boats capsized but out of the 9 starters in the race, 7 managed to finish with only one boat dismasted and having to be towed ashore. Graham Southwick from Fiji showed his experience in survival conditions to win the race with Jason and Tong Shing chasing him home. The F18's saw the storm approaching and only Stefan decided to stay out, the rest headed for the shore and safety! However overall Gary was able to extend his lead with Stefan following him home in 2nd place.