1366 Protagonist take first blood in NSW F11 Champ

9:10 PM Sat 6 Dec 2008 GMT

'75 Flying Elevens compete at 1st round of F11 NSW State Champs - 2008-2009 NSW Flying Eleven Championships' David Price Click Here to view large photo

The first heat of the 2008-2009 Flying Eleven NSW State Championships got underway under the I flag at 11:30am at Gosford, in a relatively steady NorWester of 10-14kts, for the fleet of 75 young crews after 2 previous general recalls.

This was the first opportunity the majority of our NSW fleet had to flex their muscle and prove themselves after a few preliminary bouts in late September, so it was not unexpected that the PRO Peter Moor would have to endure a couple of generals before the race could be declared started.

The level of expertise amongst this year's fleet was quite impressive for the many spectator craft on water and along the headlands of Brisbane Waters, supporting the work the Flying Eleven Associations have put into their training programmes over the past few year. Great depth of skill was exhibited well into the young fleet battling their way up to the first mark. Declan Reilly and James Lawira-Fernandez 1366 Protagonist from Manly 16'SSC, led the very shy reach to the wing mark with Sam Ellis and Caitlyn McIntosh 1306 Fatty & Skinny Belmont 16'SC, 1363 Crunchie Olivia Price and Maddie Clancy M16'SSC, Josh McKnight and Ira Dubery 1353 Flying Hellfish M16'SSC, and Samantha Nugent and Natasha Ivenschenco 1327 Cheeky M16'SSC, all very close in pursuit. By the completion of the first triangle, 1353 Flying Hellfish was in the lead, followed by 1366 Protagonist, 1306 Fatty & Skinny and 1363 Crunchie, a healthy separation from the next handful of boats.

With the first work delivering favours to all sides of the course, it was difficult for the leaders to commit to one side or the other, a number of crews choosing to mix the pot up a bit by playing the centre under a nice dark cloud and good pressure, with an ever increasing grab at the favoured right. Typically in this NorWester, some boats were 'Johnny on the spot' but 1366 Protagonist managed to fend off all comers once again by the top mark, 1363 Crunchie swapping to take second position over 1306 Fatty & Skinny and newcomers to the top five 1361 Do Geese See God brother and sister team Rob and Kasha Wojcik M16'SSC and 1368 Cotton On birthday boy Scott Cotton and Max Vos from Avalon SC, hungry for more of the same.

The battle and wind intensified over the next two four legs of the course. 1366 Protagonist extending their lead over second and third flyers 1353 Flying Hellfish and the 1363 Crunchie girls, who were comfortably separated from the fleet by the bottom mark for their last push to the finish line. Whilst the leader provided a loose cover up the work, 1363 Crunchie managed to wrestle second position from 1353 Flying Hellfish over to the right hand side of the course, with 1368 Cotton On now snapping at their heels too just to make it more fun for them.

It was the crew of 1366 Protagonist Declan Reilly and James Lawira-Fernandez, taking first blood to cross the line ahead of 1363 Crunchie girls Olivia Price and Maddie Clancy over in second place. An aggressive finish for third and fourth place is currently under protest* with a bit of argy bargy on the line between 1368 Cotton on Scott Cotton and Max Voss, a whisker ahead of 1353 Flying Hellfish Josh McKnight and Ira Dubery. A commendable performance and some beaming smiles by 1327 Cheeky girls Samantha Nugent and Natasha Ivenschenco, who took out fifth place across the line.

Heat 2 started in a blustery NW 15+kts at 4:30pm but the long expected southerly came booming in by the first reach for the fleet leaders, causing the PRO to make the call and abandon the race as a number of back markers were yet to round the first mark. Although this was a somewhat disappointing situation for the leaders, the majority of the fleet sheeted on and shyed their way in spectacular fashion back to the club in record time.

Results top 10 : Heat 1
1st 1366 Protagonist M16'SSC Declan Reilly and James Lawira-Fernandez
2nd 1363 Crunchie M16'SSC Olivia Price and Maddie Clancy
3rd* 1368 Cotton On ASC Scott Cotton and Max Vos
4th* 1353 Flying Hellfish M16'SSC Josh McKnight and Ira Dubery
5th 1327 Cheeky M16'SSC Samantha Nugent and Natasha Ivenschenco
6th 1339 Tom Tom ASC Tom Koerner and Joshua Ponton
7th 1349 Outrageous ASC Gemma Rasdall and Jess Angus
8th 1361 Do Geese See God M16'SSC Robert and Kasha Wojcik
9th 1306 Fatty & Skinny B16'SC Sam Ellis and Caitlyn McIntosh
10th 1337 Shake Your Booties HHSC Toby Dind and Finn Alexander