Australian Sabot Championships and Sabot Week - Blast from the past

9:32 AM Wed 23 Dec 2009 GMT

'A bumper fleet of Sabots are converging on Gosford.' Tom Orr Click Here to view large photo

Expect to hear the crack of a shotgun over Brisbane Water during the Australian Sabot Championships as race officials reconnect with a more traditional way of starting and finishing races.

The week-long regatta for junior sailors is being hosted by Gosford Sailing Club, starting with an invitation race on December 28 and concluding on January 3.

These days it is more common for race starts and finishes to be signalled with a shriek from a gas-powered horn but the Northern NSW Sabot Sailing Association are aiming to bring back some old traditions when shotguns firing blanks were regularly used. The puff of smoke sent out gives shore-based spectators a visual aid when the wind muffles sound.

With 10 races in both the senior and junior divisions over the course of the championships that's a lot of cartridges and it was planned to present a spent cartridge to the winner of each heat as a momento, as some clubs have traditionally done in the past.

A total of 153 competitors were pre-registered for the championships making it one of the largest junior sailing regattas in Australia.

Those looking at advancing to the next step after Sabots are able to try out a new Laser 4.7 courtesy of major sponsor Performance Sailcraft Australia at registration day on December 27.

The Fountaindale-based company said the 4.7 Laser offered up-and-coming sailors a chance to develop skills in the same hull used in the Olympics.

With significantly less sail area than a Laser Radial, and a shorter pre-bent mast, the 4.7 is easier to depower and more manageable, making it ideal for lightweight Sabot or Optimist graduates.

As the sailors grow out of the 4.7, the sail and mast can be changed to turn the boat into a radial or full rig Laser.
At the end of the Sabot nationals the top 10 seniors will go into a draw to use a new 4.7 Laser at the Youth Championships in Adelaide in early January.

The Sabot Championships have been well supported by suppliers of sailing gear with Zhik and Ronston donating many prizes. Gosford-based company Robson Civil Projects is a major sponsor in addition to PSA.

by Peter McIntosh

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Australian Sabot Championships and Sabot Week - Blast from the past

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