Yesterday John Bertrand, dual Laser World Champion Tom Slingsby and Star Class Olympian and world class coach Andrew Palfrey convincingly won the Murphy & Nye 2010 Australian Etchells Championship with a race to spare, signaling that Betrand and Co are likely to be the team to beat in the 2010 Etchells World Championship in Dublin Ireland.

Dockside Graeme Taylor (Magpie) who finished third on the podium commented ‘In this regatta Bertrand, Slingsby and Palfrey were close to unstoppable; definitely a better combination than in Melbourne. (Britain’s triple Olympic Gold medallist Ben Ainslie was calling tactics there, Tom Slingsby here).

‘To get two firsts yesterday in very light and shifty conditions, you had to be close to God.’

A similar comment to that made by Taylor, from Damien King (Barry) who beat Bertrand and team in the 2009 Etchells World Championship in Melbourne finishing second overall.

‘John Bertrand, Tom Slingsby and Andrew Palfrey were overall in another league. We think John’s combination is better now with Tom as tactician rather than Ben Ainslie – they will be a real threat at the Worlds in Ireland.’

Andrew Palfrey, part of John Bertrand’s winning Triad combination commented ‘Tom (Slingsby) taught us a lot about succeeding in light puffy conditions this regatta.

‘We still have decisions to make about sails before the Dublin Worlds. Here we’ve been sailing in one corner of the playing field, in very flat water. The kind of chop we could get in Ireland is much more akin to sailing in Melbourne.’

Today the battle for the minor podium places was on in earnest in Race 9, the last race of the Murphy & Nye 2010 Australian Etchells Championship, being sailed from the Lake Macquarie Yacht Club on Lake Macquarie, NSW.

After race eight, Graeme Taylor (Magpie) with crew Grant Wharington and Steve ‘Mothy’ Jarvin were three points adrift of Damien King (Barry), Simon Cunnington, Andy Butler and James Ware, who were holding down second place in the Championship.

For Race 9, PRO Ross Wilson set the course at 095, with legs approximately 1.5 nautical miles in length. The sun was shining and the start line was over on the Coal Point shoreline.

Graeme Taylor (GT) positioned Magpie a third of the way down the line from the Committee Boat and got badly boxed in at the start. By contrast his main rival for second place, Damien King (Barry) got a good start and led the left hand side of the fleet away.

The winners of the first leg came from the middle of the course and at the top mark for the first time it was Mark Langford on Critical Balance who rounded ahead of Mark Thornburrow (Dream On (Racer x)), Ian Johnston (Bananas in Pyjamas) and Tom Braidwood (Fantazia). Then came Jake Gunther (The Boat), Kirwan Robb (Pedro 11) and Damien King (Barry) who had dropped back through the fleet, then Jervis Tilley (Bushfire) and Julian Plante (North Star), John Bertrand (Triad) was around 15th, while Taylor (Magpie) was buried and very deep.

As the Etchells came down to the bottom mark for the first time, spinnakers flying, the breeze was holding at seven-eight knots.

At the bottom mark the first five places were unchanged. Tilley (Bushfire) had moved up two places while Plante (North Star) had moved from 13th up to eighth. Bertrand (Triad) moved from 15th to ninth.

Taylor (Magpie) coming up the beat for the second time went hard right crossing the fleet and made a huge gain. The leaders were coming up on the right hand shore. Taylor’s rival Damien King (Barry) was back in 11th.

The manoeuvre paid for GT; he made up around 20 places. At the top mark for the second time Langford was still leading from Braidwood, who had moved from fourth to second. Thornburrow was third, Johnston fourth, Tilley fifth and Gunther sixth.

Damien King was seventh and just ahead of Graeme Taylor, who was not about to let his rival slip away. Plante and Brendan Garner (The Moe Szyslak Experience) completed the top ten.

Mark Langford (Critical Balance) led all the way to win Race 9 of the series. Mark Thornburrow (Dream on (Racer x)) finished second, ahead of Ian Jonhston (Bananas in Pyjamas), Tom Braidwood (Fantazia), Jervis Tilley (Bushfire), Julian Plante (North Star), Jake Gunther (The Boat) and Adam Beashel (Steam Packet 7).

Graeme Taylor just edged out rival Damien King (Barry) but it was not enough. King secured second place in the Championship, with Taylor finishing third.

Graeme Taylor commented ‘We had a shocker up the first beat around 40th, so we decided to go right and there was good pressure and that brought us back into the competition. We are just happy to be able to mix it up with the fleet. We will keep batting.’

America’s Cup legend John Bertrand leads Australian Etchells Championship. Sailing with Olympian and World Champion crew of Tom Slingsby and Andrew Palfrey leads the 2010 Australian Etchells Championship.

Murphy & Nye 2010 International Etchells Australian Championship competitors breathed a sigh of relief after the very hot conditions of the last 24 hours were alleviated by a southerly this morning.

As the fleet left the dock the breeze was approximately 10 – 12 knots at the Lake Macquarie Yacht Club.

Principal Race Office Ross Wilson set an initial course with a two mile first beat to allow the Etchells to stretch their legs.

Out on the Lake, eagerness at the start was again evident, causing several general recalls.

The breeze was now 12 to 13 knots, the sunny skies disappearing and the weather was becoming overcast. The breeze shifted and the Etchells crowded the Committee Boat end of the line. PRO Wilson pulled the pin and set about relaying the start line.

A clean start and most of the Etchells that chose the Coal Point shoreline gained a big advantage as they lifted out of the bay.

Competitors who started on the pin end and hugged the eastern shore of Carey Bay were hammered; the first Etchells off the pin end that headed left was 20th at the mark.

At the first mark John Bertrand and crew Tom Slingsby and Andrew Palfrey (Triad) were first to round. Yesterday Bertrand said he would take third any day, he had obviously changed his mind and today he and his talented crew (Slingsby and Palfrey are both Olympians with Palfrey also a coach of some note) look as though they were out to win.

Todd Wybom (Seven 50) rounded second, making his first appearance in the ‘top ten’ club. He was followed in quick succession, by Graeme Taylor (Magpie), Peter McNeil (Absolute Pearler), Adam Beashel (Steam Packet 7), Damien King (Barry), Jake Gunther (The Boat), Tom King (Iron Lotus) and Brad Sheridan (Tusk).

The breeze was 13 knots and the sky overcast as the fleet headed down the course under spinnaker. There were no significant changes downwind but the work produced big lead changes as the boats on the western side of the Lake were continuing to do best.

At the top mark for the second time Steam Packet 7 (Adam Beashel, Bruce Wookey and Gary Gudmunson) had made the move from sixth and led Triad, Magpie, Barry, Absolute Pearler and Seven 50.

Half way down the final run to the finish Beashel and Bertrand were having a tight battle at the front of the fleet, with Beashel holding two thirds of a boat length’s advantage over Bertrand.

Graeme Taylor was third, with Lake Macquarie sailor Peter McNeil (Absolute Pearler) out on the right on his own and coming in at a different angle to the rest of the fleet.

At the finish, Beashel (Steam Packet 7) held out Bertrand (Triad). McNeil (Absolute Pearler) made a big gain out on the right and finished third ahead of Graeme Taylor’s Magpie and Todd Wybom’s Seven 50.

Adam Beashel, the highly regarded Australian tactician on Emirates Team New Zealand America’s Cup boat  commented ‘The Coal Point shore was the key: you had to pick the time to go in though, you had to be careful, we played more to the middle.’

Peter McNeil who made that big gain on the last run said ‘The right hand shore was the place you had to be, but you still had to work the shifts. We made a good gain with more pressure over there on the last run.’

Provisional Top Ten:

Race 3   (13/01/2010)  Murphy & NYE

1. Steam Packet 7
2. Triad
3. Absolute Pearler
4. Magpie
5. Barry
6. Seven 50
7. Tusk
8. Banana’s in Pyjama’s
9. Fantazia
10. Why be flat

The top mark was moved by the Race Committee more towards the centre of the Lake, to reduce the influence of the shoreline. The course was set as a two mile length, double sausage with an upwind finish in Carey Bay.

Clear start to Race 4 as the breeze lifted to 14 -15 knots and gusting. A little surprisingly, Peter McNeil (Absolute Pearler) chose to start nearer the pin, got a clean lane and then headed right after 500 metres towards the Coal Point shoreline, again. John Bertrand (Triad), Adam Beashel (Steam Packet 7), Damien King (Barry) and Kirwan Robb (Pedro 11) were mid line.

At the first mark the America’s Cup legend Bertrand had opened up a four or five boat lengths lead over Beashel. Taylor was next on Magpie, with McNeil following.

Yesterday’s race winner Gary Boyd (B Squared) was close behind, as was Tom King (Iron Lotus). Tom Woods (Echo Beach) was sixth, then Brad Sheridan (Tusk) and Kirwan Robb (Pedro 11).

On the run Bertrand maintained his lead over Beashel, with King moving up into third. Boyd was fourth, Taylor fifth, with Hong Kong sailor Mark Thornburrow ((Dream On (Racer x)) sixth. McNeil was seventh with Woods, Ian Johnson (Banana in Pyjamas) and Jake Gunther (The Boat) rounding out the top ten.

Bertrand extended and led by 20 boat lengths. The breeze had picked up to 16 knots and the sky was now very overcast.

John Bertrand, Tom Slingsby and Andrew Palfrey (Triad) hung to win from a fast finishing Adam Beashel (Steam Packet 7). Beashel made ground on the last beat, but not enough to deny Bertrand the victory.

Damien King (Barry) held onto third, with Graeme Taylor (Magpie) moving up to fourth. Peter McNeil (Absolute Pearler) who moved up from eighth on the previous lap was next, then Gary Boyd (B Squared), Mark Thornburrow ((Dream On (Racer x)), Ian Johnson (Bananas in Pyjamas), Jake Gunther (The Boat) and Kane Sinclair (Why be Flat).

After the finish the southerly wind strength increased to over 20 knots as the fleet reached in towards the marina. It was all hands to secure the sudden rush of Etchells and the large numbers of locals on the Lake Macquarie Yacht Club desk watched with wonderment the frantic activity as 200 sailors came ashore.

A smiling John Bertrand commented ‘We had a good day; two wins, winning is certainly better than losing I can vouch for that.

‘We are a good combination. Tom Slingsby and Andrew Palfrey, good crew, I can work with them. They are of course a joy to sail with.

‘It was an interesting day on the water. With 60 boats there was quite some chop. On the Coal Point shoreline some boats went in and got good right hand shifts. But it was a matter of timing, the pressure was fluctuating and some boats ran out of breeze.

‘It’s a very strong fleet and excellent conditions so it will be an interesting week.’

Damian King commented ‘Good sailing conditions today – a good challenge. A strong fleet, a long way to go in this regatta.’

Peter (Polly) McNeil – ‘In the second race today we hit the bottom mark the first time round. We had to do a 360, so that pushed us back, then but we had a good run and made up a bit, then we picked the shifts up the final beat.

‘No doubt the best Etchells fleet we’ve ever had on Lake Macquarie.’