Race Report 17 October 2026
Heat 2 of the Spring Series, 17 October 2026, in a flukey light easterly on the No. 2 course. Scot (Dave Paget) won by three minutes from Myra Too (Warren Miller) in her second race back, with Australia IV, skippered for the day by Michael Chapman, third by three seconds from The Mistake. The report corrects last week's date: Race 1 was sailed on 10 October.
No holding them back: Scot outsails the fleet
Heat 2, Spring Series. Saturday 17 October 2026.
A note in the printed report: last week's report showed the date as 19 October 2026. It should have shown Race 1, Mark Foy Day, as Saturday 10 October 2026.
There can have been no better endorsement of the Sail Back in Time Training Program than a win by Scot in the second heat of the Spring Series. The crew of the Scot have been more active than most in contributing to the training program with Ryan and Dave Paget leading from the front. So on a flukey, light easterly day, Scot (Dave Paget) won by 3 minutes from Myra Too (Warren “Wazza” Miller) and Australia IV in third place, a further (wait for it!) 9 minutes adrift.
As Dave Paget said after the race, “some days everything just goes right”.
Myra Too’s second place was also something to celebrate. In only her second race for many years, the little replica of Bill Barnett’s former Aussie champion is showing that she can be a force to be reckoned with when sailed well. Keep an eye on Wazza and his team in future races as they find their feet in the boat and on the course.
But as the applause dies down, it has to be said that it may have been a much more competitive race if many of the fleet made it to the start line in good time. Things go wrong when you are rushing as Top Weight (Eloise Clarke) discovered. Late off the beach and a broken halyard block put an end to her day en route to the start line well behind her start time. A4 (Michael “Chappo” Chapman filling in for Terry Stewart) might have scored a bigger box of chocolates if, during the hoist of the main, a tangled halyard hadn’t delayed the hoist, resulting in lost time getting off the beach.
The light easterly meant a Kirribilli start on the No. 2 course. Twice around Shark Island and a couple of relatively square runs down the Harbour to the finish. Scot and Myra, with their generous handicaps both did well on the upwind legs, correctly picking the shifts and setting up a big lead on the fleet. Yendys (Michael van Stom) found the going particularly difficult on the first leg with, seemingly, each tack being met with a change in the breeze as it backed and veered from ENE to ESE. A4 did better with Chappo using his fabled knowledge of the Harbour to great advantage to hold off Yendys after Yendys had initially made up good ground on A4.
Thanks to the volunteers. We can’t do this without you!
On the down wind leg on the first lap, both Myra Too and Yendys gybed after setting port poles and hoping for fast VMG runs. But with the light breeze all over the shop, Yendys travelled extra distance with little gain. The rest of the fleet stuck to the rhumb line and lost no real ground in doing so. Myra Too had, however, made up good ground on Scot so that at the Kurraba mark at the end of the first lap, Myra Too was only a minute behind. Mistake (Jerry Tickner) had also done well and was a further 4 minutes back in third. They were followed by A4, Tangalooma (Neville Turbit), Aberdare (Michael “Flipper” Carter) and Yendys bringing up the rear.
Another great upwind leg by Scot saw her increasing her lead over Myra Too and, after a comfortable run to the finish, it was Scot, followed by Myra Too and A4 who scraped in ahead of The Mistake by a mere 3 seconds. Then followed the also-rans, Yendys, Aberdare and Tangalooma left to lick their wounds.
Next week is the popular Balmain Regatta, to be sailed on Sunday, meaning no sailing on Saturday. (Which is probably just as well, as the Bondi to Manly Ultramarathon is happening this Saturday and they will be setting up a checkpoint right in the middle of our rigging area for their 1,927 participants!)
It will be an early start, so some skiffs will be rigging Saturday afternoon (alongside a cooling ale perhaps) and leaving the boats out overnight to facilitate an early 1100 departure. At this stage it looks like six H18s will be sailing a special course organised by the Balmain Sailing Club for the Regatta. Note that it will be a race within a race as the result will be counted for the SFS points scores. So, best to be there and get to enjoy the famous after-party as well.
See you at the Squaddy!
The results are on this site’s page for Race 2, Spring Series heat 2.
Note: Michael “Chappo” Chapman skippered A4.
The photographs in the original report, which is below, are by Barley Stewart, SFS Life Member and rescue boat volunteer, and the one of Yendys with all the laundry up is by Stewart.