Seven of our intrepid Opti sailors from GRSC attended the 2022 state titles held at Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club on Pittwater on March 26^th & 27^th. The boys were Charles Liang, Aaveer Patil-Chaudhari, Toby Yuen, Joshua Hannah and they also represented their school, Scots College. The girls were Ariel & Talia Ashmore and Petra Johnson. There were 53 open entries and 33 intermediates along with a healthy green fleet.

The initial forecast a week out looked like the weather gods may be kind to the competitors with winds of about 10 knots and a few light showers on the Sunday.

The actual weather Saturday saw showers and a breeze of about 10 knots but lighter at times with a few showers. Sunday there was next to no wind for most of the day and some heavy showers. You may have thought our intrepid sailors would be discouraged, but they were not. They went out and had fun and completed 3 races on Saturday and one on Sunday. In fact, they were on the water for about 6 hours on both days. The boys were supported by 2 coaches and ribs provided by the school. Petra was able to sneek some suppies aboard the Scotts rib while Ariel and Talia had their dad Brad on a SUP out there on the water.

The kids demonstrated great determination and tenacity sailing in light airs, something they have not had much practice in. They bobbed around for 3 hours on Sunday for their race to start and, by all accounts, got on very well out on the water while they waited for some wind. They should be congratulated on their excellent representation of the club and their school.

All the GRSC competitors sailed in the intermediate division with the results as follows:

• Charles Liang 8th (49pts)
• Aaveer Patil-Chaudhari 13^th (60pts)
• Toby Yuen 16^th (65pts)
• Ariel Ashmore 24^th (89pts)
• Talia Ashmore 25^th (94pts)
• Joshua Hannah 28^th (101pts)
• Petra Johnson 29^th (123pts)

Of course, a big thank you to the parents for supporting the kids over the weekend. Most travelled to RPAYC and back each day which made for a long one. Parents enjoyed the hospitality of the clubs and the club’s facilities while the kids were on the water and used the time to plan for the national titles to be sailed there in January 2023.

Chris Johnson