School of Hard Knocks
School of Hard Knocks
Eliza Kirby could have taken the easier option and chosen a more comfortable sailing “apprenticeship” than sign up for the Manly 16s fleet.
But she prefers running towards the fire, not away from it.
The Lake Macquarie sailor leaves home at 8.30am each Saturday to travel to Manly to match it with the most competitive 16s fleet in the world, believing the school of hard knocks will serve her best in the long run.
And while the result sheets don’t often feature her boat Nozomi in the top dozen, skipper Kirby and crew Conor Hay and Hugh Skeen are taking every challenge head on and learning plenty along the way.
Even after picking up a DNF (Did Not Finish) and a TLE (Time Limit Expired) in heats 11 and 12 of the Manly short course pointscore series at the weekend, the enthusiasm and desire to improve remain at peak level.
“The reason I chose Manly is because it is so competitive,” Eliza explained.
“I’m used to sailing out of Lake Macquarie in smaller fleets but everything at Manly is so full on. “I’ve never sailed against so many good people before. Every week is a sailing education.”
Kirby – the lightest skipper in the fleet at 52kg – is in awe and thankful of the work Hay and Skeen do on the boat.
She firmly believes there are obvious signs of improvement and hopes the momentum continues into next month’s Australia 16ft Skiff Championships, to be hosted in her “backyard” at Belmont.
“I’ve got a bit of local knowledge up there and all we need is a week of light conditions,” she said. “We finished mid-fleet in the states (NSW Championships) so that’s the goal for the nationals, along with a top three finish in the handicap and youth (divisions).”
Fresh off a third and first on Saturday, Red Pumps skipper Tyler Dransfield and crew Greg Windust and Jay Harris have slightly loftier ambitions. They will be chasing a title.
“We were really happy with the way with sailed on the weekend and I guess it’s the right time to hit some form,” Dransfield said.
“It’s been a fairly solid season with a few ups and downs and we’re pretty excited about Belmont, even though we haven’t sailed a lot up there. “We have the potential (to give it a shake) if we sail smart and stay consistent.
“We are capable of winning races but also capable of getting smashed. “We’ve just got to limit the bad ones.”
Tyler has added incentive to do well in the nationals – beat sister Zoe on title contender and current short course pointscore leader Red Pumps Red. “That’s always a major goal,” he laughed.
“She’s having an exceptional season but there are so many quality sailors in the fleet that it’s going to be on every single heat.”
In the 13s, Buckingham Marine (Ash Napper/Theo Franklin) took advantage of overall leader Harken’s absence to score back-to-back wins in heats 11 and 12 of the short course pointscore series.
It’s narrowed the gap between the two boats to just 1.2 points at the head of the table.
16ft Skiffs Short Course Pointscore Results
13ft Skiff Short Course Pointscore Results
Words Adam Lucius
