The WASZP Class continues to take off around the world
by Marc Ablett, WASZP Class 24 Mar 2018 09:43 GMT
Waszp Games 2017 © WASZP Class
It is getting to that time of year, where the transition happens from the Southern Hemisphere season to the Northern Hemisphere season though for some in Europe it seems Spring is still a long way away.
However, before we know it, racing all over Europe will commence and the WASZP Class aims to set the Northern Hemisphere alight with some fantastic events!
European Championships
We have now announced the dates of the European Championships to be held at Fraglia Malcesine Yacht Club, Lake Garda in Italy from the 28 June to the 1 July. This is going to be a huge event and an opportunity to see how much the fleet has grown since the WASZP Games in August 2017. It will be exciting to see a fleet of 60-70 boats racing around Lake Garda, with a number of countries showing fantastic growth in the period since the last WASZP Games in Italy.
Prior to this event a coaching clinic will be available from 25 - 27 June as well as clinics on boat preparation and maintenance. There will also be an owners meeting, an agents meeting and a presentation on the up-coming WASZP Games in Perth 2019. With the formats being refined all the time, the Championship Racing will be fantastic and other events such as the Slalom have been re-invented to suit the WASZP and create a fun atmosphere.
Click HERE for the 2018 Europeans event page
This includes:
Race documents
Accommodation
Social activities
Pacific Championships
The Pacific Championships held at Manly Sailing Club on Auckland's North Shore was a fantastic event with a wide range of conditions.
Again a solid fleet assembled with Tom Trotman from Australia making the journey over to test the New Zealand waters to give it an international flavour.
With Tom finishing third at the Australian Nationals it would give both fleets a solid understanding of where they are at leading into the 2019 WASZP Games in Perth.
The Kiwis were battle hardened after a three day National Championship two weeks earlier and it showed. The first day of racing was held in heavy conditions up around 25 knots but to everyone's credit and testament to the WASZP itself, two-thirds of the fleet made it around the course in both races.
Predict Wind put on the beer and soft drinks after the racing with the Predict Wind 'chilly bin' proving popular once again. Andrew McDougall was also on hand to provide assistance in tuning and set-up through the regatta. This is something the fleet certainly benefitted from.
Day two and more moderate conditions greeted the fleet, this allowed some of the lighter sailors to gain some points back on the leaders. Particularly impressive was young Mattias Coutts at 12 years of age, recording a 2nd place in heat 5! The future is very bright in New Zealand WASZP sailing.
Unfortunately on day three the wind evaporated and the overnight results stayed unchanged. This left the kiwis on top in the first instalment of this trans-Tasman rivalry.
Overall Results:
1st Scott Kennedy
2nd Jon Bilger
3rd Bruce Curson
Chile National Championships
The Chile National Championships were held on the same weekend as the Pacific Championships, 3 - 5 March 2018. There are over 30 WASZPs now sailing in South America which is becoming one of the fastest growing regions for the class. There is a lot of training happening down in Chile at the moment and interested sailors can keep up with all the action and results via Facebook page.
UK National Championships
The inaugural UK Nationals will be held from the 10 - 13 of May at Rutland Waters. With another container of 15 boats landing in the UK just after Christmas and over 50 boats now sold in the UK, we are looking at a fantastic fleet in attendance. With the weather due to warm up by May it is an exciting time to be a WASZP sailor.
Atlantic Coast Championships
After the UK we then move to the USA where the Atlantic Coast Championships take place on the 17 - 18 of May at Toms River Sailing Club. Andrew McDougall will be on-site assisting with the fleet and running some boat preparation clinics on the 15 and 16 of May prior to the event. A fleet of around 30 boats is expected, making it another high quality event.
WASZP Games 2019
In November we welcomed the news that Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club in Perth will host the 2019 WASZP Games. This will be a spectacular event with early indications of 120+ boats with a number of countries committing to containers. The Swan River is the perfect place for WASZP sailing, with 15-20 knot sea breezes coming in like clockwork and flat water with minimal traffic. The fleet in Perth now has 10+ boats sailing since the first boats were delivered in October. We expect 25 local Perth boats will be on the water before the Games, early expectations are for 70+ Aussie boats in attendance.