Queensland School Sailors Excel in Goolwa: Iona College Leads State, Moreton Bay Qualifies for Interdominions

Last week teams of RQYS sailors from Moreton Bay College, Iona College and The Southport School travelled to Goolwa, South Australia, for the Australian Secondary Schools Teams Racing Championship. Majority of the Queensland based school sailors are members of RQYS and attend regular training and racing. It was a great event with some of the most competitive racing in the coldest Australian temperatures.

For those that don’t know much about the secondary schools sailing or teams sailing programs. The secondary school sailing system consists of students from grades 7 to 12 racing in Pacers without spinnakers. It makes for some of the best learning environments for junior sailors which are paired together with senior school skippers. The Teams sailing format is a sub 10 minute race on a box course with teams of 3 vs 3. Each teams points are collated and the total must be 10 or under for a win.

Throughout the 4-day event, the 22 teams completed close to 300 races, including a finals series. Iona College was top placing Queensland school in 4th, followed by TSS in 13th and Moreton Bay in 19th. Moreton Bay brought home the 3rd female team position which will qualify them for the Teams Sailing Interdominions set to be held at the Royal Akarana Yacht Club in New Zealand later this year.

I was attending and coaching the Iona team alongside member Will Nobes, it was a great event and look forward to sharing  the experience with coaching groups at the Squadron.

By Hayden Barney

Photos courtesy of Canvas Sails