Cocko wins day one

Peter Campbell reports from day one of the Etchells World Championship in Mooloolaba

Sydney sailmaker and international yachtsman Michael Coxon took out first winning honours in the eight race ACE Etchells World Championship which started off Mooloolaba today, capitalising on what he described as a “little bit of luck” in the form of a significant windshift near the first mark of the 12 nautical mile course.

With a Pacific Ocean surf pounding onto the beaches of Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, the fleet of 85 boats enjoyed exhilarating but testing sailing as the northerly breeze freshened from 12 to 17 knots during the afternoon.

However, Coxon, steering North Sydney, had to first overtake his elder brother, former Olympian Richard Coxon, also from Sydney, who led over the first two legs of the 12 nautical mile course with The Bottle, and two other Etchells Masters skippers, John Savage, from Melbourne, steering Cobra IV and Rob Antill from Lake Macquarie , on Trekka.

At the finish, Michael Coxon finished about 40 seconds clear of Peter McNeill's Tom Pepper XVII, from Lake Macquarie, with Savage, a past two times Etchells World champion, third. Antill finished in fourth place and Richard Coxon fifth, losing the lead with a spinnaker handling problem at the end of the first downwind leg of the course.

“We had a terrible start and decided to go right in the hope of gaining some ground and we got that lucky break when the wind swung our way,” Coxon said back at Mooloolaba Yacht Club. “That helped but I think we adjusted well to the changing conditions, changing gears as the breeze freshened to take full advantage of that early lucky break.”

America’s Cup legend Dennis Conner, who won yesterday’s invitation race in Menace, placed 23rd while his former America’s Cup rival, John Bertrand, was back in 37th place at the helm of Two Saints and a Magpie.

Bertrand had been well placed on the first windward leg, but took a 720 degree turn penalty at the first mark after a racing rules infringement with former World champion Cameron Miles, sailing Pacesetter. Miles went on to finish 11th, with Bertrand losing many places in exonerating his rules breach.

Michael Coxon is shaping up as a strong contender for the World Championship, having won two of the lead-up regatta races and finishing second to Dennis Conner in the Invitation Race, Apart from the luck of the windshift, he and his crew sailed well in the testing winds today.

The Sydney sailmaker is a former America’s Cup sailor and varies his Etchells sailing by being sailing master on the super maxi ocean racer, Alfa Romeo.

Crewing with him are former Olympian Steve Jarvin and Will McCarthy, currently a member of the Alinghi crew preparing to defending the America’s Cup in 2007.

Today’s race was delayed for 25 minutes because of a major windshift, but when Principal Race Officer Arthur Hodge fired the gun the 85 boats hit the line in a perfect start.

As the leading boats neared the first windward mark, however, the wind shifted to the right, giving boats on the seaward side of the course a marked advantage, reaching into the mark, while those on the inshore side had to make several extra tacks to reach the mark.

In fact, three Masters skippers (aged over 50 years) were out in front, with Richard Coxon leading from John Savage and Rob Antill. At the end of the second beat to windward, 44-year-old Michael Coxon had edged ahead of his 59-year-old brother Richard and the other Masters while Peter McNeil also worked his way into second place.

At the finish, Michael Coxon won by a comfortable 40 seconds from McNeil, a Lake Macquarie sailmaker with Savage sailing an excellent race to retain third place, ahead of Antill, Richard Coxon and the young Brisbane sailor Jason Muir, sailing Racer XY with a crew of former Sabot champions.

Close astern of Muir came Andrew Hunn from Hobart, sailing Zulu with Chris Pratt from Adelaide sailing well to finish ninth with Squid.

Grant Wharington, the Melbourne yachtsman who pulled out of the Sydney Gold Coast ocean race with his super maxi Skandia early today to fly from Ballina on the NSW North Coast to make the start of the first race of the Etchells Worlds, had a disastrous day, finishing 49th in Satu II.

Two races are scheduled for tomorrow, but currently there is a strong wind warning for Queensland southern coastal waters that may effect racing.

Results:

Pos	Sail #	Crew	Subg.	Boat	R1	Tot
1	AUS1273	Michael Coxon, Will McCarthy & Steve Jarvin		North Sydney	1	1
2	AUS915	Peter McNeill, Paul Turner & Greg Torpy		Tom Pepper XVII	2	2
3	AUS1287	John Savage, Peter Gillon & Andrew Plympton	Masters	Cobra IV	3	3
4	AUS1275	Rob Antill, Jason Antill & Joel Antill	Masters	Trekker	4	4
5	AUS1084	Richard Coxon, David Ritchard & Tim Watkin	Masters	The Bottle	5	5
6	AUS874	Jason Muir, Lucas Prescott & Steve Lambourne		Racer XY	6	6
7	AUS1289	Andrew Hunn, Stephen McCallum & David Connor		Zulu	7	7
8	AUS1253	Mark Doyle, Peter Martyn-Jones & Travis Tubman		Miramar	8	8
9	AUS1143	Chris Pratt, Grant Evans & Nick Paterson		Squid	9	9
10	AUS1219	David Turton, Andrew Turton & Daryl Spicer		AUS1219	10	10
11	AUS509	Cameron Miles, Chris Links & David Sampson		Pacesetter	11	11
12	AUS865	Bruce McBriar, Tony Bond & Jeff Casley	Masters	Fast Forward	12	12
13	AUS1254	Julian Plante, Nick Garland, Geoffrey Bonouvrie & Matthew Day		Odyssey	13	13
14	AUS1117	Glenn Collings, Steve Young & Jake Gunther		Satu	14	14
15	GBR1175	Ted Fort, Iain Morrison & Brian Watson	Seniors	Susie	15	15
16	AUS832	Damien King, Simon Cunnington, Andy Butler & James Ware		Barry White	16	16
17	AUS1121	Ian Johnson, Gary Smith & Tim Ede		Bananas In Pyjamas	17	17
18	NZL814	Lindsay Kennedy, Trevor Swinburne & Grahame Catley	Masters	Upfront	18	18
19	AUS945	Michael Manford, Richard Rowell & Dean McAullay		The Croc	19	19
20	AUS1277	Mark Bulka, Glen Ashby & Stewart Nichols		Balanced A-Tac	20	20
21	AUS869	John Warlow, Richard Byerly & Tom Jordan		Blinky 3 Eyed Fish	21	21
22	AUS1129	Shane Devssen, Murray Larkin & Aaron Heritage		Pleasure & Pain	22	22
23	USA1060	Dennis Conner, Peter Burton & Dirk Kneulman	Seniors	Menace	23	23
24	AUS1131	David Clark, Josh Whittaker & Andrew Smith		Little G	24	24
25	AUS867	David Rose, Scott Cavanaugh & Stu Casey		The War of the Roses	25	25
26	AUS1274	Rod Jones, James Walker & Patrick Meehan		Ethel	26	26
27	AUS1144	David Bull, Scott Miller & Andrew Wilkund	Masters	Bullet	27	27
28	AUS923	Mark Bradford, Mike O'Brien & Gary Adshead		Racer X	28	28
29	AUS1213	Lucas Down, Shane Gaddes, Adam Roberts-Thomson & Sean O'Rourke		Whooshka	29	29
30	USA1212	Jonathon Nye, Jan Muysken & David Baker		Carina	30	30
31	AUS864	Vaughan Prentice, Chris Anderson, Ashley Deeks & Darren Hutchinson		Little Bit Funky	31	31
32	AUS1270	Simon Estella, Bucky Smith & Mal White		La Vie Dansante	32	32
33	AUS1134	Robert Weir, Peter Bigelow & Steve Tracey		ARGHA Noah	33	33
34	AUS1102	Steve O'Rourke, John Minter & Bruce Swane		Panther	34	34
35	AUS751	Steve Gunther, John Collingwood & Russell Hutton		Legless	35	35
36	NZL1240	John D. St. Clair Brown, Dennis Kendall & David Barnes	Masters	Waiwera Infinity	36	36
37	AUS1244	John Bertrand, Richie Allanson & Mark Richards	Masters	Two Saints &a Magpie	37	37
38	AUS1030	Noel Drennan, Bill Browne & Ernie Lawrence		A Cat and Two Saints	38	38
39	AUS1088	Rob Brown, Bruce Wookey & Garry Gudmunson		SteamPacket V	39	39
40	AUS963	Rick Maxwell, Simon Shaw & Bradley Moore		The Rat	40	40
41	NZL1184	Cameron Appleton, Paul Gudmunson & Peter Merrington		Embers	41	41
42	AUS1136	David Royle, Peter Royle & Jon Ward		Bohica!	42	42
43	AUS850	Andrew Drummond, Rebecca Alston, Ian Drummond & Arron Drummond		Run Like You Stole S	43	43
44	AUS1257	David Lawrance, Barry Hawkes & Jake Newman	Masters	Temptress	44	44
45	AUS940	Phil Dash, Ed McCarthy & Chris Allen	Masters	Just a Dash	45	45
46	AUS1255	Wayne Mercer, Andrew Steenhuis & Andrew Freese		Next Frontier	46	46
47	HKG1269	Mark Thornburrow, Tim Parsons & Alex Webster		HK1269	47	47
48	AUS1160	Rob Bird, Graeme Johnson & Nic Gray	Masters	Moody Blues	48	48
49	AUS1237	Grant Wharington, Graeme Taylor & Ian Johnson		Satu ll	49	49
50	AUS1186	Peter Gardner, Steve Barlow & Grant McKellar	Masters	Humpback	50	50
51	AUS1025	Greg Mellody, Peter Rattray & Glenn Norton		Walk on Water	51	51
52	AUS943	Burke Melia, Mitchell Garbler & Scott Backhouse		No Mercy	52	52
53	AUS868	Bruce Hollis, Steve Backhouse & Ben Noble		Yandoo XX	53	53
54	NZL892	Grant Turnbull, Keith Hogan & Andrew Willis		The Old Hag	54	54
55	AUS720	Mark Sanders, Noel Paterson & Reg Farrell		Phantom	55	55
56	GBR1110	Michael Till, Howard Sellars & Angus Luffman	Seniors	Licorice Allsorts 3	56	56
57	AUS813	Ian Crisp, Dick Stephens & Steffan Lunding	Masters	That’s Life	57	57
58	AUS951	Mark Soulsby, Michael Fisher & David Lane		Fish Factory	58	58
59	AUS852	Trevor Martin, Craig Saint & Robert Stevenson		Three Ring Circus	59	59
60	AUS766	Brad Sheridan, Roy Morrish & Paul Spencer		AUS766	60	60
61	AUS410	David Nichols, Robert Griffits & Paul Summerbelle		New Wave	61	61
62	IAUS1142	Gary Smith, Mark Lovelady & Mike Hughes		Tuskany	62	62
63	AUS885	Ray Stone, Glenn Stone & Andrew Thyrd	Seniors	Razors Edge	63	63
64	AUS893	Michael Bellingham, Anthony Owen & Jamie Hastie		Queen Annes Revenge	64	64
65	NZL809	Brian Jones, Rob Bassett & Alan Gwyer		Irish Crystal	65	65
66	NZL961	Neil Forrester, Graeme Lucas & Roger Crabtree	Masters	Va Da Dio	66	66
67	AUS936	John Dunn, Steve Trevillion & Peter Alexander	Seniors	Bald Eagle	67	67
68	NZL1083	Rob Croft, Tom Warren & Gary Smith		Waiwera One	68	68
69	AUS1026	Barry Fairley, Bill Fairley & Wayne Dixon		Jack's Hut	69	69
70	BER1249	Tim Patton, David Jones & William Thompson	Masters	Thrash	70	70
71	AUS1082	Andrew Colliver, Ken Douglas & Blair Coventry		Enigma	71	71
72	AUS921	Bill Butler, Darren Spence & Brett Duncan	Masters	Fury	72	72
73	AUS1150	Bill Steele, Rob Rooke & Roland Lennox-King	Seniors	Dragon Lady	73	73
74	USA1234	Kers Clausen, Kjeld Hestehave & Eric Arens	Masters	One for the Money	74	74
75	AUS1022	Doug Kerr, David Healey & John Spencer	Masters	Screaming Plum	75	75
76	ITA836	Marco Cimarosti, Maurielo Mantico & Federico Parrinello	Masters	Hobe El Bahar	76	76
77	AUS1272	Sir James Hardy, Bryan Northcote & Antony Shrimpson	Seniors	Foolhardy	77	77
78	AUS916	David Roberts, Stuart McKay & Brett Shoebridge	Masters	Mood Indigo	78	78
79	NZL729	Paul Verry, A Emirali, Tim Henderson & Ben Irving		No Boundaries	79	79
80	AUS1291	Donald Wilson, Bradley English & Michael Downman		The Don	80	80
81	NZL1127	Gavin Gerrard, Ross Bannon & Nik Burfoot	Seniors	Golli Gosh	81	81
82	AUS767	Jon Harris, Peter Cush & Donald Chapple		Gybe Talking	82	82
83	AUS738	Stephen Ingate, Roger Down & Anja Thomsen		One Crowded Hour	83	83
84	NZL779	Peter Delaney, Teresa Zandvliet & Bruce Mathers		Waiwera NaturallyHot	84	84
85	NZ746	Ian Smith, Nigel Brown & Derek Brown	Masters	Top 40	86\DNS	86

Sponsors of the Etchells World Championships 2004
ACEAustralian Currency Exchange,MTIAB,Maroochy Shire Council, Queensland Events, Ken Down Architects,Ronstan, North Sails, Mooloolaba Yacht Club & Marinaco, Yamaha Motor Australia Pty Ltd, Zodiac Group Australia, Mainstay Marine, Kevlacat, Dolphin Marine, Peter Campbell & Associates, Advance Sports Sunshine Coast, Peninsular Beachfront Resort, Newport Holiday Apartments, Sun-air bus service, Pacesetter Etchells Pty Ltd, House of Maroochydore, Landmark Resort, The Jetty Specialists, Kelly Green and Co, The Weekender, Win TV, Mix FM, Mooloolaba Yacht Brokers, Telstra Country Wide, Cooroy Mountain Spring Water, www.questphoto.com,Thrifty Car Rentals, Wedderburn Scales, UKSA, Neumanns, Tasqua Cellars, Southcorp and Sunsport Marine, Century Batteries, Advanced Technology Training, ANZDL, P&O Nedlloyd (Shipping),Kawana IT, Harken, Quickshade, Smith Sails, Westcoast Sports.