| Australia. Hahn Premium Race Week: Women do the sailing men moor the boat |
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; "The crew of The Wizard: © Terri Dodds")
| Thursday, 24 August 2006 | |
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Lisa Ratcliff: In the sport of sailing generally men outnumber women. But on two yachts competing at this year’s Hahn Premium Hamilton Island Race Week, the women have banded together and banned the blokes. Gail Branhoff from the Mornington Yacht Club in Victoria decided she had listened long enough to the men boasting about what a great time they’d had at Race Week at Hamilton Island, Australia’s largest yachting regatta. She dreamt of putting a crew together and entering a boat and this year she and skipper Di Kemp have chartered the Sunsail Jeaneau 32 Way to Go. Half the crew are grandmothers yet they are not here to relax, they’ve rolled up their sleeves, ditched their husbands and hit the water. “It’s another one I can cross off the list,” said Branhoff. “We are having a ball!” They’ve received plenty of encouragement, standing ovations and even kisses from fellow competitors, not the norm on the docks when a day’s racing has ended. And they are proud of their results so far, “we’ve learnt so much because there is no one else here to do it.” Julie and David Tait hail from Melbourne but keep their Radford 14 at Mackay Marina. Julie has entered The Wizard for the first time at Race Week sailing with an all women crew. David is allowed on board but he is not allowed to play any part once the starter’s gun has fired. “David comes with us to help us tie up at the marina at the end of the day, he’s not allowed to do anything else,” laughs Julie. From a platform in the stern of the boat, where he can be found from time to time, David has to keep his comments to himself, which can be hard for him admits Julie. “There are different dynamics sailing with only women…..a different energy,” says Julie who also has daughter Vanessa, 27, on board. “There are no egos to trip over and no yelling,” she adds. Built for the 2003 Melbourne Osaka Race, David will contest this event again next year in the double handed division before he and Julie head to Alaska via the Aleutian Islands for an extended two year cruise. To help support their Hahn Premium Hamilton Island Race Week campaign, Julie and her crew sought support from Mackay businesses. Five signed up - Emeco International, Ivery Mining, Peter Hansen Real Estate, The Deck and Boutique Marine - and as part of the agreement supplied crew shirts, five different coloured shirts for every crew member, one for each day of racing. So what happens on the final day of racing this Saturday, day six of this regatta? The bright pink shirts, the team’s favourite, they wore on day one will be worn again this Saturday to signal the end of Hahn Premium Hamilton Island Race Week for the crew of The Wizard. www.hiyc.org.au |
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 24 August 2006 ) |
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