Hansa state champs take to the lake

SAILORS from across Victoria hit the water on Lake Wendouree over the weekend for the 2019 Hansa Class Victorian Championships.

The event saw racing in four divisions of the all-ability Olympic and Para- Olympic class boats with several local competitors in on the action.

Because Hansa’s control with a joystick type device, where the craft goes in the direction you push towards, and not a traditional rudder, the boats are a good for beginners through to experienced sailors.

Commodore of the Ballaarat Yacht Club, Colin Littlejohn, said hosting the Hansa championships was linked with the club’s push to get more people into sailing.

“This a beautiful lake to sail on and we just want to promote the facilities and Ballarat,” he said.

“The beauty of sailing is it’s access for everybody, we’ve got people that sail regularly from five years old to 90 years old.

“We’re also very conscious of training all our people. It’s about having people that are fully qualified and fully trained. We built a new jetty and made sure it has wheelchair access and there’s about eight cranes that we can lift people in and out of boats.

“You can turn up here and sail, we’ll put you in a boat, we’ll supply you with life-jackets, the whole lot. You don’t need anything.”

To find out more about Ballaarat Yacht Club’s sailing opportunities including Tackers for kids and the all access Sail Ability program, visit ballaratyachtclub.com.au.

2019 Hansa Class Victorian Championships results

Division 1 – Hansa 2.3 Single Person – Open & Servo Assist – 1st – Ben Lodge, 2nd – Cooper Brown, 3rd – Sarah Porter.

Division 2 – Hansa 303 Single Person – 1st – Stephen Griffiths, 2nd – Bruce James, 3rd – Charlie Weatherly.

Division 3 – Hansa 303 Two Person – 1st – Christine Elliott, 2nd – Sarah Millsom, 3rd – Carl Russell.

Division 4 – Liberty – Open & Servo Assist – 1st – Russell Denholm, 2nd – Russell Philips, 3rd – Robbie Eadie.