NZ Opti Team

On Tuesday the five person team consisting of:

Logan Dunning Beck – Wakatere

Sam Mackay – Napier

Andrew Mackenzie – Kohimarama

Naomi Mannering – Napier

Erica Dawson – Murrays Bay

Plus coach Andrew Wills and assorted parents fly to Turkey to compete in the Worlds.



These five were the top five at the New Zealand Nationals in Lyttleton earlier this year. They have some big sailing boots to try and fill after NZ’s success last year: Chris Steele won the event and Alexandra Maloney won the girls event (and third in the open). Both of these sailors have moved onward and upward.



In Turkey the fleet will be approaching 300 boats (5 per competing nation). They are divided into five fleets and each fleet races the other three times. A winner is decided on points, no “medal race” gold or silver fleets. In the middle of the series is a day of team racing.



These five young sailors have put in a huge effort and coach Andrew Wills (himself just back from sailing the Etchells Worlds) says they are as well prepared as possible within the constraints of money and NZ’s isolation. And they are dedicated. They were out on the water Saturday, the day the Simrad was postponed because it wouldn’t have been safe. I asked them if it was too windy. Reply: “No, but it was cold, especially when the ice built up in the bottom of the boat during the hailstorm”.



A round of applause should also go to the parents of these sailors who make a huge commitment in time money and effort. One father told me that all his 4 week annual leave for the last three years has been taken up as a racer chaser getting the kids to important regattas.

The Opti Association in NZ has a very efficient fund raising programme ( that also relies on volunteer effort from the parents)that allows them to subsidize up to twenty sailors per year to compete internationally.



In fact the boat (in this humble writer’s humble opinion) is an overpriced nail box, but it can offer international competition which P Class and Starling can’t. The fleets continue to grow around the country (two of this year’s team are from Napier).

These kids (and their families) are dedicated and deserve our support.

Time permitting Crew.org.nz has been promised daily reports after the racing. Stay Tuned.