Former yachties loving new challenge

Don’t dare suggest members of the Nelson Radio Sailing Club are toy racers.

Competition is full on in their one metre long, remote-controlled yachts at Best Island and sometimes there are as many collisions as you might see at the nearby Nelson Speedway track.

The club leased an old quarry from the Nelson Regional Sewerage Business Unit five years ago, and transformed it in to a racing pond complete with its own infrastructure.

Now the site is recognised as a national venue, club commodore John Levy reckons it is time they boosted the current membership which stands at 49.

“We are holding an open day this Sunday. People can come along and have look and trial the yachts. We are keen to train up novices to compete,” says John.

Most of the members are former sailors, designers or boat builders who like to keep their hand in. The difference is they are now lining the bank with transmitters which control the rudder and sails on their racing yachts. John has just returned from the IOM World Championships in Gladstone, North Queensland, which he likened to the America’s Cup in Barcelona which he also attended.

Leading New Zealand yacht designer Ian Vickers finished second in Australia where 22 of his yachts accounted for a third of the fleet.

“He was unlucky to lose by a single point,” declares John, who supported the six-strong team which included local club member Mike Cameron.

“The CV’s of some of those international sailors were phenomenally good. There were even some former Sydney to Hobart competitors. It was really tough racing,” declares the yacht broker, who has only been competing in IOM’s for the past two years.

Mike also enjoys the camaraderie. “It is bloody good fun and the difference between winning and losing is often just millimetres.”

Local competition is held on Sundays with the handicap races taking 10 to 15 minutes. After a couple of hours they usually adjourn to the adjacent Green Acres Golf Club. It is an affordable sport with a range of kitset boats, starting with the DF 65’s which can be delivered to your letterbox for $500. The IOM’s are top of the range with brand-new ones costing up to $6,000.

They are the “Formula Ones” of the fleet, starting at the back of the field and trying to pass as many of the other boats as possible.

“We normally have 15 to 20 to a race, so it is very competitive,” says John, who started out in P-class dinghies and keelers.

Age is no barrier with Bob Spearman still competing at 94. He confirms his love of yachting dates back to his youth in Petone in 1940.

As well as wanting to encourage youth, the club would like to see more female members like Gabriella Petrie, who acts as a race officer.

In keeping with the Nelson Radio Sailing Club’s upward trajectory, it will be all hands on deck for the Top of the South regional IOM regatta on 7-8 December at Best Island.