The Gold Coast Catamaran Club’s annual Bad News Regatta was once again an outstanding success, thanks to the incredible volunteers who make this iconic event possible each year. Sarah, Liza, Worsty, Tom, Dave and the rest of the GCCC crew did a fantastic job both on and off the water, delivering another memorable long weekend of Hobie racing at Currumbin Alley.
With two days of racing around the cans, followed by the traditional marathon race on Monday, competitors were treated to a little bit of everything that the Gold Coast had to offer.
Three races were completed on Saturday in a light to mid-range, south-westerly breeze. Although the sea state remained relatively flat, the breeze was incredibly shifty throughout the afternoon before gradually strengthening later in the day, keeping crews guessing from start to finish.
Peter & Sophie Bates got their campaign off to the perfect start, recording two race wins and a fifth to finish the day at the top of the leaderboard. Close behind were the New South Welshmen, Mick & Bonnie Butler, whose scorecard of 2, 6, 1 kept them well and truly in contention heading into Sunday.
Gav & Bec, sailing together again for the first time in quite a while, also enjoyed an excellent day with a third and second in the opening two races. Lachy & Sharon found their groove later in the afternoon, finishing with a third and second in the final two heats.
Unfortunately, not everyone’s regatta got underway as planned. Travelling all the way from Western Australia, Cam & Suz suffered a broken bridle on their way to the start line, ending their first day before it had barely begun.
Once ashore, however, spirits remained high. The fleet gathered at the local RSL Club for a fantastic evening celebrating a number of the “old boys'” 60th birthdays, most notably Mick Butler, who had the entire Butler clan gathered on the Gold Coast to celebrate the milestone.
Sunday produced even more challenging conditions. The morning began with more breeze and a noticeably bigger sea state before both the wind and swell eased away during the afternoon, creating another tactical day on the water.
Peter & Sophie Bates and Mick & Bonnie Butler once again featured prominently at the front of the fleet, but there were plenty of changes throughout the remainder of the leaderboard.
Shane & Tom Peterson enjoyed arguably the strongest day of anyone, posting scores of 2, 2, 7 and 3 to climb into third overall.
Phil & James claimed victory in the second-last race of the regatta, while Cam & Suz made an impressive comeback after Saturday’s disappointment, winning the opening two races of the day before adding a fourth and a second to finish eighth overall.
Gav & Bec sailed consistently throughout the weekend to finish fifth overall, while Phil & James secured fourth.
The battle for the overall regatta honours couldn’t have been any closer.
After seven races, Mick & Bonnie and Peter & Sophie finished with identical scorecards—27 points overall and 18 points nett. With everything coming down to the final race of the series, Mick & Bonnie’s victory in the last heat proved decisive, earning them the regatta win on countback ahead of Pete & Soph.
The Hobie 14 fleet also completed seven races across the weekend, with seven boats taking to the water in another closely contested championship.
Rod Waterhouse sailed a remarkably consistent series, finishing on just 10 points after claiming three race wins to comfortably secure overall honours.
Bloody Leon finished second on 14 points, ahead of Victorian Geoff Rowdon in third on 20 points.
Behind the podium, the competition remained incredibly close, with Andrew Boyd, Michael Taylor and Bridget Bolewski all battling throughout the series for the minor placings.
A special mention must go to Michael Taylor, who capped off the weekend by winning the final race of the series on Sunday afternoon—his first race victory since claiming the last heat at last year’s Bad News Regatta.
Coolangatta Marathon
Monday morning brought one final challenge with the traditional long-distance marathon race.
A fresh south-easterly had swung the swell around to the east, producing a far choppier sea state than the previous two days. Combined with the light to mid-range breeze, it made for a long, physically demanding race where strategy became just as important as boat speed.
The winning move was to head well offshore in search of the stronger pressure.
Some crews committed to the strategy.
Others… did not.
Most notably, local favourite Bloody Leon hugged the shoreline, only to watch the offshore boats sail away from him by a country mile.
Cam & Suz, Rod Warty, Boydy and Rowdy all committed to the offshore option, picking up the south-easterly earlier than the rest of the fleet before charging back into Coolangatta at full speed to finish the regatta in style.
A huge thank you once again to everyone at the Gold Coast Catamaran Club for putting together another fantastic edition of the Bad News Regatta. From the race management team and volunteers to the canteen and support crews, the event continues to be one of the highlights of the Australian Hobie calendar.
There really is nothing quite like sailing at Currumbin Alley. The combination of ocean swell, shifting breezes and spectacular scenery creates a unique challenge that keeps sailors coming back year after year.
