The weekend of December 1-2 saw the running of the Colac Annual Regatta at St Leonards YC on Port Phillip Bay. The change of venue was necessary due to the low water level at Lake Colac, however with the wet weather the Victorians have been experiencing over the past 6 weeks I wouldn't have been surprised if flooding had forced the change of venue. The weekend was no exception - Saturday was windy and partly cloudy, Sunday was wet and wild.

The Moth turnout was exceptional for Victoria, with 8 Moths present. Unfortunately only 4 of them (Oliver, myself, Rohan and Greg Wise) made it onto the race course, with only Greg finishing all of the races. Special mention should be given to Greg who made the trip all the way from Adelaide for this event and slept in his car.

As usual the Moths generated plenty of interest particularly with the high winds and relatively flat water. The easy launching and protected inshore areas were a blessing for the newer guys such as Simon, Alexander and Andrew who handled the conditions well considering their relative lack of experience.

Invitation Race (Sat AM):
A windy affair. Mic hit a sandbar on the way out and damaged his rudder outrigger, Rohan bent his rudder pin so it resembled a boomerang and had to be towed in upside down. Oliver and Greg had a good race with Oli crossing the line first.

Race 1 (Sat PM):
Another windy race with some big gusts up to 25 knots. The 4 starters got away well, until Oliver decided that his wing tramps worked better not attached to his hull (less windage??) and retired. Rohan's blistering upwind speed saw him overtake Greg on the first beat to round the top mark in front with Mic soldiering on in 3rd. Rohan held Greg for the remainder of the race as the wind increased to win comfortably by about 3 minutes. Mic retired after 2 laps due to fatigue and concerns about Oli being lonely on the beach. The other guys wisely decided it was safer to spectate from the safety and warmth of the club.

Race 2 (Sun AM):
A horrible Melbourne day with persistent rain and a 2 knot wind that swung backwards and forwards between the North and South East. Rohan and Mic, a few A Class cats and a few Sharpies ventured out in the hope of finding some wind on the race course. The Sharpie boys were amazed as we glided past them on the way out in seemingly zero wind while they sat there in the rain with limp sails. Eventually the race was abandoned and all returned to shore.

Race 3 (Sun PM):
The wind finally picked up to around 8 knots after lunch however the rain kept coming. Race 3 finally got under way with only Rohan and Greg being mad enough to go out in the awful conditions. Just before the race started, the wind increased to about +20 knots with thunder and lightning. Rohan's supreme fitness and youth saw him win over Greg Wise by about a minute.

Overall results from the two races completed were:

1st - Rohan Veal
2nd - Greg Wise
3rd - Michael Boode & Oliver Laing (equal points)
5th - Andrew Parry
6th - Alexander Travis