Voodoo (RAYC, Auckland), second to Slam Dunk in the E5.9 Nationals in March, turned the tables on day one of the 2010 Auckland Championship, the first event of the 2010 Appleton Estate Traveler Series.

Relishing the moderate and shifty conditions, Voodoo completed a strong day one with placings of 1,1,2,1,1 (6 points)to take a 5 point lead over Slam Dunk (Auckland) into the final day of racing on Sunday. Slam Dunk finished with 2,2,3,2,2 for 11 points.

The leading pair spent much of the day trading places with each other and with Brzo (Auckland) at the head of the fleet. Sailing with impressive upwind boatspeed, Brzo won race 3 and were close to the lead in most other races, finishing the day with 3,3,1,3,4.

Sub 60 (Auckland) got up to third in the final race of the day, and otherwise scored all fourths. The fleet is notable for two female skippers - Gillian Williams on Brzo and Miranda Powrie on Elliott Goblit.

The E5.9 and SR26 fleets are sharing the course area, with the regatta ably managed by BBYC. Three further races are scheduled for Sunday, with fresh winds forecast.

Wow. Paintjob/graphics on the Brzo. That boat has been around for a million years...brilliant.

Good report too Boatworks.

Good to see what are now old boats looking so good.

These photos are from the Nationals in March - we have a few more to put up at some stage.

Three more heats yesterday to wrap things up. The expected strong winds and rain didn't appear so the fleet enjoyed some very close racing in 10-15 knot SE. Voodoo went 1,2,1 to win and Slam Dunk finished 2,1,2.

Final Results:

Voodoo 1
Slam Dunk 2
Brzo 3
Sub 60 4
Elliott Goblit 5
Frivilous Fish 6
Rapido 7

Thanks to BBYC and also to the SR26 guys for a fun event.

Forgot to pick up the results from BBYC last night so will put up some more information when I have it.

From Elliott 5.9 Class Association

Voodoo (Simon Manning, Andy Robertson and Phil Quinn - RAYC) was the convincing winner of the 2010 Elliott 5.9 Auckland Champs. Winning 6 of the 8 races, Voodoo finished comfortably ahead of current national champions Slam Dunk (Cameron Horne, Brett Elliott and Miles Addy).

The regatta was well managed by BBYC and sailed in conjunction with the SR26 National Champs.

With a foreboding forecast on Sunday, the sailors were prepared for a windy and wet day of racing however this did not eventuate. Instead of rain, the two fleets enjoyed mild temperatures, a 10-15 knot breeze with flat water - and some very tight racing.

With a relatively comfortable lead going into the last three races, Voodoo made sure of the regatta with an all-the-way win in Race 6. Slam Dunk was second by a whisker over the fast finishing Sub 60 (Stu Clarke, Chris MacIndoe and Chris Funnell - Auckland).

In the next race, the first four boats had a close battle with Slam Dunk and Voodoo eventually crossing the finish line side by side - Slam Dunk taking it by a nose. Brzo (Gillian Williams, Andrew Cooke and Nathan Williams - Auckland) took third but again showed great speed all race.

With positions cemented prior to the final race, the fleet enjoyed another close tussle in beautiful sailing conditions. This time Voodoo broke clear and the other three leading boats fought each other around the course with Slam Dunk eventually taking her 6th second placing of the regatta.

Voodoo wins the Auckland champs for 2010, and takes a early lead in the 2010 Appleton Estate Traveler series. Brzo finished third behind Slam Dunk with Sub60 fourth. Elliott Goblit helmed by Miranda Powrie finished fifth.

The next event in the series will be hosted by Opua Cruising Club over the weekend of June 19-20. Later events are in Marsden Cove, Tauranga and Turangi.

Offering close racing and great social events built around the North Island regatta circuit, the Elliott 5.9 class is the perfect 3-person syndicate boat. The class is relatively low maintenance and is sailed by a crew of 3. No rail meat - everyone has a job!

Used boats range from $9,000 to $25,000. Fleets exist in Opua, Whangarei, Auckland, Tauranga and Plimmerton in the North Island, as well as Queenstown and Christchurch in the South Island.

For enquiries about the Elliott 5.9 class, please go to http://www.e59.org.nz and click on Contacts.