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Cadillac skipper Dean Grice was awarded Handicap Honours and the Graham Noakes Cup at the annual Sandspit Yacht Club prizegiving held recently.
Grice picked up the honours are after winning the Burnsco Friday Twilight Series. He and his crew also clinched the Perna Cup during the Mahurangi Regatta weekend.
Integrite, skippered by Clark Maddren, secured the coveted Harveys Real Estate Trophy as the winner on handicap of the Summer Series, and Clark also took out the Kawau Cup with his Around Kawau race efforts.
Sailing convenor Glenys Milne said that with 28 to 30 races across the Summer, Winter and Twilight Series, plus interclub events and a fun day on the water with junior sailors, it had been an eventful and enjoyable season.
“Favourable weather, enthusiastic participation and generous sponsorship encouraged regular race turnouts of 10 to 14 boats, drawn from a loyal fleet of around 25,” Milne said. “While race officers and start boats are a bit thin-on-the-ground, their efforts are key to the running of the events and are deeply appreciated by all.”
However, bad weather forced the cancellation of both the interclub race for the Fred Lidgard Memorial Trophy and the single-handed race for the Benny Preston Trophy.
The prizegiving included a talk by Tim Meldrum, a Sandspit local turned Emirates Team New Zealand mechanical engineer. Meldrum offered an insider’s look at innovations like the now-famous Cyclors and the record-speed-breaking land yacht Horonuku, bringing the high-tech world of elite sailing to life.
Other prize winners were:
• Floyd, a Beale 33 sailed by Jeremy Noakes and Lynette Smith, won the 2024 Sandspit Kitchen & Bar Winter Series. Lynette also took home the Elizabeth Trophy for helming Floyd to victory in the Ladies Race.
• Sublime skipper Ben Howson won the Peter Broadhurst Memorial Trophy for most line honours in the Friday Twilight Series. Howson also claimed the Lees Trophy for the Long Distance Race and the Teal Trophy for the Double-Handed Series. Howson and Glenn Bartlett, on Push Play, split wins in the double-handed races.
• Skipper Peter Bourke was awarded the Blue Water Trophy for his solo circumnavigation of the North and South Islands. Bourke made the 4506km voyage on Diablo, completing the feat in 58 days.
The club thanked sponsors Sandspit Kitchen and Bar, Burnsco, Yanmar/Mahurangi Marine and Caniwi Rigging for their support.
The 2025 Sandspit Kitchen & Bar Winter Series returns on Sunday, May 18.
Info: www.sandspityachtclub.nz.
