Hillarys Yacht Club will hold its first Easter Regatta this month.
Camera IconHillarys Yacht Club will hold its first Easter Regatta this month. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Hillarys Yacht Club preparing for inaugural Sail Easter coaching regatta

Staff WriterJoondalup Times

ORGANISERS are preparing for Hillarys Yacht Club’s inaugural Sail Easter coaching regatta, which the Optimist Association has recognised as a ranking regatta.

The club wants to make the event a permanent fixture on WA’s dinghy sailing calendar with the ultimate goal of it becoming one of the state’s major sailing regattas.

Club Commodore Neil Harrison said the goal for the inaugural regatta from March 30 to April 1 was to attract more than 75 dinghy sailors from Perth and the regions.

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Discussions are under way with former Olympic and national dinghy class champions and Mr Harrison said many Optimist, Laser and Tasar skippers had already signed up.

“Our regatta website and Facebook pages have received hundreds of hits from local sailors,” he said.

“Although many skippers leave registrations to the last minute we are very pleased with the response so far.

“The generous early bird entry fee discounts for single and double handed boats had something to do with that and we expect the pace to increase now that the event has achieved ranking regatta status.

“MonkeyFist has come on board as the regatta’s inaugural lead sponsor and will be providing trophies and shirts – the company will also have a pop-up shop at the club over the three-day event.

“Hog’s Breath Cafe (is) providing discount vouchers for every entrant.”

Mr Harrison said discussions were well advanced with class coaches and the club expected to make announcements in the coming weeks.

The regatta is also open to 420s Lasers, Pacers, Hobies and Nacras, which may race on both the north and south sides of Hillarys Marina.

Mr Harrison said the waters adjacent to marina provide for both novice and experienced dinghy sailors, while the venue which included Sorrento Quay shopping and restaurant hub was family friendly.

Visit www.hillarysyachtclub.com.au for more information.

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