Roo crew too good in SB20 regatta

MICHAEL Cooper, skipper of Export Roo, and his team of David Chapman and Sam Tiedemann sailed into the history books yesterday, winning their first Australian SB20 title on the River Derwent.

The regatta was sailed over three days from the Derwent Sailing Squadron in Hobart.

It was a classy performance from the talented crew which had a series score of 19 points from eight races, with two races sailed on the final day, and capped off a four-year preparation for the win.

“It was a tough regatta — I take my hat off to my crew, they did an amazing job and carried me along for the three days,” Cooper said.

Cooper also had high praise for his competition, noting the exceptional performance of Nick Rogers, Simon Burrows and Cole Dabner (Karabos) who finished in second place on 34 points, and Brett Cooper, Darren Jones and Nick Corkhill (Aeolus). Rogers also won the Masters division.

Cooper’s experience and consistency was a key on the water, especially during the final race of the day where the team managed to keep everything together during gusts of close to 35 knots which decimated the fleet.

It was a tough day for Brett Cooper (Aeolus), getting into trouble with the spinnaker at the top mark of the last race, which dragged under the boat until Darren “Twirler” Jones jumped into the water to cut it free, with the team finishing 14th in the last race of the regatta.

The women’s division of the championship was won by Felicity Allison, Bridget Hutton, Jill Abel and Mel Ford (Cook Your Own Dinner), which was an incredible result considering the crew retired from the last race with gear breakage.

The Youth Division was taken out by Will Sargent, Ben Reid, Ethan Galbraith and Issi DeClerk (Tas Racing Team) on 60 points, with Sargent helming an SB20 for the first time in the regatta.

The SB20 fleet in Hobart is one of the largest in one location in the world, and Cooper has his sights set on supporting the development of the class by encouraging young crews to sail them.