Starling

The Starling was designed by Des Townson and is the next step up for skippers who have become too heavy or too old for P Class. P Class skippers usually find the step-up in speed quite exciting. Starling 1 was built by club life member David Peet who’s dad John commissioned Des to design a boat that would be a stepping stone from the P into the larger classes of the time. A number of years ago David rebuilt the boat to his very high standards. The boat is now on display at the Maritime museum in Auckland

The Starling is an attractive boat three metres long and is governed by a one-design rule, these rules cannot be altered unless approved by a majority of registered owners. Most boats are constructed of plywood whilst a competitive fibreglass version is also available. All sails are made by one manufacturer and are cut from the same pattern.

The Starling class has no age limit for the Nationals but the major trophies are for the 19 years of age and under. Most recently we have seen several Mums and Dads at our club join in the racing.  Current World B2 Blind Sailing champion in both fleet and match racing, Paulien Eijties has honed her helming skills in her Starling. Many newbies to this class find that they are being beaten by a blind sailor!

The National Championships this year will be in Parua Bay ,Whangarei.

Selection for the BOP under 19 Caltex Cup Match Racing rep will be decided from the trials in Tauranga during November.

Last season Thomas Saunders won the Caltex Match Racing Cup.