SB3 Oceanburo leading the standings - Queensland Championships

2:43 AM Wed 4 Nov 2009 GMT

'Kai Timm is in there somewhere - SB3 World Championship Portugal' Richard Langdon /Ocean Images &copy

SB3 Dart class Oceanburo leading the standings - Queensland Championship

Team Noosa sailing Coach Kai Timm has continued to show his experience and tactical strategy in the technically demanding discipline of one design sports boat racing in the clone SB3 Dart class. Timm, a principal member of the Mooloolaba based Oceanburo racing team, has combined with Chris Annear (Noosa) and Gregor Macallansmith (Mooloolaba) to lead the 2009 Queensland championship series.

The experienced crew have shown the value of representing Australia at the recent World SB3 championship in Portugal to produce the required all angle boat speed that was necessary to stall the challenges from the Phil Gray skippered Dulon and David Biggar helming A6.

All three crews were relatively evenly matched with Oceanburo stealing an important advantage when they found a minor edge in boat speed to finish the first round of the Queensland Championship with 16 points while Dulon (18pts) and A6 (20pts) remain poised to stage a boat on boat match race in the final during the Yachting Queensland International Sail Brisbane regatta on Moreton Bay later this month.
Skipper Timm and the Oceanburo crew further confirmed their class when they power sailed to win the Mooloolaba fleet racing series off Point Cartwright last weekend.

They won seven of the eight short course races while Lauren Calder steered Audi Sunshine Coast into second ahead of Troy Forrest in Black Rat.

Skipper Kai Timm has a very reliable source of tactical knowledge which was evident on the course when Chris Annear already established as a very talented one design racing helmsman in the Blazer 23 class supported Timm's selection of tactics.

Annear has steered Feral to several 'Go to Blazers' match racing championships and this experience along with the crew skills of Grigor Macallansmith provided Oceanburo with the title winning advantage.
'Kai has developed a good feel which has resulted from time on the water with training and racing'. Chris Annear said.

This confidence will again to put to the test when the sails are tensioned for the points during the Sail Brisbane regatta where the former Australian 505 champion Phil Gray and his Dulon crew are expected to dedicate their tactical attention onto the Oceanburo crew.

Both crews have the individual experience to become involved in a one-design racing dogfight where the Dulon crew hope to find a weakness.

But the Oceanburo crew still remain as the favourites to win the State title before heading to compete in the Audi Geelong Race Week as their final evaluation trial for the Audi Australian championship at Port Stephens in April 2010.

However while the Oceanburo combination remain confident with their boat speed skipper Kai Timm has increased their training schedule which indicates his personal respect for his rivals as they lead into the major championship series where the results will have a strong bearing on which crew wins the right to hold the top Australian team spot at the 2010 World championship.

by Ian Grant