The ultra consistent William Cooper and Hugo Allison have taken out the 55th International Cadet Australian Championship in a commanding fashion, which was sailed at the Largs Bay Sailing Club this past week.
The level-headed pair had the series wrapped up with two races to spare, but continued to compete well finishing the regatta in storybook style as they won the last race.
The Sandy Bay duo will need to renovate their trophy cabinet as they cleaned up, winning numerous categories over the series.
Cooper thanked his grandfather “who has never missed a regatta” while the 11-year-old Allison became a two-time national champion.
The regatta had an array of conditions with the first day cold, wet and too windy and two days later it was hot, dry and no wind.
Race officer Daryl Emery pushed for fair sailing conditions and did well to hustle through three races on the final day in a shifty five-knot northerly.
The race winners on the final day included Charlie Goodfellow and Toby Legg in Heat 8 on board Meltemi — the recent world championship experience helped Goodfellow and Legg in the lighter conditions as the boat was quick through the water and tactically sound to pull through on the final work of the race.
Charlie and Toby were also the first pair to win dual heats for the series.
Heat 9 saw another different race winner as Victorian pair Matilda Davis and Will Shepard held off a fast finishing Jacob McConaghey and Sam Hooper to win.
The pair, sailing Whip It Real Good, were ecstatic as they crossed the line with loud cheers coming from spectator boats as Davis and Shepard closed in on contention for a World Championship berth.
Coming into the final race the only confirmed position was first overall, which left competitors with all to play for at the end of an already long regatta.
Cooper and Allison won the final race and left all the remaining spots up for grabs in what was a thrilling finish to an already exciting event.
Brothers in Arms skipper Dominic Randall said he hoped it would blow earlier in the week, but he and crew Elliot Hughes fought hard in the lighter winds to finish second and earn themselves the final spot in the Australian Team.
South Australian bolters Brooke Gaffney and Darcy Conry in Endless Summer turned it on in the second half of the regatta to finish sixth overall and be the first placed South Australian boat.
The SA team of James Wilson and Carter Baker in G Force were delighted with their first overall on Handicap, while New South Wales will look to continue building the growing fleet and turn it into even better results, with their top finish being Natasha Nisbet and Ryan Littlechild in Sequence, finishing 20th overall.
The first five boats were all from the Sandy Bay Sailing Club in Tasmania, showing a dominant effort that secured them the Tillett Team Trophy, which they have held since 2011.
The other states will look to ruin the trend in Metung next year as the next nationals head to the beautiful Gippsland Lakes region of country Victoria.
The Tasmanian team won the Tillett Team Trophy with all boats placing inside the top ten.
The International Cadet Class has been a real inspiration to sailing this week, in the way all competitors and parents have conducted themselves, in at times trying conditions.
The 82-boat fleet is just the start of things to come as the class is hoping to continue to grow and expand.
