56th Shark World Championship at Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club
by Rod Gardner 29 Aug 2023 21:48 BST
56th Shark World Championship at Niagara-on-the-Lake © Jim Schacht
The 56th Shark World Championship came to a close on Friday, August 25th with 48 crews and ten races over six days with Niagara Sailors taking the top honours and also winning the Bill Metzger Trophy.
Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club Shark, Amicus, won the long-distance race and the Bill Metzger Trophy for top hours in the practice race, the long-distance race and the last race. (Crew were Mark Schantz, Dave Schantz and Ken Greer.)
The George Hinterhoeller Award was presented to Jinne Gordon of NOLSC for her commitment to promoting women's sailing and her dedication to the Shark Class.
Thank you to all participants and volunteers for being part of such a memorable event.
Event website: sharkworlds2023.com
Photos: www.flickr.com/photos/64797692@N02/sets/72177720310539770
Results:
1st Place - Crunch - Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club (Crew - Josh Wiwcharyk, Chris Clarke, and Alex Letchford)
2nd Place - Rampant - Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club (Crew - Levi Harper, Jacob Harper and Malcolm Harper)
3rd Place - Rocket Appliance - Royal Hamilton Yacht Club (Crew - Dave Castle, Dane Broe and Jessica Broe-Vayda)
There is another story bigger than the racing
Our team followed the Sailor for the Sea Clean Regatta protocols and achieved the Gold Standard. Only two bags of garbage were created over 7 days with 4 meals for 200 people and a full bar every evening. Everything was reusable, compostable, and recycled. As an example of the materials we selected, the cutlery was made from recycled coffee grounds and is fully compostable.
The Niagara Region provided their Water Wagon, refillable water bottles, and extra green bins for composting. All participants were advised in advance of our plan to be a Clean Regatta and made an effort to follow our procedures.
All participants and volunteers were given a 12 oz beverage cup for hot and cold drinks to use throughout the week. If they didn't bring their cup, they didn't get a drink! Simple rules for Sailors to follow!
This was extremely successful and evident in how easy our clean-up was each day and at the end of the regatta.
More information at these links: www.niagararegion.ca/living/water/water-wagon.aspx / www.sailorsforthesea.org/programs