Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race 2024

News
2023
Hello beautiful, Ciao Bella enters the fray for Noakes Sydney Gold Coast

Hello beautiful, Ciao Bella enters the fray for Noakes Sydney Gold Coast

NEWS
25 Jul, 2023 09:46:00 AM

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Hello beautiful, Ciao Bella enters the fray for Noakes Sydney Gold Coast

As the Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht race approaches, we caught up with Ciao Bella's owner to hear about her convivial campaign. Karl Onslow took a quick break from preparing his boat, to discuss getting the mix right, between competing and having fun.

“Ciao Bella has found a beautiful balance between racing and cruising,” he says. “Being able to enjoy the Hanse 505 with family and friends, is such special combination. Seeing how well and how fast, she can race, is just the ultimate satisfaction for any yacht owner.” Competing in last year’s Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race was a great crew experience, despite deciding to withdraw early, says Karl. “Last year’s race tested our skill set, team spirit and boat setup,” says Karl.

“The weather made for a tough first few days. With slow, to no wind, at the start, followed by rough conditions, that then glassed out inshore. We decided to retire from the race early, and motor sail to Southport due to personal time constraints,” Karl says.

But he describes how the crew’s consternation quickly transformed to jubilance, with some social recalibration. “Frustration quickly subsided, and the team spirit lifted, when I produced a couple of cases of beer and rum. Needless to say, great team bonding continued into the wee hours at Southport Yacht Club,” Onslow says.

With last year’s Noakes firmly behind them, they’re looking ahead to the good old-fashioned challenge of an ocean race.

“With every training and every race, we have done in the past few years, we gain learnings of what to adjust, add or modify to make Ciao Bella more competitive in our division. “We've been very happy with Ciao’s performance, with some great results, which have included winning the Gascoigne Cup, the Port Hacking Race and last year’s Women’s Series. We’ve also had individual wins in Monday twilights and in the LGT Crestone Winter Series races,” says Karl.

Indeed, the social side of sailing, and the family spirit is alive and well on Ciao Bella. “Everybody who sails with us is a friend, or a friend of a friend. It's about the dynamic of care for each other on the boat -that’s what really creates an amazing time and experience."

The exhilaration of sailing Karl describes has even proved a magic elixir for creating lasting bonds formed between core members.

“My now wife, Michelle Segaert and I, met on B Arm at the CYCA, racing on different yachts and we later married at the Club.

This ‘living’ history if you will, doesn’t even stop at life-altering romance! Ciao Bella’s connection to the Club dates back generations.

“Including our children, our family history, makes us now 4th generation CYCA members. Starting with Sir William Pettingell (Mistress May), Rob and Sue Segaert, nee Pettingell (Sante) and as with Ciao, the generational tradition continues. Whether it's in the ritual of drinks on the boat after training, or racing that leads to social dinners with crew, family and friends,” Karl says.

When it comes to the next race, he says it's just a natural place to start their annual campaign.

“It feels like the proper start of our off-shore campaign. This is where we can put all the inshore races and training sessions into overnight practice. It is an amazing course. We will have to be prepared for all possible situations.

"We know it can throw some interesting cold-snap, curveball southerlies at us or stormy westerlies,” says Karl. And yet this crew is more than up for the task.

“We have an amazing crew of twelve, with some highly experienced sailors and having that experience onboard allows us to also bring less experienced crew along as well to give them the opportunity to learn, grow in off-shore racing.

“We have 12 onboard and I am very much looking forward to this being their first journey north in the Noakes Sydney Gold Coast race for some, as this is preparation for this year’s Rolex Sydney Hobart!”