Experienced yachtsman Richard Hawkins is determined to add the national crown to his collection when the New Zealand Sunburst championships are held on Otago Harbour this weekend.
He won the South Island title on the same Portobello Bay course in November and will use that experience to nail the big one.
Hawkins is teamed with Port Chalmers club partner Korena Patterson on Moonbeam 11 for the event. The Port Chalmers club is headquarters.
Hawkins has a hefty build and can handle the rougher waters, but he is not so effective in calmer conditions.
The youngsters in the field are Macandrew Bay brothers Jack (25) and Ben (23) Hawker on Embers. They came close in Wellington in 2010.
The other two serious Otago competitors both have new fibreglass boats they bought from Christchurch. Their chances depend on how well they have mastered their new yachts.
Roy Roker and Jim Godfrey, from Macandrew Bay, can adapt well to any conditions and came close at the South Island championships on Tacary.
The old hands in the fleet racing are the two Peters - Nees and Wood - who have been sailing together for 21 years. Their new boat is called Alfresco. They won the New Zealand Masters Games gold medal in the yacht last year.
Thirty yachts have entered the three-day Sunburst regatta, which ends on Monday. The plan is to have eight races, with the worst race deleted from the scoring. Three races will be held on Saturday, four on Sunday and one on Monday.
Under Yachting New Zealand rules, five races are necessary to have a championship title recognised.
It is the third time this century the Sunburst championships have been held on the Otago Harbour. The Otago Yacht Club was the base in 2002 and Macandrew Bay in 2007.
Four Auckland yachts have been shipped to Dunedin in containers for the championships.
''They wouldn't go to this expense if they were not serious,'' Yachting New Zealand regional support representative Graeme Wall said.
The strongest challenge will come from the father-and-son combination of Dee and Robert Ankersmit on Shaker. Another top competitor will be Kevin Whitehead and Jane Hawkins on Cognos.
A strong group has come south from the Worser Bay Boating Club, of Wellington. The best prospect is John Kliffen and Milo Willcock on Plum Crazy.
Another experienced father-and-son combination, Maurice and Greg Scott, should not be underestimated.
Christchurch yachtsmen competing include Craig Tomlinson and James Palleson (Meindad) and Graeme Hore and Jane Stevens (Mick Beal).
A dark horse in the event could be West Coast husband-and-wife pair Rob and Anne Daniel on Kuta.
Racing will start at noon on Saturday and at 10am on Sunday and Monday.
