Vanessa Dudley Vanessa Joe Dudley Berkeley (AUS)

© Thom Touw

Vanessa Dudley, second time overall winner of the Radial Grand Masters, talks about why she still loves at the age of 57. Interview by Heather Jones

What boat did you first sail? Worlds in Mexico, which meant there was A Manly Junior, which is a snub-nosed a good training squad on weekends, and I timber dinghy designed locally and sailed also liked to get out on my own after work by two kids with a main, jib and spinnaker. to practice boat handling drills. The timing of these worlds in April/May was just © Vanessa Dudley What other boats have you sailed? about perfect for us, because the sailing Almost everything! All sort of dinghies, conditions were still good and we could Vanessa Dudley (AUS) including Moths, which back then were build on the end of our summer racing non-foiling plywood , and 18-Foot season. My club mate Jeff Loosemore is skiffs which were very fast, very thrilling a very dedicated Laser sailor and he was and very scary. I know a lot of dinghy very generous to me with his time as a sailors find keelboat sailing quite boring, training partner. We ended up racing each but I love being able to do both. I’ve done other for the grand masters title in Mexico. a lot of offshore racing in boats from 9-30m (30-100ft), including the Sydney to Tell us about the Masters in Mexico? Hobart yacht race, which is every sailing The conditions in Mexico really suited me, kid’s daydream when you grow up in because I seemed to be very fast upwind Sydney watching the fleets depart every upwind when I could just stretch out to Boxing Day. full hiking, and most of the races were © Vanessa Dudley in that wind range. The waves were fun Why have you chosen to sail a Laser? downwind too, although I got a yellow flag I love the great one-design racing, for body pumping on the reach in the first Dudley sailing at relatively low costs and minimal boat race and really had to curb my enthusiasm her club in Sydney maintenance requirements, great for the rest of the regatta. friendships with fellow club and class It was very exciting to win in Mexico members and the ability to get out on the because there was a big fleet and it was water without having to rely on anyone close right up to the final race. Winning else. Also the physical demands of Laser the Grand Masters in Oman in 2013 was sailing give me a reason to get up off the really thrilling - we had a fairly small fleet couch and out for a walk or to the gym. there so to be able to win again in a much Favourite sailing venue and why? bigger fleet made me feel really great. Sydney Harbour, especially the open What other World Championships have Sound area between North, South and you attended? Middle Heads. I’m a member of Middle Mexico was my seventh Laser Masters Harbour Amateur Sailing Club, which is a Worlds. My first was in Terrigal, Australia small shed full of Lasers. We take turns in 2008. When I was much younger I © Vanessa Dudley to run the racing and share a great club also raced Lasers in the Women’s World Sailing an spirit. It’s also a fantastic place to train for Championships, back in the days when regattas because you can choose whether everyone sailed standard rig. to practise in the flat water of Middle I’ve competed in 20 Sydney to Hobart Harbour or the rough water and swells out yacht races, perhaps I can stop now! in the Sound. How long will you continue to sail? How many hours do you typically sail? We’re so lucky that sailing is a pastime we I work full time so my sailing is for fun on can enjoy at any age. I’m full of admiration Saturdays and Sundays. When there’s for the Legends sailors at the Laser a regatta coming up I’ll try to get out a Masters Worlds, and hope I’ll be able to couple of afternoons after work as well join them one day. INTERVIEW WITH TOM BURTON during the month before the event. GOLD MEDALLIST RIO 2016 Why do you think there aren’t more © JLDigitalMedia How often do you compete at regattas? women competing at the Masters? As often as possible. We have a very This is baffling to me. Family commitments 2016 Masters active and well-managed NSW & ACT must have something to do with it, and a District Laser association which runs three lot of women are not quite big enough to World Championship, Mexico or four good regattas each year. Every compete equally in all conditions. second year we have an Australian Laser Hopefully things will change in the future Masters regatta. And its always great to when all the current era of great young Most influential person in your life? have a world title to work towards. women Radial sailors reach Masters age. My parents Ailsa and Bill were never How did you prepare for the Masters? The 4.7 rig might also widen the options sailors themselves, but they did We had a big contingent of MHASC for women, although so far this hasn’t everything possible to support me and my members at the Laser Radial Masters gained any traction at the Masters Worlds. brothers and help us follow our interests. www.laserinternational.org