Another Preston adds his name to the State titles as Finn becomes third family winner

Geraldton Yacht Club has been a dominant player in the sailing scene for many years owing to its excellent conditions, with one family carving out a remarkable legacy at State titles. Finn Preston along with crewmate Charlie Fong was the winner of the 65th Pelican State Championships, coming out on top after four days of competition sealing the title in the final race to get his name on the shield for the first time. But Finn, 15, is not the first Preston to be on the shield, with his brother, Jack, going back-to-back in 2020-21 while his father, Bob Preston, won in 1984. “I raced in the last timber boat, which I still have, which Finn and I fully restored and still goes out racing,” Bob said. Growing up on a farm in Mingenew, Bob took up sailing following his brother after they moved to Geraldton. “Geraldton is such a solid training ground for sailing. They call it the windsurfing capital of the world, so by default it’s the sailing capital of the world,” he said. “We build tough sailors in Geraldton.” The Pelican class of boats were developed for junior sailors and are crewed by two to help youngsters learn the ropes of sailing. Bob said the design not only helps children get used to the water but also nurtures the bond between crew members. “This is the fantastic thing about (pelican boats), they’re such a nurturing thing,” he said. “Put a new sailor, no matter how small, with someone they trust and they’re away.” While the boats have moved from timber to fibreglass little else has changed about the design in more than 50 years with Bob saying this has helped keep sailing strong in their family. “There’s a lot there’s a bit of maintenance involved so basically you come down and in in the morning you build the boat,” Bob said. “You fix the boat then your grandparents or your parents come down and you are repainting them in the off-season and all this sort of stuff and your learning how to pull it apart and build the boat. “When you get to Finn and Jack’s stage — Jack especially — he could tune in that boat to within millimetres, that thing, absolutely just pinging in the end.” Bob said he was proud of his son’s achievements and described Finn’s victory as a bit of a surprise. “Jack’s first one was monumental and the second one was as well, especially being in Geraldton. I mean, what a way to finish,” he said. “This year, we’ve gotten to a point wherever you could sort of say that there’s a team that’s going to be really hard to beat. “But Finn and Charlie just turned up on the first stage and smashed them out. He won the first two races and just sat everyone back a bit and went oh, hang on.” “He had to fight for it and in the end, it comes down to the last race but he made up his mind — he wanted to win it and move on to the next fleet of boats. “So it was a big surprise but very happy.” With Finn now looking to move into the 125s category, it may bring an end to the Preston Pelican dominance for the moment but their influence will still have plenty of sway over future titles. “We’re putting them through the coaching programs, and now they’re going to be the ones coaching the kids,” Bob said. “Back when I was racing, you used to have something like 50 boats but we’re at about 25-27 now.” “But we are building the Pelican numbers back up Statewide and soon we’ll have that volume where we can just keep rolling on.” Anyone interested in sailing at the Geraldton Yacht Club or wanting to get involved in the junior program is urged to contact Junior Commodore Wayne Boys at wayne@weboys.com.au or call the club 9964 1664.