A Westhaven night focused on New Zealand’s Starling class brought sailors, parents and coaches together to rebuild practical sailing knowledge, and to share what still wins races.
Harken Fosters brought the Starling class into focus last month at its Westhaven Marina chandlery, hosting a live workshop aimed at sailors, parents, and coaches preparing for the peak summer sailing season.
Called All Things Starling, the evening addressed a growing gap within New Zealand’s grassroots sailing ecosystem. While the Starling remains one of the country’s most important youth classes, access to practical, face-to-face knowledge has thinned as sailmaking and manufacturing have moved offshore. The workshop set out to restore that flow, placing experience, discussion, and hands-on learning at the centre of the room.
“There’s a void of where you go for really good sailing knowledge, from both the parents’ side and the sailors,” said world-class sailor Rod Davis during the parent discussion session.
Designed by Des Townson in 1969, the Starling has long served as a bridge between junior dinghies and adult singlehanders. At 2.9 metres long, the boat demands feel, balance, and consistency rather than strength. Most sailors enter the class in their mid-teen years, often in the 50 to 70kg range, and quickly learn that speed comes from setup, technique, and repeatable habits.
Around 25 sailors, parents, and coaches attended the workshop, many of them new to the class or entering their first full season. Six speakers guided the evening, covering design background, rigging and tuning, race-day routines, youth mentoring, and the parent role within a campaign.
John Clinton opened by tracing the Starling’s evolution, linking Townson’s original design intent to the modern boats now racing nationwide. The focus stayed practical. Understanding why the boat behaves as it does, and how incremental changes in sails and fittings have preserved competitiveness while maintaining one-design integrity, remains key to sailing the class well.
Grant McKinnon followed with a detailed session on rigging, tuning, and maintenance, centred on repeatability. He outlined a method built on testing, observation, and disciplined adjustment, developed alongside his son Blake McKinnon over several seasons. Blake’s 2025 Starling national title provided clear evidence of what structured preparation can achieve.
Harken Fosters technical specialist Grant Blewett then turned attention to the Starling’s control systems, an area where many sailors either progress quickly or stall. His demonstrations covered cam cleat layouts, rope selection, and common hardware configurations, focusing on efficient handling and energy conservation through manoeuvres.
“It is about position and having options in your sailing toolbox with repeatable speed settings and feel,” said Blewett.
Former Starling sailors Tim Howse and Sophia Morgan contributed as youth mentors, speaking candidly about early challenges, mindset, and the habits that shorten the learning curve. Their insights resonated strongly with younger sailors in the room.
Parents held a separate open discussion with Davis, Clinton, and McKinnon, covering nutrition, expectation management, and how to support development without over-managing a campaign.
Harken Fosters plans to extend the initiative through a six-part All Things Starling Debrief Series, available soon online. We will share the videos as soon as they are released. You can also sign up with Harken Fosters to receive updates directly. The videos distill key lessons from the workshop into short, practical segments for sailors and families unable to attend.
For a class built on shared knowledge and mentorship, the workshop marked a return to fundamentals. The Starling rewards sailors who understand their boat, trust their settings, and repeat good habits under pressure. Events like this simply make that learning easier to access.
Learn more
Starling Class Association
Harken Fosters
All Things Starling Debrief Series form
