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NOV 27, 2005
Near
gale shortens Savills regatta
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West-south-westerly
winds gusting to 38 knots on Sydney Harbour today foreshortened
Middle Harbour Yacht Club's 28th annual Savills Short Ocean
Racing Championship.
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The
Club had moved racing from the three offshore courses used
yesterday to the more sheltered waters of the Harbour because
of the forecast overnight southerly change.
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All
classes raced this morning, but this afternoon conditions
proved too difficult for the racing to continue in safety
for a big fleet within the confines of the Harbour.
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Several
yachts did not start, including super maxi Alfa Romeo whose
owner/skipper Neville Crichton made the sensible decision
not to race the 30m super maxi in a crowded harbour in strong
winds and poor visibility.
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Instead,
Alfa Romeo went offshore, testing out her orange storm sails
in preparation for next month's Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht
Race.
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Race
officials abandoned racing for all classes after this morning's
race was sailed in cold, wet and windy weather that reached
35 knots. There were several dramatic incidents, including
one man overboard situation.
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'It's
like Hobart at home', quipped Sail-World's Rob Kothe aboard
the media boat as it transferred crewman Rowan McColl back
to David Pescud's Kaz. McColl had gone overboard during the
first race but was picked up initially by the Sydney 38, Zen.
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Principal
race officer for the IRC and PHS handicap classes, Ken Mascord
said: "There's been a lot of damage out here and the
outlook is not good. It was the wisest thing to pull the pin."
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Mascord
said the winds have reached a constant 35 knots early this
afternoon. "We have seen lots of torn sails and a few
bent spinnaker poles, but no dismastings."
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The
decision not to run a sixth race for the Farr 40 and Sydney
38 classes was made at the end of the first race when 30 knot
winds exceeded the class' upper limits.
IRC
Division A to Wild Joe
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With
Alfa Romeo not racing, Steven David's Reichel/Pugh 60, Wild
Joe, took line and handicap honours in the IRC Division A
race from Stephen Ainsworth's new Reichel/Pugh 60, Loki, and
Geoff Ross' Judel/Vrolijk 52, Yendys.
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Wild
Joe, the canting keel champion boat of the 2003 Admiral's
Cup in England, won the series with 7 points. Alfa Romeo,
which won both races on Saturday, placed second with 8 points
on a countback from Loki, which has a conventional bulb keel.
IRC
Division B to Wot's Next
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The
newly launched Wot's Next scored a convincing win in race
three for IRC Division B to take out her first ever regatta
series.
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The
racing orientated Sydney 47CR owned by Graham Wood and sailed
by a crack crew that included Michael on the helm and Ron
Jacobs as tactician, excelled in the heavy weather to comfortably
win race three on corrected time from Bill Ebsary's Beneteau
44.7, Le Billet, and You're Hired, Geoff Morgan and Andrew
Banks' Beneteau 47.7.
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With
two wins and an 8th place (in race two when the boat lost
time after owner Graham Wood fell overboard), Wot's Next finished
with 10 points to win from You're Fired on 12 points and Le
Billet on 15 points.
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Wot's
Next is an entrant in next month's Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht
Race and on her performance in this regatta must make her
a strong contender on corrected time if conditions favour
the mid-sized boats in the expected fleet of 90 boats.
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Results
of IRC Division B are provisional pending a protest hearing
late this afternoon, but it does not affect the top placed
boats in IRC Division B.
PHS
Division to Mortgage Choice Rumba
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The
man overboard incident cost David Pescud's Lyons 54, Kaz,
first place in the PHS class. Kaz had had a 2nd and a 1st
racing offshore on Saturday but did finish today after standing
by crewman Rowan McColl before he was picked up by another
yacht.
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Race
three went to Disco Trooper (Jules Hall & Magnus Wilson-Webb),
which did not start in Saturday's races. Second place went
to Mortgage Choice Rumba (Robert Carr/Sephenie Cook/Kerry
Burke) and third to Samarkand (Walter Carpenter).
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This
left Mortgage Choice the overall winner on 10 points, with
Kaz taking second place, Samarkand third and Youngstar fourth.
All three finished on 13 points, the final placings being
decided on a countback.
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Sydney
32 One Design National Champions Martin and Anna Cross, sailing
If!, comfortably won the 2005 NSW title sailed as part of
MHYC's Savills Short Ocean Racing Championship.
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If!
won both offshore races on Saturday and finished a close second
to nearest rival Mainstay, sailed by class stalwart Stan Montgomery,
in today's race three of the shortened series on Sydney Harbour.
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Sailing
to opposite sides of the Harbour in the demanding 20-30 knot
west-south-westerly winds saw Mainstay come out ahead and
win by just over a minute from If! and Jester (David Bull).
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The
final points saw If! with 4 points, Mainstay 8 and Felix Mark's
Groove on 12 points.
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If!
and Mainstay both sail out of Pittwater's Royal Prince Alfred
yacht Club, Groove from Middle Harbour Yacht Club.
Sydney
38 OD class to Challenge
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Despite
recovering from two broken ribs, 79-year-old Lou Abrahams
has won the Sydney 38 One Design Class to clinch the State
of Origin clash for Victoria.
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Abrahams,
who this year will contest his 43rd Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht
Race, apparently cracked the ribs in a fall at home before
setting out on the delivery to Sydney with his latest yacht
named Challenge. It wasn't until he went to a doctor in Sydney
that the extent of the injury was discovered.
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But
Lou was not to be deterred, sailing an excellent series as
tactician for his helmsman on Challenge, Carl Schmidt, in
the most demanding weather Sydney could produce, ranging from
8 knots and less to 20 knots on Saturday to 20-30 knots and
more today.
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After
scoring two wins out of four races yesterday, Challenge finished
5th in today fifth and final race sailed to win the series
with 16 points, just one ahead of the consistent local boat
Estate Master (Martin and Lisa Hill) on 17 points, while third
on 18 points went to NSW champion Shining Sea (Steve Kulmar).
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The
final race in shortened series went to Tranfusion (Guido Belgiorno-Nettis)
from Estate Master, Risk (Geoff and Chris Payne), AMI Jade
(Peter McNamara) and Challenge.
Farr
40 OD class to Evolution
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Farr
40 World Champion Richard Perini again won the Savills Short
Ocean Racing Championship trophy with Evolution, finishing
second to Kokomo (Lang Walker) in today race five of the shortened
series.
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Third
place went to Ray Roberts' Quantum Racing, followed close
by Rushcutter (Don Telford) and Venom (Brett Neill) in the
heavy weather race with the wind at times getting above the
class' accepted maximum breeze.
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In
fact, race officials quickly decided that, in view of forecast
heavier winds this afternoon, racing should be abandoned,
leaving the series decided on five races.
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The
final pointscore saw Evolution on 8 points, Kokomo on 12,
Rushcutter 17 and Quantum Racing on 18 points.
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The
presentation of trophies is being held at Middle Harbour Yacht
Club this evening.
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CLASSIFIEDS AUSTRALIA
