CYAA 2014/2015 Summer Series Race 6 Feb 15

Congratulations to Loama who took out today’s race on corrected time and to Frances with their close fought line honours win with Acrospire III and Boambillee. The results plus the series aggregate and consistency trophy points status are attached.

Frances and Bungoona on the money

With a running start in a light breeze full of holes 18 Classics were all set for a race that wind shift concentration.  Frances and Bungoona had on the line starts with the majority of the fleet not far behind. Martini popped her kite earlier to put herself in good fleet position throughout the race while Acrospire III made up for her  delay from a light wind beat to the start and caught up to the fleet well before the first mark. Boambillee picked her way through the fleet with a kite that looked dead. Trim, the Ohlson 35, a design developed to take on the New York Yacht Club Concordia fleet, showed today’s fleet why her design was successful by staying with the early leaders.

Mark rounding drama

Breeze holes before the first mark allowed a large fleet to join in the first mark traffic jam with likes of Frances, Acrospire III, Boambillee and Mercedes III. The usual opportunist drama along with comments such as “you cannot go in there” being heard, Zephyr and Sirocco squeezed their way around the mark. Sayonara‘s 21 strong crew worked hard to keep calm and effect a clean rounding. After all this drama the fleet to settled down to work on the shifting to the south breeze beat to the laid rounding  mark off the RMYS break water.

On this beat Sirocco continued to lead the Tumlaren fleet with Ettrick making up ground. Snow Goose continued to keep her fleet position she won after her well sailed run to the first mark. Avian also held her ground on Marie Louise III.

To tack or hold

As the fleet rounded the floating laid mark the decision whether to tighten up or tack had to be made. Normally a beat down to Point Ormond is the go before heading out to the distant mark. This time the early tackers picked up the building breeze first. For the first time the mark R2 was used by the Classics as a distant offshore mark. Frances, Acrospire III and Boambillee were all working hard to not lose any ground. Mercedes III, Sayonara and Trim who didn’t tack at the mark used the shifting breeze to not lose ground in these 3 leaders. With a shorten course announcement  the line honours battle went to Frances who held off Acrospire III from making the pin end of the finish line. Following Sayonara through the finish line Trim sailed with concentration to hold off all the Tums and was 5th over the line.

Loama takes out first on corrected time

As we know in light breeze races the fleet leaders are always crying about how the slower boats always pick up the building breeze. That may be so but the slower boats have to know where to put themselves to be the first to have the new breeze. Today was no exception. Joe Tuck and the boys on Loama went out that little bit further than anybody else on the first beat to R2 and were rewarded with the new breeze. From a distance they were seen in great shape heading for the finish and were all set to claim they package of Andy Doolan’s Neverfail bottled water.

Congratulations to Cameron Dorrough and Bungoona

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Big news of the day was today that 60 years have passed since the launching of Bungoona.

Today Cameron Dorrough after taking over Bungoona on the passing of our great mate Col Bandy has allowed the fleet to continually watch one of Australia’s notable yachts sail and race in the manner she was designed to do. Now registered by the Australian Maritime Museum as a historic yacht that has contributed to Australians maritime history and heritage Bungoona continues to show that beauty and age do go together.

South Perth Retro Series.

Eu-Na-Mara and Panamuna

A similar series of races to the Classics on Port Phillip is conducted by the Royal Perth Yacht Club for the South Perth Retro Sailing Club on the Swan estuary. This is where the ex Royal Brighton Eu-Na-Mara now races. This weekend this group raced for the RPYC 150th Anniversary Cup. No results at hand but progress of Eu-Na-Mara’s performance will be followed. Another ex Royal Brighton boat over there is Panamuna. She went over there many years ago to become the best performing racing yacht of the 50’s. She races out of the Royal Freshwater Yacht Club.

Acrospire IV

Acrospire IV is at the Fremantle Sailing Club and raced by our member Gary Martin.

Tall ship Alexandra Stewart is on her way

Peter Harris who heads up the Alma Doepel rebuild project tells us a Tall ship is in her way to Docklands on a voyage from Airlie Beach.

The Alexander Stewart was hand built over 17 years by three generations of the one family and is said to be the largest cold-moulded timber hull in the southern hemisphere. A magnificent vessel styled after the famous ship in which Joshua Slocum achieved the first solo circumnavigation of the globe in 1898.

Arrival details to follow.

That’s all for the moment.

Last race of the 2014/2015 Summer Series, a pursuit start from RYCV Marina, March 1

Group start times will reflect the handicaps calculated after race 6

Regards to all

Peter Costolloe

CYAA (Vic) Handicapper

Results Link

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