CYAA 2015 Winter Series Race 2 Results

Attached are the results plus the Series aggregate and Marie Louise III Consistency aggregate.

Apologies for the results generation delay. Sometimes the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.

Classic weather conditions for Race 2

To make up for the Race 1 no wind disappointment, weather conditions for Race 2 could not have been better. A decent wind strength with flat water and a full on autumn sun beaming, the scene was set.

A lull in the breeze right at start didn’t stop a couple of remarkable on the button starts. Anne Batson helmed Zephyr into a breeze of its own and cleared out well ahead of the fleet. At the favoured end of the line, along the St Kilda breakwater, where there should have been no breeze, Kingurra was at full steam and made the RMYS D Mark ahead of Sayonara and Frances. Zephyr was a sight to watch. She reminded us of those not forgotten Tumlaren glory days of the 30’ and 40’s, as she duelled with these well above her weight fleet leaders at the 1st mark rounding. After considerable head scratching on Mercedes III who’s team figured their late approach to the start line was on time the lull on the breeze left them lot’s of hard work in front of them. Some gentlemanly port/starboard action by Bungoona was observed and noted by the handicapper. No doubt Cameron Dorrough on the helm of Bungoona knew that’s no way to treat a lady.

Classics on the run

Sayonara with her tops’l flying worked the ever direction changing high altitude breeze to perfection and passed Kingurra with her kite up on the run to the reaching mark. Zephyr consolidated her great start and with a full spinnaker, maintained her place with the Fleet leaders. Phil Atkins had all sails flying on the Ohlsen 35, Trim, and closed in on these fleet leaders. Boambillee was the hardest worker of the Classic fleet on this run and closed in on Kingurra.

Covering shying wind battles amongst the following fleet kept the poled out Classics in animated conversation distance with those Classics flying or attempting to fly spinnakers. Being the first time for several months spinnakers  were used, the task of sorting out spinnaker sheets and pole control lines was a bridge to far for some.

Thanks to Glen Crawford we can take a look as the Classic fleet leaders approach the reaching mark as seen from Sayonara. Checkout the faint green and white kite of Zephyr, right in there for sure. Between Frances and Boambillee. To reduce the mail size all images are low resolution.

w2 w1After the gybe

Rudyard Kipling’s IF was in full play on Martini to slightly delay her after the mark gybe. Bad news is that 50 elapsed seconds was the difference between a 3rd and 1st in corrected time. The good news is that appearances count and with Martini’s crew all kitted out with splendid looking Fred Perry’s any errors were easily forgiven.

Covering wind battles were again all the go. The Tumlarens, Avian helmed by Mal Botterill and that great man in the form of Roger Dundas on the fore deck duelled with the recent Summer Series co- winner Ettrick helmed by Gordon Tait and the recently rebuilt and fast looking Sirocco with the well known Tum skipper Craig Begby helming her and Charlie Salter doing the work.

Peter Lloyd, in a most polite fashion, moved Marie Louise III to windward to allow zimmer (room) for Craig Brown to helm Cyan into water between himself and Martini helmed by Michael Williams and crewed, based on all the noise, under the perceived direction of Ross Clark. But sad to relate, Cyan, with all her under kite weight, was promptly put to bed.  But stout hearts always prevail and Craig Brown with a slick crew and fancy kite work held off the fast approaching Mercedes III under kite and broke through the Marie Louise III cover only to concede the overlap to Marie Louise III at the turning mark with a well-judged 10 inch clearance on the rounding.

While all this was happening Jim Hutchinson had his Tumlaren, Dingo sorting out her return to racing sea legs and making up lost ground. In this mix was the continual boat for boat battle between Bob Munro’s Tandanya helmed by John Donati of Four Winds fame with assistance by Stephen Lake and the hard raced Claire.

The pic below shows how it was on Sayonara on the run as she extended her lead over the fleet.

w3Classic beats to the top mark.

On the return beat to the start mark the Classic Fleet moved into another gear where the eventual over the line placing of the Classic fleet were decided. Boambillee and Frances threw early while Trim and Kingurra held on till further in shore. All held their previous mark rounding placings at the top mark rounding. Marie Louise III out footed Avian due to fore deck problems and eventually the hard sailed Zephyr. Sirrocco had to wait for the next beat to be accorded this honour by Marie Louise III.  Shifting wind to the North had those who threw early on the second beat at a slight disadvantage.

Classic Boat for boat battles of the day.

As the race progressed the line honours battle also progressed to the point where Boambillee, a 36 footer, constantly chased Kingurra around the course. Finally with constant kite trimming and to weather of Kingurra, a 43 footer, on the run back to the B mark Boambillee came out ahead of Kingurra. For a short time after the second rounding she held Kingurra but being in Kingurra’s lee she had to throw on to the losing tack and that was it.  But not for an ever closing Frances. By a margin of 4 seconds Boambillee held off Frances and was awarded the recognition of the sail of the day.

Here’s the boat for boat battle story as seen from George Fisscher who helmed Boambillee around the course.

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Kingurra. LineHonours CYAA 2015 Winter Series Race 2

For the rest of us read George’s second last para at least a couple of times to soak in what it takes to push a Classic hard.

“Once in a while the Boambillee and her crew even astonish me.

We are still waiting to be slipped, so the bottom had slime and some weed, which should have made us very slow.

We hadn’t intended to race, and only made the call on Saturday – so we were four up, which made the kite work challenging – but the crew work was impeccable.

All race the little 36′ Boambillee harried the 43′ Kingurra around the course.

We were briefly ahead after the second rounding of “B”, but in a straight drag race, power and waterline length got us, and we were lee bowed after a few minutes. Hence the tack away for clear air. We also noticed Frances lifting along the shore on Port tack,  so we thought the shore might be a better option. In the end we lost out to both Kingurra and Francis on the last beat, but perhaps it was always going to be difficult to keep the bigger boats at bay.

A hard race for Boambillee? Not really – she is sublimely balanced to windward, and quite manageable on reaches and runs as long as there isn’t too much pressure.

Easy for the helms-person – but the crew worked hard – constant spinnaker brace and sheet trimming, back-stay adjustment, halyard adjustment as well as mainsheet and genoa trimming. We try and get the maximum out of the boat, and after twenty-five years we’re probably not too bad!

All in all a great day out on the water.”

Boambillee image by Dave Wallace

Boambillee image by Dave Wallace

Throughout the fleet boat for boat over the line the battles raged. 6 seconds separated Marie Louise III and Sirocco. 8 seconds separated Bob Munro’s Tandanya and George Low’s Tumlaren Snow Goose. 40 seconds separated Ettrick and Zephyr, 43 seconds separated Sirocco and Mercedes III and 57 seconds separated Avian and Dingo.

While not involved in a close across the line battle, the blink of the day award has to go to Martini. From where she was done and dusted after the B Mark rounding the eyes were rubbed to be sure but it was Martini not far behind the crossing time of Mercedes III. After race discussions revealed a story of hard work and picking the wind shifts. There you go, so never say die till a dead horse kicks you.

All up a day of tight line honours boat for boat racing throughout the fleet.

Corrected time placings

Congratulations go to Charlie Salter and Craig Begby for bringing Sirocco home to take out first on corrected time. No easy feat particularly a partaking of the Port Phillip waters took place during the race. So to compensate for the ingress of that elixir of life, aka Port Phillip waters to Classic Yachting and with the compliments of Andy Doolans Tina of Melbourne, Charlie Salter takes back to Red Hill, a slab of Neverfail bottled water. Thank you Tina of Melbourne.

With a race that lasted from 90 minutes to 2 hours and with the first seven corrected time placing separated by 90 seconds, 30 seconds separating the next 4 and 60 seconds for the following 3, any mistakes throughout the race would show in the results.

Don’t worry your handicapper will be busy with the newly sharpened 2015 Winter Series pencil.

Sirocco 1st on Corrected time  CYAA 2015 Winter Series Race 2

Sirocco 1st on Corrected time CYAA 2015 Winter Series Race 2

Classic scenes of the race

Two scene’s were the icing on the cake for this race.

The first was how Sayonara must have looked in her glory days of the 1890’s. With her ever increasing lead on the fleet, she was a scene that all those who appreciate Classic yachting would dearly want to see. The entire Classic fleet had a rare Classic yacht racing scene in front of them.

The other scene was watching the Gaff rigged Claire with Richard Macrae racing her at full on maximum.

Both scenes are the story of what Classic Yacht racing is all about. It’s keeping our Classics in the only manner they know. In full on racing trim.

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Claire Image by Dave Wallace

w7A Classic thanks to RMYS

Thanks to RMYS for their support of Classic Yacht racing and for the way their Race Director, Alicia Rae, stepped up to conduct the race for us at short notice. Thanks also to the RMYS volunteers who conducted the race for us and thanks to the crew in the RMYS rescue boat who shadowed the fleet and Bungoona around the course. Why Bungoona? No comment.

2015 Cup Regatta.

Some more Cup Regatta News. The Classics are working on a handicapping system based on time on distance with RYCV Race management. The intent of this move is to make more time for after race socialising to all starters and to allow timely results publication. Of course this means a faster production of the next race handicaps.

With the support of our Trans Tasman Classic Yacht Association people, our Exec are considering a points score formula based on the Summer and Winter series Aggregate and Consistency points score and Cup Regatta points score.  This formula will be used to declare what Classic Yacht is the best performing Classic yacht of the year and will be listed on the honour board as the winner of the CYANZ Cup Regatta Trophy. The form and deed of gift of this substantial trophy is being finalised.

The Trans Tasman Challenge at 2016 Panerai Cowes Classic Regatta

Through the work of our President Martin Ryan and through the agency of our regular visitor from the British Classic Yacht Club, Tim Blackman, arrangements are well under way to charter 3 UK based Classic yachts to take part in the 2016 Panerai Cowes Classic Regatta. The team taking part in this event will be a combination of CYAA and CYANZ members. Due to take up of this event on both sides of the Tasman, a 4th Classic yacht charter is being considered.

To those CYAA members that want to be on board in such a grand Trans Tasman challenge at Cowes, contact the handicapper in the first instance.

To those in the know this is the biggest party week in the Classic Yachting world and where  you find out how good you are against the J Class Classics.

ISAF World Series

Meanwhile back at home we need to keep in mind RMYS will be hosting the next ISAF World’s off the beach series. The last world series before the Rio Olympics. The eye’s of the dinghy sailing world will be focused on RMYS this November.

This event will be the Australian Olympic Sailing Team selection trial crunch time. Several of our members have family members in deep pressure at this event.

Cantini Gardens and Pier Road will be ISAF central.

Next race May 31

We move on. Race 3 will be conducted for the Classics on May 31 by the Hobsons Bay Yacht Club. The SI’s and handicaps will be issued the Thursday prior to race day.

Regards to all

Peter Costolloe
CYAA (Vic) Handicapper

A short bio on Phil Atkins Ohlsen 35 Trim

w9Designed by Einar Ohlson and built by his family boatyard in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1961, the yacht — named Trim — was launched in Seattle, Washington, the following year after it had been shipped to Don Thompson, the then commodore of the Seattle Yacht Club.

Built on the then-popular carvel planked method, with African mahogany planks copper riveted to white oak frames, Trim features an entirely smooth hull as the builders glued the plank edges together rather than overlapping them.

Commodore Thompson owned the yacht for a decade and sailed and cruised extensively in the Pacific North West before shipping the vessel to Hawaii. He sold it to a cruising couple who sailed back to the west coast and spent time cruising up to Alaska.

Now via after a stay in Adelaide, she’s racing with us on Port Phillip out of the Sandringham Yacht Club.

 

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