Reiner claims coveted Congella Cup again
The coveted Congela Cup yacht tournament was nothing short of drama and anticipation as the cup holder Kevin Reiner sailed to victory.
SUCCESSFULLY defending his title, Kevin Rainer and his crew on Tequila Sunrise claimed the Congella Cup for the second year in a row.
Rainer, competing on his beloved L26, was racing against yachts a fair size bigger than his 26-foot yacht Tequila Sunrise. His main competitor, CFM skippered by Nigel Milln, pushed him around the course.
At the conclusion of the second day, a chuffed Rainer commented, “We had a great sail. The wind was a bit stronger than anticipated for the first race and conditions were perfect. At the start of the second race, the wind was a bit light, and CFM went really well in the lighter breeze.”
Race Officer for the series, Anthony Howes, set a rarely seen fun racetrack on the second day. Resembling a giant T-Junction, gliding through the start line, the fleet made their way to a mark set about a nautical mile directly in front of the bridge boat. The yachts then turned 90 degrees to the right, rounding the bottom mark to port, in the process making a U-Turn to race up to the third mark placed further offshore. Again, the competitors did a U-Turn, heading back to the middle mark where they turned right for the sprint down to the finish line.
Also read: Strong winds test competitors in Point Yacht Club’s Congella Cup
Complimenting the adapted Sail GP course, Rainer said, “The course was very different to the usual Windward Leeward or There-and-Back courses that we normally do, but it was great to do something different. The bridge did a great job running all four races of the series.”
Robin Hulley and his son Jacques earned third place overall. On the second day, they did well in the first race, coming third across the line, but botched the final race, with a few adventurous roundings and settling for fourth. The varsity entry, SLFC Spindrift skippered by Keyuren Maharaj, placed fifth overall but did well in the final race, finishing third across the line.
The next event for the keelers at Point Yacht Club is the Tugela Overnight Race starting on Saturday, March 8.
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