Gentle conditions at Commodore Keelers Series
At least 20 boats took part in the first day of the Commodore Keelers Series hosted offshore by Point Yacht Club on Sunday.
A MIXTURE of 20 boats took part in the first day of the Commodore Keelers Series hosted offshore by Point Yacht Club on Sunday.
Six keelboats got off first in a gentle 6knots of breeze, heading up to the weather mark on the windward leeward course. The wind moved around from the light south-easter to a north-easter that gently increased to around 9knots during the second race.
In the racing division, a tussle ensued bet between the elegant Bellissima and the much smaller L26 crewed by scholars. Only minutes separated them in both races, with Bellissima led by James Goss crossing the line first one minute and five seconds ahead of Container World, led by Brendan Humphreys. In the second race, Humphreys favoured the starboard side of the
course which worked to his advantage, the young team crossed ahead of the more experienced crew a mere forty six seconds to spare.
The only multihull to enter, Bandit skippered by Sean Jones, was required to do three laps, and the smallest boat in the fleet, Olivia Jane helmed by Neil Millar needed only to complete one lap. The remaining four boats in the racing division had to complete two laps. The stealthy catamaran, Bandit which sails faster in gustier conditions, worked hard to keep the boat at
full speed, and was one of only a handful of boats that was brave enough to fly their spinnaker on all the downwind legs.
In the Hobie GP, twelve boats came out to get in some training ahead of their main event this year, the Hobie 14 Nationals that will be taking place over the Easter Weekend. Youngster, Jethro Brophy-Tintinger continued to impress as he finished the two races on top of the log, tied with the reigning Hobie champion Garth Loudon. Both of them ended the day on six points, one point ahead of Sean Fennessy who doubled up with his daughter Jessica on their Hobie 16. Peter Hall had a dire first race, crossing the line in eighth place but got ahead of the pack in the second race, and remained there, taking the win and ending the day on nine points.
The oldest sailor on the day, Al Gorlei who celebrated his 80th last year, had a very consistent day on the water, finished sixth overall, only five points behind the leaders.
This weekend sees the second day of the Hobie GP and the Commodore Keelers Series, with racing commencing offshore on Sunday.
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