2016 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek - Day 2
by Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Race Week 22 Jul 2016 16:06 BST
20-24 July 2016
Series back on track
It was a leisurely morning for the sailors on Day 2 of the Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek. With AP on shore, sailors enjoyed the 5-star beachfront facilities of Cape Panwa Hotel and the Bamboo Bar which was the place to be and be seen, while the Race Management team were out bright and early in search of wind.
A little after midday PRO Simon James spied some wind and the start boat set anchor. 12:45 AP was down and the competitors made it out to the race course. In light breeze the fleet were sent on a short windward/leeward and as the breeze built a second race was started and finished for all while the Cruising/ Charter class were sent home after their first race.
No quarter was given between the evenly-matched TP52's contesting IRC Racing I and with Millenium Racing drawing first blood yesterday, the tables were turned and the syndicated Oi! corrected out less than 30 seconds ahead in Race 1. Race 2 was even closer – an eight second winning margin for Millenium Racing sees them hold a slim one point lead at the half way point.
The first race in IRC Racing II today was a carbon copy of yesterday's placings: Loco, Emagine and Gust. Just as things appeared to following some pre-ordained script, tLoco fell off the pace in Race 2 and finished third, shaking up the series. Emagine took their first win and Gust placed second leading to a two-way tie at the top between Loco and Emagine going into the final two days.
Niels Degenkolw and his crew on Phoenix found their rhythm today and scored two firsts to move to the top of IRC Racing II. A 3,2 for Foreign Affair keeps them in the hunt and second overall, while Sailescapes Farrgo Express sit third overall with a 2,4 today.
A single race for the Cruising/ Charter class saw local stalwart, Jim Ellis, and his crew on Remington secure their first win of the series and with it tie the top with BeauX Esprits. Yesterday's winner, Venture, slipped to fourth in today's race but manage to hold onto third overall with still plenty to play for.
It's close racing in the One Design Platu class as the five entries are tracking each closely around the course. Today's big mover was Clement Lim who's SMU Singapore crew scored two bullets and go two points clear in the series. A 2,3 for the all-female crew lead by Liz Schoch, is enough to hold onto second overall while Kev Scott's Absolute One Design team sit in third.
Asia Catamarans Hurricane extended their lead in Multihull Racing adding two more wins to their win yesterday. Despite making it look easy, just nine seconds separated them and sister-ship Java in Race 2 and with three second places for Java so far they sit second overall and Top Cat, despite their fifth place finish in the last race today, hold onto third in the series.
Twin Sharks returned to their winning ways in the Firefly 850 Sport class today adding two bullets to their second yesterday and with it go top of the leaderboard. A 2,3 for Voodoo is enough for them to hold onto second overall ahead of Blue Noze.
The Corsairs of Multihull Solutions H30 and SuDu 4 (Yellow) were trading places today each scoring a second and third, but the day went to Mick Tilden and crew on Pixalux whose two wins, including a seven minute winning margin in Race 2, makes them undefeated in the series so far.
Despite the light winds and tricky racing conditions, completing two races today for most classes gets the series back on track and due credit goes to the Race Management team.
Organised by Media Business Services, racing continues tomorrow off Cape Panwa Hotel.
For more information, visit www.phuketraceweek.com.