18ft Skiff International Regatta at San Francisco - Day 4
by Rich Roberts 16 Aug 2008 09:06 BST
Hamlin wins Ronstan Bridge-to-Bridge, shares 18s' lead
Howard Hamlin and his crew of Mike Martin and Paul Allen flew out of the fog late Friday afternoon to earn the 18' Skiffs unprecedented respect on windy San Francisco Bay.
Victory over a flock of kite boarders and windsurfers not only was the
first for their class in St. Francis Yacht Club's 11th annual Ronstan
Bridge to Bridge Race but boosted Hamlin's Harken-sponsored team into a
tie at the top of their 11-boat fleet in the seventh annual 18' Skiff
International Regatta, which concludes Saturday.
The race, following the skiffs' usual windward-leeward contest along the
city's beach front, is a 5 1/2-nautical mile downwind dash from under
the Golden Gate to the Bay Bridge inside the bay. It was sailed in
following winds of about 20 knots against a strong ebb tide that made it
a rough ride.
Hamlin, from Long Beach, Calif., has come close to winning the race in
recent years, only to be edged out by the kite boarders, who usually
handle the windsurfers. He said, "These are the best kite sailors in the
world, and to beat them... I always thought that we could beat them
in light wind, but this was big wind today."
But first Hamlin's boat had to deal with the regatta leaders, the Gotta
Love It team of 22-year-olds led by skipper Seve Jarvin---and it wasn't
the young Australians' day. They capsized twice in the first race among
18s before they were forced to drop out with a broken tiller extension.
Then, with that repaired, they appeared to be leading Hamlin in the
Bridge race when they capsized again, eventually finishing fifth among
the 18s. That left them even with Hamlin at 14 points with the last two
races scheduled Saturday, starting at 1 p.m. PDT, conditions permitting.
It's been a tough week for everybody. No boat has started and finished
every race.
Friday's conditions were such that three boats flipped before even
reaching the starting line for the regular race, and recent European
champion Grant Rollerson sailed a strong win, with Hamlin second.
Then came the Bridge race, starting just outside the Golden Gate, which
has been obscured by mid-summer fog all week, although the city was
bright and beautiful. As most of the other 18s sailed closer to the
beach, Hamlin's team followed a longer but faster course down the middle
of the bay.
"It was the fog line," he said. "The fog was where the [best] wind was,
right along our course."
Allen, the forward crew, said, "[Trimming] the spinnaker demands your
full attention—it's in your hands whether you nosedive into a wave or
not---so I had no idea how we were doing in the race until just before
we finished."
Martin, the middle man, said, "I'm the guy who gets to look around. We
got a really good start right at the [committee] boat. Paul was calling
waves and I had my eye on the puffs. We were pretty much full throttle
the whole race, although we did throttle back late."
Results after Day 4: (8 of 10 races, 1 discard)
1. Gotta Love It, Seve Jarvin/Sam Newton/Tom Clout, Sydney, Australia,
1-1-1-1-4-1-(12/DNF)-5, 14pts
2. Harken 1, Howard Hamlin/Mike Martin/Paul Allen, Long Beach, Calif.,
2-2-2-(12/DNF)-2-3-2-1, 14pts
3. SLAM, Grant Rollerson/Matt Noble/David Mann, Perth, Australia,
5-9-3-2-3-4-1-(12/DNF), 27pts
4. Active Air, Matthew Searle/ Dan Wilsdon/Archie Massey, Sydney,
6-3-6-6-(12/DNF)-2-4-2, 29pts
5. Kinder Care Home Nursing, Brett Van Munster/Paul Montague/Ayden
Mezies, Sydney, 4-4-4-3-1-(12/DNF)-12/DNF-6, 34pts
6. Panasonic, Jonathan Whitty/Tom Anderson/John Herman Winning, Sydney,
7-7-9-5-6-(12/DNS)-54-3, 42pts
7. Harken 2, Joey Pasquali/Chad Freitas/Rory Giffen, Santa Cruz, Calif.,
(8)-6-8-7-7-5-3-(12/DNF), 44pts
8. Yandoo, John Winning/Andrew Hay/David Gibson, Sydney, 3-5-5-4-
(12/DNF)-12/DNS-12/DNF-12/DNF, 53pts
9. Cabot Cheese, Patrick Whitmarsh/Danny Cayard/Joe Penrod, San
Francisco, 9-8-7-8-5-6-(12/DNF)-12/DNF, 55pts
10. Natural Blues, Dan Brandt/Cooper Dressler/Pike Harris, San
Francisco, (12/DNF)-10-12/DNF-9-12/DNF-12/DNS-12/DNF-4, 71pts
11. Skiffsailing.org., Jonny Goldsberry/Jay Scott/Andy Casey, Alameda,
Calif., (12/DNF)-12/DNF-12/DNF-12/DNF-12/DNF-12/DNS-12/DNF-12/DNF, 84pts
