Audi IRC Series at Audi Victoria Week - Day 2
by Di Pearson 23 Jan 2011 08:24 GMT
22-26 January 2011
Hooligan hits her straps but Living Doll leads Audi IRC Series
Marcus Blackmore (Hooligan) came ashore a happier man this afternoon after winning Division A Race 2 and sharing a win in Race 3 of the Audi IRC Series at Audi Victoria Week with the new series leader, Living Doll, owned by Melbournian Michael Hiatt.
It is unusual to find yachts sharing an overall win once handicaps are calculated, but that is the way it worked today for Blackmore’s (NSW) TP52 and Hiatt’s Farr 55, which has a one point lead over Hooligan on Day 2. Nick Bartels’ Cookson 50 Terra Firma holds third place.
“We did a little better today,” Blackmore confirmed. “Racing was great when the breeze finally came, but it lightened off to 8-10 knots in our second race. We’re happy with our boat speed.
“The other boats banged on us a bit, so we had to do a few extra tacks than we had planned, but that’s OK,” said Blackmore adding he was looking forward to tomorrow’s racing as 20-25 knots was the prediction.
Hiatt, who sails for the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria, said this afternoon he was pleased with his boat’s performance. “We’re very focussed on this regatta; we prepared the boat well and we’re ecstatic with our results today.
“There weren’t any holes in the course, the breeze was true and we enjoyed the 11 knots we got in the first race of the day. The only issue we had was a ship coming through the course,” he said.
It was a slow start to the second day of the Audi IRC Series at Audi Victoria Week, as the forecast light 5-6 knots did not appear, instead the water was as still as a duck pond – windless and hot – leaving the fleet to mill around. Canopies came on deck to shield crews from the relentless sun.
The day ended with only two of three races sailed.
When the southerly hit the Division A race area shortly before 3.00pm, it came suddenly at 12-15 knots was sudden came to fruition for the 48 yachts on the windward/leeward course on Corio Bay’s Outer Harbour.
Loki (Stephen Ainsworth) led Living Doll (Michael Hiatt), Hooligan (Marcus Blackmore) and Secret Mens Business (Geoff Boettcher), with Blackmore sailing his TP52 to its first win at Audi Victoria Week so far with a seven second victory over Living Doll (Vic).
Blackmore was frustrated after yesterday’s Passage Race, wondering out loud, as others did too: “what am I doing here?” The smile was back on his face this afternoon though.
Secret Mens Business (SA) took third place overall, with Loki taking line honours for fourth overall.
The Audi IRC Series at Audi Victoria Week is the first round of the 2011 Audi IRC Australian Championship.
Close quarter racing in Divisions B and C
Racing could not get any closer in Divisions B and C at Audi Victoria Week and the top five in each will have to stay on top of their game if they want to cart home trophies on Wednesday night when the series finishes.
Bruce McCraken has sailed Ikon to a joint lead in Division B with Paul Buchholz’s Extasea, which led the series coming into today’s races.
Hobsons Bay YC yachtsman McCraken’s third and second places this afternoon ensured his place at the top after Extasea, which represents Royal Geelong Yacht Club (host of the series), could only manage a pair of fourths.
Andrea Saies (SA) kept his chances alive after winning Race 3 today. He is third overall and only one point behind the two leaders in what is shaping up to be an exciting event.
Division C is just almost as close. Regular Audi Victoria Week competitor, Grant Botica, sailed two excellent races today, with a win in Race 2 and second place in Race 3, this despite losing a crew man overboard before he went on to win the day’s first race.
“He needed a wash anyway – and we had him back on board within a minute,” said Botica who said the crewman did not want to be identified. “I think it was all caught on film anyway, so everyone can see for themselves,” he said, describing the day as “very interesting.”
Asked how he went on to win, Botica claimed: “We just kept plodding away and worked hard. This is one of the toughest series I’ve sailed and so far it’s been really enjoyable. I hope we can keep up our results.”
Botica leads Division C from Penfold Audi Sport (David Ellis, Vic) and The Philosopher’s Club (Peter Sorensen, NSW), who is always an excellent performer.
Like the many other classes sailing on Corio Bay today, it was a slow start for Divisions B and C on Day 2 of the Audi IRC Series, which is round one of the Audi IRC Australian Championship, as winds refused to arrive before they were ready.
Officials were only able to get two of the three races scheduled races completed.
However, the worth was worth it when a nice 10-12 knot southerly blew up on the course suddenly, making everyone jump to attention on the windward/leeward course the two divisions shared.
The Goat spins gold in Sydney 38’s at Audi Victoria Week
Bruce Foye from NSW sailed The Goat to a solid victory in the opening race of the Sydney 38 One-Design National Championship at Audi Victoria Week today and backed up with a third place to lead the nine race series.
Foye and his crew, which includes Olympian Bobby Wilmot, consolidated on their big lead at the first bottom mark of the windward/leeward Race 1, as a bunch of nine entangled in a mess behind him, fighting it out for the minor places.
“It’s a pity the first two attempts at the first race were abandoned, because we were in a good position for both, but our result was a fine result to start the regatta, especially since it’s our first time here,” Bruce Foye said at Royal Geelong Yacht Club, host for Audi Victoria Week.
“We’ve got great boat speed and I’ve got a solid regatta crew, not my usual ocean racing crew, so I expected we’d be up there,” Foye said.
“We were buried in the second race start, but we managed to get back up to speed and finished third and now we lead the regatta by three points to Challenge,” he said. Chutzpah is third overall, a further two points adrift.
Second and third places in Race 1 went to two well known Victorian yachtsman Bruce Taylor (Chutzpah) and Lou Abrahams (Challenge) respectively. Zen (Gordon Ketelbey, NSW) and Another Challenge (Jonathan Neate, Vic) shared a win in Race 2.
Originally to start at 12.30pm, the 13 Sydney 38 one-designs competing for the 2011 National Championship were away to a slow start, waiting under a hot sun on glassed-out waters, waiting for the breeze to fill in.
Eventually, in a light 5-6 knot breeze came to greet the yachts and officials got racing started, only to abandon the race, just before Ian Beer’s Adrenalin from Sandringham YC neared the top mark from the right hand side of the course in first place.
Once again, the yachts milled around the pond, chomping at the bit to get a race in and once again, a second attempt was abandoned. When a race did eventually start, it was with a general recall. “It was like doing five races,” Foye said.
Finally, in a 10-12 knot shifty east-sou-easterly breeze that came storming across the bay, forcing competitors to shake themselves free of their miasma and keep their boats under control, racing began.
It was not long before the breeze faded to around 8-10 knots and the fleet settled in, although race official were kept busy changing the top mark as the southerly breeze swung in 20 and 30 degree shifts to the left.
Originally, three windward/leeward courses were planned on Corio Bay’s Outer Harbour, but with a late start, officials were only able to put two to bed, so the series is one race behind its schedule.
The Sydney 38 National Championship at Audi Victoria continues tomorrow.
Race officials from Royal Geelong Yacht Club, which hosts Audi Victoria Week, are planning three further windward/leeward races tomorrow, starting from 12.30pm
Follow Audi Victoria Week at www.victoriaweek.com