B14 Australian Championship at McCrae Yacht Club - Day 1
by Jane Moffat 29 Dec 2014 13:00 GMT
27-31 December 2014
High winds on Port Phillip Bay keep the B14 Australian Championships fleet ashore © Jane Moffat
Melbourne cool change sends boats and bits flying
The British and French sailors at the B14 Worlds got a taste of a Melbourne cool change this afternoon.
Principal Race Officer Peter Merritt was halfway through his information session and highlighting the importance of the sign off and sign on procedure for safety as Melbourne "experiences rapid changes in the weather". As if on cue a 30 knot westerly came hurtling up Port Phillip Bay sending bits of kit and anything not tied down flying.
With the top wind speed registering 56 knots and a 10 degree drop in temperature in 40 minutes the British and French sailors must have wondered what was happening, after a beautiful Australian summers day yesterday.
The regatta organisers will be using the raceqs tracking system to provide up to the minute live 3D tracking of the races. Raceqs uses either a mobile phone or GPS and the videos can be reviewed post race by competitors.
With the weather meaning racing was cancelled the B14 Association put the raceqs system to the test another way through an impromptu treasure hunt. Competitors split into teams took a tracker and completed a number of tasks taking in some of the regatta sponsors, one way to ensure no cheating.
There were some that made the most of the conditions, with kiteboarders and windsurfers taking to the water. One of the kiteboarders also took a tracker we will let you know how fast they went.
With a moderating breeze forecast tomorrow Peter Merritt is planning an on time start tomorrow for Race 1 of the B14 Australian championships.
More information at www.mccraeyc.com.au