2016/17 Club Marine Series Day 3 at Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron

Club Marine Series day 3 © Alex McKinnon Photography

Club Marine Series day 3 © Alex McKinnon Photography

Summer has arrived in Melbourne and with it brings hot wind and strong breezes. This was seen yesterday, December 3, when day three of the Club Marine Series took place, the final race of 2016 before the Christmas break is due.

Port Phillip Bay was a picturesque array of colours from the various boats sailing around the bay yesterday. From the international athletes preparing for the Sailing World Cup Final to the junior and youth competing at the George Mac Regatta the bay was filled with boats, big and small.

With welcoming conditions and a stellar turnout, intense battles took place within each of the divisions of the Club Marine Series. Two races were completed; the first race saw a gentle 6 – 10 knots as the seabreeze tried to come in. By the second race the seabreeze had settled and a solid 15 knots increased the overall speed of the racing.

Gary MacKinven, now leading the series in Division 2 in AMS and YV Handicapping, explained that the company while sailing can make all the difference,

"Our crew work was great! Three of the crew from 'Veloce' have joined us since the boat was sold last year so the quality of our crew is definitely a factor helping us around the course."

We got buried in the first start, but managed to make some smart decisions and sailed a strong downwind so were able to make some big gains on the second beat. Generally our boat performs better in the light wind but we did well yesterday," said Gary.

Club Marine Series day 3 - photo © Alex McKinnon Photography

With high calibre, matching skills in Division 3 close racing and congestion at the top and bottom marks was a game changer. Those who tactically positioned themselves around the high congestion areas made large advancements.

Leslie Norton's, 'Mrs Overnewton', took line honours through her sheer size, B. Feore/ G Jackson's, 'Skipjack', was well placed and finished first in the series overall in IRC while PNeilson's/ R Langham's, 'Moonraker', stands the highest in the series for AMS and YV Handicapping.

Division 1 boats were much the same with all boats finishing within a ten minute window of each other for both races. Bruce McCraken's 'IKON' took out IRC and AMS for both races with Robert Green's 'Dream' and Denis McConnell's 'Schuss' taking out YV Handicapping in race 3 and 4, respectively. Despite IKON's continued success, Alan Woodward's 'Reverie' leads the charge in all three ratings.

Club Marine Series day 3 - photo © Alex McKinnon Photography

On the other side of the track were the Blue Division boats who took advantage of the scenic racing hosts, Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, provided. Winner of yesterday's race in the Blue Division, Paul Wise's 'Instant Karma' explained that racing from Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron's waters added another dimension to the racing,

"Yesterday's conditions were perfect, there was a bit of breeze and manageable chop which 'Instant Karma' thrives in. Our crew of 7 enjoy sailing in the Blue Fleet as it's a competitive fleet but it lacks some of the intensity that the other divisions see. We loved watching the dinghies (most of whom are internationals preparing for the Sailing World Cup Final) sailing in the same waters. Sailing from RMYS made racing that little bit more interesting!" said Paul.

Racing now takes a break as everyone prepares for the Christmas holidays; best wishes and safe sailing is in order to all who are competing in the 2016 Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. The next Club Marine Series race continues on the February 11, 2017.

Series Results: