2018 Jack Tar Auckland Regatta at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron - Day 1
by Andrew Delves 25 Mar 2018 05:27 BST
24-25 March 2018
Mayhem - 2018 Jack Tar Auckland Regatta - Day 1 © Andrew Delves
A solid breeze on the Hauraki Gulf made for some exciting sailing conditions on the first days racing at the 2018 Jack Tar Auckland Regatta, with all divisions experiencing some tight and tense racing.
There were plenty of great battles unfolding in all classes and if you were out on the course it was hard to know exactly where to look as there was plenty of action, wipe-outs, downwind sending and lots of close racing.
It's Temptation (Anatole Masfen) who are leading Division A on PHRF after four races were sailed, including three windward leeward races and a harbour course home to finish. Temptation and Mayhem (Harry Dodson) provided one of the great close battles throughout the days racing, but it is Temptation who hold the upper hand heading into Sunday after claiming two race wins and one second place finish allowing them a six point lead. Mayhem were in second spot, but after a protest hearing they have slipped back to sixth overall with Ran Tan II (Brian Peterson) now in second. Miss Scarlet (William Goodfellow), V5 (David Nathan), Wired (Rob Bassett), Mayhem and Kia Kaha (Chris Hornell) round out the PHRF results for Division A with plenty to race for tomorrow.
Regatta stalwart Ice Breaker (Steve Purton) showed they are certainly the boat to beat in Division B, notching up three wins from three in the windward leeward races (Line and PHRF) and they built up healthy leads over the fleet in the majority of the races. They were also first over the line in the harbour course, but just missed out on PHRF to Anarchy (A J Reid) who are currently sitting in second place in the PHRF standings.
Anarchy and Clockwork (RNZYS Commodore Steve Mair) had a real ding dong battle out on the course in all of the races, with multiple lead changes and near collisions showing they were very much there to win, providing great viewing for those on the course. Clockwork are sitting in third on PHRF just one point back from Anarchy, setting up another exciting war on the water tomorrow. Wedgetail (Garry Scarborough) and Gust (John Meadowcroft) round out the fleet, with our condolences going out to the crew on Gust who unfortunately lost their rig in the 3rd race of the day.
Perfect Alibi (Colin Booth) are the best of the Division C fleet after grabbing three wins in the windward leeward races and third place in the harbour course, with Rainbow IV (Alan Smith) close behind after recording three second place finishes and a gun in the harbour race. C U Later (Logan Fraser), Fun N Games (Kevin Mulcare), No Worries (Ian Thomsen), Hot Dogger (Sinisa Grujicic) and Excuse Me (John Fulton) are the next best in Division C before Sundays racing.
The highly competitive Sports Boat fleet are a completely different kettle of fish, with plenty of mixed results meaning the division is still well open for leader board changes tomorrow. The racing was super tight and with the gusty conditions on offer there were some spectacular wipe-outs to keep the entertainment levels at a high. However, the two best on the day were Steinlager III (Glen Sowry) and W8-UP (Mike Hindrup) who claimed two wins each and sit a-top the leader board in that order. Team Sex (Anne Hirst), Ghost Rider (Phil Jameson), Sign It Magic (Cliff Gordon), Helter Skelter (Phil Bishop), Enigma (Chris Hirst), Atomic (Charles Hollings) and Houdini (Bret Jeffery) are the next best on the leader board in that order.
The Open Multihull Division had a tough task on their hands today with the conditions a bit heavy for some of the fleet, leaving only two boats – Boat 2 (G Houston/S Wilson) and Sledge (John Minnee) – completing all four races. Boat 2 currently lead with 7.0 points followed by Sledge on 11.0, with Stealth Mission (Sam Tucker) in third on 13.0 points after winning two races but failing to complete the second of the day.
The Pacific Keelboat Challenge MRX fleet were into their second day of racing today and it's still all to race for on Sunday after some sailing. Constellation Capita (Tom Macky) are the current leaders with a series score of 9.0 points, closely followed by Club Marine (Matt Bouzaid) 12.0 points and KPMG (Ben Williams) 14.0 points. These three are in a league of their own and any of them could take home the spoils tomorrow setting up some exciting racing. However the rest of the fleet are too far back to mount a title challenge, including Harken (Peter Sumich), North Sails (Sally Garrett), Hydraulink (Tim Appleby) and Ovlov Marine (Gary Sugden).
The Pacific Keelboat Challenge is also being sailed in Elliott 7's this year and its International Paints (Tony Dalbeth Hudson) who are blitzing the fleet, winning all 7 races sailed so far. Yachting Developments (Frankie Dair), Watts & Hughes (Bob Still), Sultanate of Oman (Harry Bailey), Western Mailing (Chris Raynes) and Soar Printing (Peter Linford) round out the fleet.
Racing gets underway again at 10am tomorrow with plenty of action bound to unfold in all divisions.
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