Nations' Cup and One Global Tomes Cup 2022
by RHKYC Media 3 May 2022 14:54 BST
30 April 2022
Top Dog Trophy Series 2020-2021
It's great to be back! One Global Tomes Cup
After an absence of five months due to Government anti-epidemic measures which saw a stoppage of all sport, sailors were more than eager to return to racing, enjoying fresh air sailing in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour as they competed in the One Global Tomes Cup on 30 April.
75 boats showed up on an overcast day with a moderate 10kts easterly breeze at the start of racing. The Pandora fleet was first to set off on the pursuit race at 1400hrs, followed by the Ruffians, Dragons and Flying Fifteen classes. Chasing them down to the projected target finish time of 1630hrs were the Impala, J/80 and Etchells fleets, followed by the Sportsboats and the eight Big Boats catching up from behind. Race Officer Gareth Williams set a start line just off Hung Hom and sent the fleet off on four laps between Tai Koo Shing and Hung Hom.
The wind weakened to 6kts in the middle of the race, so the Race Officer decided to shorten the course at the top mark. A valiant effort by Pandora Panopae saw her hold the lead until the third lap around Tai Koo Shing before being passed by the Dragons and Vx One. Dragon Zephyr crossed the finish line at 16:30:35 to take the win. Dragon Davinloong crossed the line almost two minutes later to take second place and Vx One Serendipity, kept up her strong performance to take third.
This regatta is the third of four constituent events that make up the Top Dog Trophy Series which is designed to identify the most successful Club boat competing across various courses and conditions. Patrick Pender 's Vx One Serendipity is now leading the Top Dog Trophy Series by almost 6 points ahead of Lowell Chang's Dragon Davinloong. This year's Top Dog will be determined after the final event of the series, the One Global HKRNVR Memorial Vase which will be held on 7 May.
Nations' Cup Race Report
The Nations' Cup is arguably one of the Club's foremost fun events and even the heavy rain and unseasonalbly cold weather (the coldest May for over 100 years in fact) could not stop sailors dressing up in costumes to represent their nation. 59 boats from 18 nations (well, 19 including the Metaverse) turned out on 1 May.
21 boats represented Hong Kong, with the second largest participating nation being England with 10 entries. Also sailing for the glory of their nation were Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Scotland, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, the United States and Wales.
Often referred to as sailing's answer to the (Hong Kong) Rugby Sevens, where many attend in fancy dress, the majority of participating sailors celebrated the spirit of the day by wearing costumes and decorating their boats with nation flags and other paraphernalia - all this despite the steady drizzle.
Big Boat Amaze sailed absolutely safe in full Covid protective clothing, whilst Pandora Class sailing crew on board Hakuna Matata, Panopae and Windfall came in cheongsams and qipao; featuring as the main characters of the legendary Hong Kong film- Rouge. An American all-girls team on board Ruffian Scallywag all dressed as Britney Spears, albeit in various outfits that she made famous. Sadly, many of these amazing outfits were eventually covered up and hidden under foul weather gear while sailing, however the sailors were still enjoying the glorious display of nationalistic pride.
Boats were split into six starts based on their RHKATI or HKPN ratings, with the two HKPN divisions starting first. Sailors were greeted with around 10kts of easterly breeze (gusting up to 15kts) at the Club start line.
Race Officer Bonnie Cheng sent the fleet to Junk Bay rounding TCS4 and then back to Tin Hau, upwind back to Kowloon Bay before heading back to the Club finish line. The wind was weakened at the Lei Yue Mun and Junk Bay, where the fleets parked up twice.
When it was all said and done, the final results saw Mike Burrell's Impala 1 representing Scotland crowned top nation for the second time in the history of the Nations' Cup, while they also snagged the most important bragging rights to having the Scottish flag displayed over the Main Bar until next year's Nations' Cup. In second place was England followed by Ireland in third place. Fukushima Kunihiro's White Rabbit representing Japan won first place in HKPN division.
The Scottish team celebrated their win; "It was a surprise; we did have a good run to Lei Yue Mun. This is the second Scottish win for the Nations' Cup, and we are nearly up to New Zealand's standard who have won three times, so we are going to win again next year!." said Mike Burrell. Burrell also thought the weather contributed to their win " All the English are too cold to sail fast, and this was the perfect weather for the Scottish"