Sea Ventures Super Series Test Event Round 1, Cowes
by Mark Angell 30 Oct 2023 15:47 GMT
28-29 October 2023
Sea Ventures Super Series Test Event Round 1, Cowes © John Green / Cowes
This past weekend saw the first round of the Sea Ventures Super Series [SVSS] contended by boats with IRC Ratings ranging from 1.026 to 1.039 all racing shorthanded [2-4 Crew] on courses around the Central/Eastern Solent - run as a limited entry 'Test Event' to prove the concept - with racing taking place on a Saturday and Sunday with a changing stop over host port for each Saturday night.
Saturday started on time with PRO Rich Palmer firing the fleet off the Island Sailing Club start line with a fast reach East to Browndown - the fleet of Sun Fasts, JPKs and Farr X2 revelling on the downwind leg with the lighter Farr X2 reaching the bottom mark convincingly ahead. A beat back up the Solent followed, with the tide underneath the fleet. James Harayda helming the Sun Fast 3300 Fastrak taking the win on corrected time. Game On Sun Fast 3300 2nd with Farrcical the X2 in 3rd
Race 2 followed soon after race 1 with a strong Westerly going tide holding everyone back off the Island SC line - time on distance being misjudged by a few teams with the breeze having decreased. Once under way it was again Farrcical leading the fleet around the Eastern Solent course with Fastrak hot on their heels closely followed by the JPK1080 Mzungu! On corrected time it would be another Sun Fast 3300 1 & 2 with Fastrak and Kestrel taking the top spots with Farrcical in 3rd.
Saturday's host port was Cowes, and the night's social was hosted by the Island Sailing Club, putting on their popular curry night which was followed by the Rugby World Cup final, the clash of the titans on the big screen. With the rugby all done and decided thoughts turned to the wet and windy forecast for Sunday and the extra hour in bed with the change of the clocks!
With the forecast of 15 - 25kts for Sunday [but heavy rain showers] the race committee and fleet were expecting to get away on time, albeit a bit damp for Sunday's race. Sadly the forecast didn't hold true with competitors drifting around in the rain. Once racing got under way a long 17nm course was set with the expectation of the 20kt Southerly to kick in, the strong Westerly going tide stopped teams in their tracks from making any progress past the first mark so the race was abandoned, and teams brought back for another go.
With the wind doing 270 degree shifts in the Solent with the rain showers going through a window opened with the Race Committee seeing a consistent Westerly wind establishing. Start number 2 got under way at 11:55 just before the time limit of 12:00, the fleet sailing a square course around the central Solent. The PRO chose a course that could be shortened as required, after the first round taking just under an hour the breeze firmly kicked in seeing teams beating to windward with the tide under them doing nearly 9kts over the ground. The leading boats Farrcical and Kestral rounded the windward mark and hoisting asymmetric for a fast sleigh ride downwind in the now 18/20kts of wind. The elevator effect of the tide making for long downwinds and short upwinds. First to cross the line was Nick Bonner helming the Farrcicle with Simon Bamford's Kestrel finishing some four minutes behind on the water to take the win on corrected by 2m 18s the JPK 1030 team onboard Insert Coin taking 3rd place.
Round 1, Cowes Top 3 Results:
1st - Farrcical, Farr X2, Nick Bonner - 8pts
2nd - Fastrak, SF3300, Nigel Colley/James Harayda - 9pts
3rd - Kestrel, SF3300, Simon Bamford - 9pts
Round 2 of the Sea Ventures Super Series will take place on the 11th/12th November. Where the host port will be Lymington.
More information at www.sea-ventures.co.uk/race-yachts-super-series