A MIXTURE of 20 boats took part in the first day of the Commodore Keelers Series, hosted offshore by Point Yacht Club last Sunday.
Six keelboats got off first in a gentle six knots of breeze, heading up to the weather mark on the windward leeward course. The wind moved around from the light south-easter to a north-easter that gently increased to around nine knots during the second race.
In the racing division, a tussle ensued between the elegant Bellissima and the much smaller L26, which was crewed by scholars. Only minutes separated them in both races, with Bellissima (led by James Goss) crossing the line first one minute and five seconds ahead of Container World, led by Brendan Humphreys. In the second race, Humphreys favoured the starboard side of the course, which worked to his advantage; the young team crossed ahead of the more experienced crew with a mere 46 seconds to spare.
The only multihull to enter, Bandit (skippered by Sean Jones), was required to do three laps, and the smallest boat in the fleet, Olivia Jane (helmed by Neil Millar), needed only to complete one lap. The remaining four boats in the racing division had to complete two laps. The stealthy catamaran, Bandit, which sails faster in gustier conditions, worked hard to keep the boat at full speed and was one of only a handful of boat crews brave enough to fly their spinnaker on all the downwind legs.
In the Hobie GP,12 boats came out to get in some training ahead of their main event this year, the Hobie 14 Nationals, that will be held over the Easter weekend.
Youngster, Jethro Brophy-Tintinger, continued to impress as he finished the two races on top of the log, tied with the reigning Hobie champion, Garth Loudon. Both of them ended the day on six points, one point ahead of Sean Fennessy, who doubled up with his daughter, Jessica, on their Hobie 16. Westville’s Peter Hall had a dire first race, crossing the line in eighth place, but getting ahead of the pack in the second race and remaining there, taking the win and ending the day on nine points.
The oldest sailor on the day, Al Gorlei, who celebrated his 80th birthday last year, had a consistent day on the water and finished sixth overall, only five points behind the leaders.
This weekend sees the second day of the Hobie GP and the Commodore Keelers Series, with racing commencing offshore on Sunday.
