Good racing in steady breeze at CRC Bay of Islands Sailing Week

Posted on January 25, 2019

“Good racing in good breeze from the start, with no delays”, was how Regatta Chairperson Manuela Gmuer-Hornell summed up the second day of racing at CRC Bay of Islands Sailing Week yesterday.

“People were really happy today,” she continued. “The fleets got to go around Ninepin, which seems to be a favourite, because it’s so iconic.”

In A Division, Mayhem and Georgia continue to dominate across the line, and at the end of day two it’s Georgia on top with Mayhem just behind on general handicap in the series results. But on PHRF it’s a different story, with locals Kia Kaha putting up the good fight against the out-of-towners, leading the PHRF table by one point as they go into the final day’s racing.

Icebreaker is the stand-out in B Division, with line honours in all three of yesterday’s races. With the highest handicap of the fleet, her wins over the line should be no surprise. But skipper Steve Purton must have had his crew working extra hard, as they’d done enough to put her at the top of the series results for both general handicap and PHRF by the end of day two.

Despite longer courses for the Island Racing fleets on day two, it seems the top four or five boats in Island Racing A could probably still have their own division. Regatta organiser John Grant, who was watching the racing from a vantage point on shore said: “The fastest boats in Island Racing A just took off, it was like a bunch of TP52s reaching out of the bay.”

Even in a one design class like the Weta Trimarans, the differences between the fastest and slowest boats means setting courses that keep everyone happy can be tricky. Short races for some yesterday meant a few grumbles, but these were quickly countered by praise from other competitors who thoroughly enjoyed their day.

Following the day’s racing, several hundred sailors, together with friends and family, boarded Explore ferries to the Otehei Bay resort on Urupukapuka Island, for a revival of one of the regatta’s best-loved events – the Thursday evening beach party. “It was really good” said one partygoer, “it had a lovely atmosphere”.

A late finish for some may mean slower racing today, but a forecast for steady breeze should see good racing again for the final day today.

Regatta Chairperson Manuela, however, is philosophical about the conditions the final day will bring: “ I tend not to look at them”, she says, “because I can’t change them.”

Racing concludes today, Friday 25 January, and final results will be announced at prizegiving from around 7pm in Opua this evening.

Full results including day two can be found here:

CRC Bay of Islands Sailing Week:
Website: www.bayofislandssailingweek.org.nz
Facebook: /bayofislandssailingweek
Twitter: @boisailingweek #boisw #boisw2019
Instagram: @boisailingweek #boisw #boisw2019
YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/BaySailingWeek