Sunday Series III Race 2

With weather systems around the region going a little out of the norm, yesterday’s uncommon sea of white caps also came as a surprise, signalling a fresh north-easterly breeze for the sailors racing in the Sunday Series. Even though it lasted only for the first 20 minutes of the race, it managed to carry sailors all the way to the battle ground between Ubin and Tekong – where many sailors faltered to the merciless currents, sudden drop in wind strength and erratic wind shifts.

In the IRC class, everything came together nicely for Invictus, as she crossed the line first in a fleet of 3, also taking the bullet on corrected time. She excelled in the lighter air, displaying good boat speed on both the upwind and downwind legs. Waka Tere‘s 2-up power combo of Kurt and Gill did commendably in the strong winds just off the start, but struggled with the limitations of crew and sail wardrobe to fully maximize the Nelson 30’s potential. Despite being shorthanded, she managed to fend off Born in Fire and her new owner, Thomas Reckefuss to take 2nd place. Thomas will be looking to fine tune his rig and get to know his new acquisition better over the coming weeks, in preparation for the Ambassadors’ Cup in November!

Southern Light slayed the fleet of PY boats yesterday, with some excellent calls and good boat speed throughout the race. Everything seemed to work out well for skipper James and crew, as they not only took first place on corrected time, but also snatched line honours ahead of faster boats like Sangaree and Sapphire Star. Sangaree found themselves in an unusual position – having to play catch up with Sapphire Star and Southern Light. Her struggles compounded with further technical issues on the boat, eventually battered and settling for 3rd. A bullet in race 1 and 2nd in race 2 means that Sapphire Star is now in the driving seat for the PY Class, Sunday Series III. To round off the fleet, the 2 boats (Minx & Brio) which succumbed to the light winds and strong currents up at Tekong Buoy received a standing ovation from the bar upon crossing the finish line – a truly heartwarming display of camaraderie amongst members/sailors.

Buay Kaola‘s baseline boat speed was evident in yesterday’s wind strength, as she powered her way through the course in clinical fashion. The Corsair 31 managed to stay well ahead of the nippy Cicak, securing victory with just under 2 minutes separating both boats after corrected time. Little Itchy-Go completed the podium in 3rd place, in addition to being the fastest Weta on the course.

Equipment malfunction from Bad Influence meant that she gave Stray Catz a head start in the Beach Catamaran Class – having to play catch up throughout the race. Despite the late start, Jeremy Nixon put in a great effort to close the gap with Nigel, finishing only 5 minutes behind. These 2 stalwarts of the beach catamaran class keep things very lively despite the small numbers – we hope to have more of the beach catamaran owners joining us on the weekends for a fun/casual race! If you’re looking to race but are hesitant/don’t know where to start – these gentlemen would be two of the best people to introduce you to club racing on beach catamarans.

Thank you all 16 boats for participating!

See you on Friday, 18th October for Members Night, and Saturday for our Twilight Series III Race 2!

Results

IRC Keelboat
PY Keelboat
Multi-hull
Beach Catamaran