Day 2 of the CSC Trimaran Championship saw a significant drop in wind strength, as well as number of hulls on water. Soluna 880 and Kalliste II wrapped up their weekend with only 1 day of racing, while the team on Buay Kao La decided to pivot and sail on AbraCadeborah for the remaining three races of the series.
Race Organisers started with plenty of optimism, sending the fleet on a pennant 2 course for the first race of the day. this proved to be a challenging one, as the winds did not ascend to the desired strength – leaving all 8 teams to contend with light and fickle winds and a surprise storm cloud between 12 noon and 1pm in the Tekong Channel. The race was the longest duration registered so far, averaging 1.5-2hrs for all. Ding Hao persevered to continue her fine run from Day 1, scoring her third bullet for the series and cementing her position on top. closest rivals Dot Dot Dot claimed 2nd, and the fight for third intensified between Phoenix, Bula and Miss Visayan.
Going into Races five and six, there was some caution from the Race Committee, as they flew pennants one and three respectively, to accommodate for the lighter breeze. While the positions remained the same in 1 and 2, the real action unfolds in the tussle for 3rd. Phoenix claimed 3rd place in Race 5 and AbraCaDeborah scored their best finish for the Championship with a 3rd in the final race, mixing things up for the overall results. When the scores were tabulated, only 1 point separated 3rd, 4th and 5th, with Phoenix emerging the best of the lot, placing a point ahead of Miss Visayan and 2 points ahead of Bula, who did a fantastic job of recovering from a blown spinnaker during the storm in Race 4 to hold on to 3rd place for that race and sail consistently after to place 5th overall.
Ding Hao and Dot Dot Dot reminded us of the impressive combined experience of Team Pro Sail Asia, with Campbell Jenkins and Scott McCook lending their prowess to the respective teams. At the prize giving ceremony, we acknowledge the generous sponsorship from Team Pro Sail Asia, providing a lucky draw voucher and cash vouchers for the 5th to 1st place winners. Special mention to Oojoo for claiming the Lucky Draw prize!
Congratulations to all winners, and thank you everyone for participating in this year’s CSC Trimaran Championship!
Changi Sailing Club welcomes 90 ILCA sailors (67 ILCA 4 & 23 ILCA 6) with perfect wind and weather condition.
The race management team set up a challenging windward/leeward course with 3 loops with at least 50 minutes of racing in an averaging of 13 to 15kts blowing from Northeasterly direction with a gusty wind blasting up to 18kts. Experienced and stronger sailor took advantage of the situation, hiking out, smashing through every waves and swells leaving the younger sailors at the back of fleet fighting against all these factors to survive the race.
After 4 races, Ian Goh (SGP 222713) from Constantwind emerged the leading boat in ILCA 4 fleet with a results of 1, 3, 1 & 1 seating comfortably on the top of the podium against strong contender Austin Yeo (SGP 221062) from SAFYC with 15 points and Danielle Lai (SGP 222257) from Royal Varuna Yacht Club (RVYC) which is also the top female as of day 1. Meanwhile, our CSC sailors did showed a strong performances led by Ikuto Mori (SGP 221687) currently in 6th place and Misa Lim Laure (USA 223202) securing the 1st spot in the 13 and under category, 9th in the overall and 4th in female division. First time racing in ILCA 4, Amandine Pitsilis (SGP 219725) secured her 3rd place in the female category.
In the ILCA 6, experienced sailors Kenan Tan (SGP 185201), Jania Ang (SGP 222727) & Abigail Goh (SGP 214237) fighting in the top 3 spots. CSC sailors Caio Sullivan (SGP 221931) and Maia Lim Laure have both entered the top 10 overall out of 23 sailors finishing the day with 5th & 8th respectively.
With the heavy wind condition, sailors were for sure exhausted and needed a good rest and get ready for the next day racing. Will the results remains? or the condition may change? lighter wind?
Let’s wait and find out after day 2! 3 races to go!
The CSC Trimaran Championships 2025 got off to a fantastic start, as sailors were greeted with a freshening North-Easterly breeze on Saturday morning. The prevailing 10-12 knots of winds and a manageable tide made it a pleasant 4 hours of sailing for the fleet of 10 trimarans. This year, we welcome a number of new additions, from Roy Phua’s Soluna 880 to Giam Hock Koon’s sleek new Dragonfly 25 “Oojoo”, as well as the dormant Kalliste II, a Corsair 750 also based in CSC. Together with 7 other regular trimarans on the start line, and a backdrop of 90 ILCAs racing between Ubin and Tekong made for a magnificent view from Changi Sailing Club.
Racing got underway smoothly, and Dot Dot Dot drew first blood with a win in Race 1 on the pennant 1 course. She was followed closely by Ding Hao and Phoenix, with the former helmed by the formidable Jonathan Mahoney and latter coming off a successful Singapore Regatta campaign. Race organisers followed up with pennant 2 and 3 for races 2 and 3, allowing for a variety of courses to thoroughly test the fleet.
After three races, Ding Hao leads the fleet by 1 point, scoring bullets in Races 2 and 3 to complete Day 1 with 4 points, just 1 point ahead of Dot Dot Dot. The effective duo of David Steel and Scott McCook made light work of the courses today, shrugging off an OCS in race 3 to overtake the fleet and take runner up position. Winner of last year’s Sunday Series and Twilight Races, Miss Visayan had a consistent day out, placing 4th, 3rd and 3rd to stay marginally ahead of Phoenix and Bula in 4th and 5th respectively. Phoenix’s red-hot form at the Singapore Regatta could not be replicated today – but we did however see glimpses of it in Race 3 as she blitzed pass the whole fleet on the way down from Changi Buoy to Squance.
A notable mention would be Buay Kao La a corsair 970 and the largest Trimaran in the fleet. Her day ended early due to a blown clew on her main sail, but her start in Race 1 was impressive, as she led the fleet on the first leg. With repairs done, she is ready to resume racing on Day 2.
Good luck to all competitors, and see you tomorrow for more exciting racing!
Lee Yimin’s Jolt captures Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Trophy
The second and final day of the Singapore Regatta was made of a series of windward-leeward races overseen by Changi Activities Manager Leahnnie “Jhing” Tayong. As Adona’s crewmate Claire Canning said, “Today’s biggest challenge was choosing a side. The current was a big deal as rounding the leeward mark was a serious challenge – the Tekong Tango never fails to deliver.”
The J24s and Platu 25s were the first boats Jhing sent off the line with four boats racing in each One Design Class. The J24s saw Lisette Sens’ team from the Republic of Singapore Yacht Club on Dua win every race in their class, even the race they dropped, to finish with three points overall. Three points back in second overall sat Jun Zhang’s Chinese crew from the Jiangsu Tianyi High School. Then another three points behind them sat Norman Yip’s fellow Republic of Singapore Yacht Club team on Tiga.
Similarly, Ivan Boudioukine’s SMUve took top spot in the Platu Class – winning every race in their class, even the race they dropped, to finish with three points overall. A Thai team headed by former Olympian Worrasard Saardiem and Thai National Jury member Pokpong Pattaweekongka on Notus and Luc Yee’s SMUMad finished tied with seven points overall, but Notus took second spot having finished higher in the final race.
Simon Piff’s Firstlight won the 11-boat Portsmouth Yardstick (PY) class as they also won every race in their class, even the race they dropped, to finish with three points overall. The race between second- and third-place was much tighter as Colin Clark’s Bound to Please by scoring eight points with their drop edged out Jasper Simon Knoben’s Forever Young, who left their radio on all day, by one point.
Funny enough, the first race of the day was delayed not due to lack of wind, but because Michael Chung’s Brio, who finished fifth in the PY class, couldn’t get to the starting gate on time. And James Sharpe’s Southern Light, also in the class, kissed the committee boat just before crossing the finish line in race two just to keep things interesting.
The second start of the day in the IRC division saw a redo as a couple of the boats in the PY class hadn’t yet finished their second race, thereby not keeping the start clean for the IRC racers. But when all three races were eventually completed Lee Yimin’s Jolt stood atop the podium in this class. Second was defending IRC class champion Adriaan Smit’s Adona, who with seven points edged out Thomas Reckefuss’ Born in Fire, who placed third.
The six-boat multihull class was the closest of them all as Freddy Fam’s Phoenix and Eugene Wong’s Sirius Swift both finished with four points overall, but Phoenix claimed class honours as they won the final race of the day. Gary Curtis’ Miss Visayan was third in the class.
Three beach catamarans took part in the regatta today, having not participated in yesterday’s passage race. Jeremy Perrier, sailing Addiction single-handed, won two of the three races to capture the class with Kelly Twigge’s Twisted Creature finishing second and Zaheera Hashim’s Balqis II coming in third.
When it was all sailed and done, we had a new Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Trophy champion as Lee Yimin’s Singapore-based boat Jolt entered and placed in all four of the regattas constituting the series (the Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta, the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta, the Royal Langkawi International Regatta and the Singapore Regatta) to take home the 102-year-old trophy.
The guest of honour at the awards ceremony was Mr. Vince Tan, Director of Ops Transformation & Planning of the Maritime Port Authority of Singapore. He handed our prizes to the fastest boats across the line in each class.
Thanks must go to club cameraman Kit and videographer Lukman for capturing the finest moments of the regatta and to Mohd Dali bin Hamid for being such a terrific photography boat driver.
This amazing weekend would not be possible without the support from Tiger Beer and Simply Scuba – whose support through in-kind and cash sponsorship helped defray the high costs that come with running this signature event.
And last but not least, none of this could have happened without the hard work CSC General Manager Choy Yi Hong who put in so much time and effort to ensure the regatta was a success.
Through this regatta, the Changi Sailing Club solidified its reputation as the most competitive adult sailing club in the region. As discussed previously there is no end to the large moveable objects in the East Johor Straits that will test any sailor’s seamanship skills. But it’s not just that, the club is devoted to promoting sailing – that is its main purpose. Many of the club’s members – both expats and Singaporeans alike – are noted professionals (doctors, lawyers, accountants, scientists and businessmen among them) who all love sailing and cherish their weekend time on the water. They don’t come here to have high tea, they come to sail and they do that very well. The bond of camaraderie between the fellow sailors is exceptional as they lean on each other for support and guidance while encouraging those new to the sport.
One of the perks of holding a regatta at the Changi Sailing Club is that General Manager and Principal Race Officer Choy Yi Hong can stage the starts and finishes of the regatta from the Crow’s Nest of the club’s pier – how convenient is that? He doesn’t have to motor a great distance to find wind or a suitable place to drop anchor. He just wanders down from the clubhouse with a cup of coffee in his head, climbs to his perch, surveys the fleet and let loose with the start sequence.
Now for all you newbies to Singapore yacht racing, it’s certainly not for the feint of heart. At any given moment, in the East Johor Straits, you could have a container ship on your port side, an oil tanker on your starboard and a passenger ferry dead ahead and these behemoths aren’t slowing down, so you better have your head on a swivel and your wits about you, or you just might be saying bye to your boat and your health.
Luckily, the seasoned sailors of the august Changi Sailing Club (CSC) have plenty of experience dealing with this kind of heavy traffic on the water – they aren’t even slightly fazed when a camera boat gets in their way. I mean, after dealing with shipping containers and oil tankers a camera boat is like a rubber ducky.
As today’s racing was about to get underway, PRO Choy made a slight adjustment, taking into consideration fluky winds (10-12 knots) and asymmetrical conditions. He flew the U-flag at the Paku buoy, which became the new turning point as the fleet was diverted from the north angler due to the forecasted lighter winds coming from the east north-east. Once that was all sorted competitors headed out under bright sunny skies.
The J24s and Platu 25s were the first boats off the line with four boats racing in each One Design Class. The J24s saw Lisette Sens’ squad from the Republic of Singapore Yacht Club earn first place on Dua with Jun Zhang’ Chinese crew on the Jiangsu Tianyi High School team coming in second and CSC’s own Suzanne Updike placing third on Jock.
Ivan Boudioukine’s SMUve took top spot in the Platu Class with a Thai team headed by former Olympian Worrasard Saardien and National Jury member Pokpong Pattaweekongla taking second on Notus and Luc Yee’s SMUMad finishing third.
The next class in sequence was the 11-boat Portsmouth Yardstick (PY) class and today’s winner was the ever-so charismatic Simon Piff on his Beneteau First 50, Firstlight, who won on elapsed and corrected time. Second place went to Colin Clark’s Bound to Please and third place went to Michael Chung’s Brio. The tenacity award must go out to Manav Krishan out there single-handed on a boat also called First Light who kept at it and at it till the wind just died completely and the rain came.
In the IRC division, Martin Lund Jensen’s Zanzibar took an early lead, and owned it, zipping through the course for line honours (3:05:41) although they did finish fifth in the seven-boat class once their handicap was applied, and unfortunately, they did blow out their main (oops!). Winning this class today, however, was Lee Yimin’s Jolt, who is a day away from being declared the 2024-25 Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Trophy winner (exciting times). Second in this class after handicap was applied was defending IRC class champion Adriaan Smit’s Adona, with Thomas Reckefuss’ Born in Fire placing third.
Eugene Wong’s Sirius Swift did some serious racing today winning the six-boat multihull class on both elapsed and corrected time. Freddy Fam’s Phoenix was second in the class edging out Giam Hock Koon’s Oojoo by thirty-seven seconds, who took third overall.
It was great to see the organizers of two other regional regattas on hand as Prakash Reddy, the chairman of the Nongsa Neptune Regatta in Indonesia was sailing on Zanzibar, while Irsyad Ismail, chairman of the Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta was here to cheer on members of his Royal Selangor Yacht Club from Malaysia.
Day 2 will be a series of windward-leeward races to decide who will win the coveted top honours at the fourth Singapore Regatta. Afterwards, there will be a prize-giving at the Changi Sailing Club to not only crown the winners of this regatta but the winner of the 102-year-old Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Trophy.
Sail, Rattle & Roll as Changi preps for the 4th Singapore Regatta
The 4th Singapore Regatta welcomes competitors from local and regional sailing clubs to enjoy the prevailing northeast monsoon in one of the most iconic big boat and multihull regattas in Singapore. This regatta will take place on the 15-16 February 2025, purportedly the windiest and driest month of the year.
The picturesque Changi Sailing Club (CSC) has taken over the reins of the Singapore Regatta from the Singapore Sailing Federation. Supported by Raffles Marina, the Republic of Singapore Yacht Club and sanctioned by Singapore Sailing Federation, this signature event is a reimagined version of the Singapore Straits Regatta, borne from a vision of celebrating the best of keelboat and multihull sailing in Singapore and the region.
The Singapore Regatta is the final qualifying event for the prestigious Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Trophy – a coveted prize awarded to the best performing IRC keelboat in the region.
The Sir Thomas Lipton Cup is a prestigious and historic trophy which dates back to 1923. It is awarded to the best performing yacht in eligible IRC categories across the following four regional events: the Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta, the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta, the Royal Langkawi International Regatta and the Singapore Regatta.
Why is this so important? Because since Captain Marty Rijkuris passed in December of 2019 his Asia Yachting Grand Prix (AYGP) series died with him, and the Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge Trophy is the first sailing series to unite the major regatta events held in mainland Southeast Asia.
Congratulations go out to CSC General Manager Choy Yi Hong for resurrecting this cherished chalice and for staging an event that has more entrees than any other regional regatta since COVID.
The 2025 event takes participating yachts on a scenic passage race route, enjoying panoramic views along the East Johor Straits. Following the passage race on Saturday, competitors will sail shorter windward-leeward races between Pulau Ubin and Pulau Tekong, two of Singapore’s most iconic islands. The regatta will feature a diverse group of 38 entrees with skippers from 19 different countries.
Six classes are grouped together in four divisions: the IRC Division has 7 boats competing; Club Racing (Portsmouth Yardstick) has 13 yachts sailing; the J24/Platu 25 Sports Boat Divisions have 10; & Multihulls & Beach Catamarans have 8 boats.
Who to watch for? Well, first off in the Platu 25 OD class the Singapore Management University Sailing Club (SMUSC) has entered two Platu 25s. SMUSC has long been active in the regional scene, participating in the Top of the Gulf Regatta, the Nongsa Regatta, the China Cup, and most recently, the SB20 Worlds in Singapore.
Adona, a J29, based at the Changi Sailing Club will be sailing. She is the defending Singapore Regatta IRC Division champion, and past winner of the PY Division (2022). She is skippered by Dutch national and CSC Social Secretary, Mr. Adriaan Smit.
Also, be on the lookout for Jolt, a J99 skippered by CSC member Lee Yimin; a class-three winner at the 2024 Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta. Jolt also had a second-place showing at the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta 2024 (IRC 2) and a third-place finish at the Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2025 (IRC1). She has the best chance to win this season’s Sir Thomas Lipton Cup.
Rolf Heemskerk’s The Next Factor is leading the Lipton Cup Series by three points over Lee Yimin’s Jolt and Nick Burns Blitz heading into the final event of the series. But as neither The Next Factor or Blitz is competing in this regatta, Jolt will most probably win the Thomas Lipton Cup. Peter Jong’s Kesini, also based at the CSC, sits five points back of Blitz, and has a very good chance of finishing third overall.
Red Rum One was the best performing IRC boat across all qualifying events during the 2023 – 2024 season, claiming the historic 102-year-old Challenge Trophy, but she will not be able to retain the trophy this campaign.
This year’s IRC Division also includes Zanzibar, a Humphreys 42, which won the 50th Rolex China Sea Race. She is based in Raffles Marina & skippered by her new owner, Martin Lund Jensen.
Sailors of note to watch out for include Xu Yuan Zhen Club Racer, a 2008 Beijing Olympics 470 Men’s Skipper. He will be sailing in the (PY) Division on Firstlight, a Beneteau 50 based in Raffles Marina. And in the Multihull Division, three-time Asian Games Medalist Teo Wee Chin will be crewing on Sirius Swift, a Corsair 880 Sport.
The guest of honour at the event will be Mr. Vince Tan, Director of Ops Transformation & Planning of the Maritime Port Authority of Singapore. After the opening and closing ceremonies, Sailors may adjourn to the Ubin Lounge for post racing drinks (2nd Floor, Clubhouse) and entertainment.
Faced with a bellowing 18 knots of North East winds and just an hour of preparation, an intimate fleet of weekend warriors we know as the beach catamaran sailors made time for an afternoon of back-to-back races which formed this year’s CSC Catamaran Championship.
A shadow of its former glory, the beach catamaran fleet from decades past have been reduced to just 5 teams on the start line yesterday. Nevertheless, it was still a great day out on water, and credit to all who showed up to race!
Results
1st – Addiction 2nd – Balqis II 3rd – Madfish II 4th – Twisted Creature 5th – Pac Man
Overall, the passion and camaraderie on water was infectious. It was heartwarming to see sailors ranging from 12 to 63 out on water, and senior sailors sharing their experience and knowledge with the novices between each race. We hope the enthusiasm continues to grow within he fleet, as we look forward to sharing more fond memories of catamaran sailing in 2025.
