Hong Kong Optimist National & Open Championships 2016 – day 1

by Guy Nowell, Sail-World Asia on 8 Oct 2016 With Typhoon Aere doing rhythmic gymnastics somewhere south of Hong Kong, and a T1 signal hoisted by the HK Observatory, there was plenty to think about for the first day of the HK Optimist National & Open Championships 2016. This is an event that has grow massively over the last few years, and is rapidly staking its place as a competitor to the Thai Oppie Nationals in the ‘must do’ department in Asia.

90 competitors signed on this morning, and after the customary briefing the fleet set sail from the RHKYC’s base at Middle Island, heading for Course Area B to the south of Stanley. There was plenty of pressure on the dock, but a little less on the race course, and it was a swinging breeze that gave RO Charlie Manzoni a few headaches. The scheduled start at 11.00 eventually got away an hour late after three AP signals, with an oscillation from 340 deg to 040 deg to blame.

Three races, with the fleet split into four flights, and with every one racing everyone else by the end of the day. Red and Blue, White and Yellow, then Red and White, Blue and Yellow etc – work it out. A beat to mark 1, broad reach to the wing mark (2), run to the leeward gate (3) and beat back to the finish. It was up-and-down wind all day, and the sunshine ran out just about when the first start got away, but all races were conducted in good order.

Undoubtedly Man of the Match (or MVP, or whatever) was Duncan Gregor (HKG) who scored two bullets and a second from three races, leading his second race across the finish line in light breeze by a shade over four minutes – pretty remarkable in an OD fleet. He said, “I got a clean start at the pin end, and then kept a close eye on everyone else. There was a big swing in the breeze, so I stayed in the middle of the course and took all the shifts that I could find.” Closest competitor on the scoreboard was Jack Ferguson (AUS) who recorded 2, 2, 3, sailing the first two races in the ‘other’ fleet pairing from Gregor. Australian competitors are occupying all places in the results sheet from 2 to 7, so no pressure on Hong Kong!

The four flights will race again tomorrow to complete a Qualifying Series, and then the fleet will be split into Gold and Silver for the final day’s racing. The HK Observatory forecast for Sunday is promising “a replenishment of the northeast monsoon, bringing cooler weather… and it will be windier with a few rain patches for the next few days.” Bring it on!

Top Ten after 3 races each:

1. Duncan Gregor (HKG) 1,1,2 (4)
2. Jack Ferguson (AUS) 2,2,3 (7)
3. Ryan Littlechild (AUS) 3,1,5 (9)
4. Axel Fleet (AUS) 7,2,1 (10)
5. Fletcher Walters (AUS) 7,5,1 (13)
6. Quinn Auricht (AUS) 5,3,6 (14)
7. Matthew Clark (AUS) 11,4,4 (19)
8. Jania Ang (SIN) 1,10,9 (20)
9. Daniel Links (AUS) 11,5,5 (21)
10. Thibault Minne (HKG) 2,6,14 (22)

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