RMSIR 2014 – Penang to Langkawi. An espresso race

by Guy Nowell, Sail-World Asia on 21 Nov 2014 RMSIR 2014 – Penang to Langkawi. An espresso race: short, straight, strong and sweet. A slow start for the last coastal race of the Raja Muda is almost a tradition. ‘L’ flag and ‘follow me’ up the course until the RO finds conditions that suit. Equally almost traditional is that this is the blowiest leg of the regatta. 50nm and another straight line to the finish, except this one really is a straight line, with no sand bars or other deviant diversions. So the tactical question is whether to hold ‘up’ and inshore in anticipation of breeze from the north east, or stay ‘down’ in the softer breeze near the start and pray fervently for a lift to the finish.

First warning signal at 1225; Class 6 crept across the line with a zephyr and promise, and then the wind shut down before Class 5 got a chance to join in. ‘N’, ‘L’, and off went the Committee Boat followed by the fleet. 2nm further on, and this time there was enough puff to get everyone away on a reaching start, with the wind building all the way through the sequence. When it came to Class 1, HiFi looked to be hanging back in the third row, but sneaked, raised and filled a spinnaker in just six seconds and launched across the start line at warp factor 3.

Spinnakers held good for the first couple of miles only, and then there was a slow-down and back to headsails before the breeze freed up a little allowing code zeros for those who had ‘em and cracked sheets for those that didn’t. Leading from the front, Antipodes took the view that 'pace was everything' and sacrificed height for distance, and that paid off. 'PredictWind gave us a soft patch in the middle with a lift in it, and we opted to stay with the speed and open the gap on the following boats as much as possible,' said Matt Humphries. Antipodes saw 28kts across the deck towards the finish, and practically steamed home in an elapsed time of just 5h 16m, chased at the end by the 37m Escapade who had finally found her breeze, but still finishing 15 min back. Skipper David Rawlinson might have regretted hoisting a spinnaker soon after start - it took so long to get the thing down again, and they lost a lot of ground to leeward in the process. Otherwise they would have been right there with – or even in front of – Antipodes at the finish line. C’est la vie (which is French for 'That's yacht racing...'

Last boat home at five minutes to one this morning was Jerry Lau’s diminutive WYSIWYG in Class 5. The ‘Epic Effort Award’ goes to the centenarian Eveline who not only didn’t finish NOT last on the water but also converted for a win in Class 6 by a massive 2h 13m on corrected time. ‘Little & Large’ prize goes to Escapade who very considerately passed Kay Sira to leeward shortly after the start, saving Barry Wickett from a wind shadow half the size of Penang.

After a marginally disappointing day in Penang, Island Fling took the bullet for Class 1 just 18 sec ahead of HiFi on corrected time, with Foxy Lady in third place. Bill Bremner still leads the series on 9 points from Island Fling on 15. With two races scheduled for today in Bass Harbour, Langkawi, and two tomorrow, it’s not insurmountable gap but will require hard work and application to close on a crew that has been sailing together for a long time now and really knows how to get round the corners of a windward/leeward course. He who makes least mistakes, and all that.

Here in Langkawi the sun is shining, there is breeze in Bass Harbour. More words and pics tomorrow – meanwhile, enjoy these.

Short Results (Full Results at www.rmsir.com)
NO DISCARDS
Class 1
1. Foxy Lady (3,1,1,1,3) 9
2. Island Fling (2,3,3,6,1) 15
3. Windsikher (4,2,2,4,4)
Class 2 (Premier Cruising)
1. Antipodes (1,3,1,1) 6
2. Australian Maid (2,1,2,4) 0
3. Starlight (3,2,3,2) 10
Class 3
1. Fujin (1,1,1,1,1) 5
2. Beaux Esprits (2,2,2,3,3) 12
3. Rikki Tikki Tavi (3,3,3,2,2) 13
Class 4
1. Piccolo (2,1,2,1,1) 7
2. Nijinsky (1,2,1,3,2) 9
3. Skybird (3,7,3,2,3) 18
Class 5
1. Sophia (1,1,1,1) 4
2. Lady Bubbly (3,2,2,3) 10
3. Rascal 2,6,4,2) 14
Class 6 (Classics)
1. Kay Sira (1,1,2,2) 6
2. Aeolus XC (2,2,3,3) 10
3. Eveline (5,5,1,1) 12
Class 7 (Multihull)
1. Hurricane (1,1,1) 3
2. Java (2,2,2) 6
3. 3 Itch (3,3,3) 9