Fickle conditions test 12 ft skiff Interdominion sailors in Auckland

by Russell Davis on 11 Jan 2010 Day one of the Barfoot and Thompson 12ft skiff Interdominions got under way on Saturday at the Auckland Sailing Club.

First up was the invite race which was a Mark Foy start. Most of the fleet had bolted in their second rigs. Conditions were testing with light shifty winds and some solid puffs coming down the harbour as well.
First were Gizmo, second Cunning Stunts, and third Hey Charger.

Fastest time was Absolute CNC

A delayed start for the first heat saw the breeze had filled in to a solid 15-18 kts. After plenty of light shifty winds in the first race most boats had opted to go with their big rigs. The breeze was now a second rig breeze and this made for some great action on the course with a few spectacular mines and swims.

First over the line was Yabba dabba closely followed by Nice Action Too and then Frankienskiff.

After a good night's sleep, for some, day two rolled around with a forecast promising some wind for late afternoon. Heat 2 got under way on time in a light shifty westerly breeze. The wind quickly swung to the northwest as the first boats rounded the top mark. A big hole in the breeze at the wing mark saw most of the fleet park up. All the boats quickly separated and positions didn't change much from there on in.

First across the line was Nuplex followed by Garde then Gemmell Sails.

Heat 3 showed promise of the breeze that was forecast but it never quite eventuated. A delayed start for the northerly course saw the boats that went right get a slight right hand shift in the breeze and giving them a clear lead around the first top mark. As the race progressed the breeze dropped slightly and the course was eventually shortened at the last top mark.

First was little bus with a well deserved win as they lead the whole race. Second was the fleas, Maca and Fyfe in design source and closely following was Gemmell sails for third.

Today is a day where sailors can have a well earned rest and recover and repair broken bits. The program over the next three days runs like this, Tuesday one race at 12pm, Wednesday two races one at 11am followed by 2:30pm, Thursday is one race at 12pm followed by the 50th reunion dinner.

Results can be found at www.ascskiff.org.nz or www.skiff.org.nz