Top of the Gulf 2015 - day 2. Sheep in the paddock but no polar bears

by Guy Nowell, Sail-World Asia on 3 May 2015 The weather forecasts promised 5kts all day from the southwest, then south, and then south east. The weather forecasts were wrong. Jomtien Beach is pretty much a law unto itself when it comes to the cats and dogs department, and looking out of the window is nearly always the best option.

So: what did we get? A first start sequence in 6kts out of 185 that then went right and had the mark laying boats scurrying about adjusting buoys to 220 and eventually 250 degrees, with the wind building all the time. By the time a second start went away there was a good, solid, 12kts+ across the racecourse, with a big building cell over the land that looked as if might spoil the party but instead moved north and kept sucking in more breeze so that the last racing of the day was conducted in 14kts and something, almost back to the starting point – 200.

RO Denis Thompson said, “I was delighted to see the little lambs in the paddock, and very happy when they were followed by the sheep, but quite happy that the polar bears didn’t show up.” Really. He continued, “there was enough shifty stuff going on to keep the on-course team on their toes, but it wasn’t the painfully fluky breeze that we saw yesterday, and a great deal easier to cope with.”

First away for the day were the Ocean Multihull and Div 4 Cruising classes, with George Foose’s Dream determined to start with the multis, and Cedar Swan (Khun Radab Kanchanavanit) equally determined that they wouldn’t. Both classes set off from different starts (eventually) on a distance race away to Koh Khram Noi and Koh Rang Kwian and back again, later reporting good breeze all the way round the track with the exception of a strategically placed bunker near the ‘C’ mark at K. Khram Noi. And that was the Cruisers and Multihulls done for the day. Cedar Swan consolidated her position at the top of the table with a third win from three races. The smallest boat in the Cruising division, Yasunori Osada’s Tai Two, a diminutive Beneteau 21 punching well above her weight, took a second place on the present scoresheets to hold on to the division lead after three races. However, owner Yasunori Osada was in the Protest Room this evening for missing the first windward mark, the ‘W’ flag on the Committee Boat having reportedly fallen in the water during the start sequence. Tai Two was disqualified, and then awarded redress in the form of Average Points – indicating first place for today’s race instead of second. Makes my head spin, too.

Back at the paddock, IRC 1 and IRC 2 divisions both started with a windward-leeward race, with Fujin (Mick Tilden) leading the racing class round the track until the last run, by which time the breeze had built sufficiently for EFG Mandrake (Nick Burns), Foxy Lady VI (Steve McConaghy aka Bill Bremner) and Wan Ma Rang (Kevin Whitcraft) to get on the pace and take the first three places over the line. Fujin took the win on corrected time, but was later disqualified at a protest brought by Wan Ma Rang, with the Jury handing out the DSQ when Fujin failed to show for the hearing.

After the w/l, the division followed the Multihulls on course 11 to the islands and back, with Steve McConaghy describing a “surprisingly tactical race, with a lifting breeze along the southern shore of the bay, a crafty 50 deg wind shift at the first turning mark near K Khram Noi, and 3kts of cross current on the leg to K Rang Kwian and back again.” Foxy Lady won the race and now leads the division on countback from EFG Mandrake on equal points (8).

No arguments either on the start line or in The Room for IRC 2, where Amanda (Lennart Fahlgren) leads the division in front of Iolanthe (John Morris). In the distance race El Coyote (Gary Baguley) took full advantage her 50’ waterline and the building afternoon breeze to romp home by 9 minutes on the water and 4 minutes on corrected.

Three more races today for the Platu fleet contesting the annual Coronation Cup, and no mistakes from Scott Duncanson and his crew on board Kingdom Properties who led all three, wire to wire. “We struggled yesterday,” said Duncanson. “Platus are very weight sensitive, and five chunky blokes do not go so very fast in the light stuff. Today was much more to our liking.” Maybe the Eelsnot on the bottom helps, but you can’t argue with four bullets from six races, and Chris Way (Easy Tiger) is 8 points back in second place. However, Duncanson knows perfectly well that the Coronation Cup can turn on a dime, and there are two more days of racing yet to be completed.

The Optimist A and B fleets completed three races apiece today, and RO Simon James was happy to welcome the combined dinghy fleets out onto the racecourse early enough to get things started on schedule and fit in four races by close of play.

The weather forecasters have thrown the dice and are promising 5-10kts (depending on which one you read) from the south west or the south east – take your pick. Our man on the Air Ministry roof says that if there is sunshine there’s a good chance of a sea breeze, and that it will be modified or maybe not by convection cells along the coast. Any questions? Good. See you on the water tomorrow.

Full results at www.topofthegulfregatta.com/results/re2015 or http://www.topyacht.net.au/results/2015/tog/index.htm