Two halves do not make the whole at the Club Marine Series.

by John Curnow on 22 Feb 2014 Normally, 20 plus 20 would make 40 – happily. However, dividing 40 into 20°C and 20knots from the South is definitely not the same thing. The inverse proportionality between the last two rounds of the Club Marine Series could not have been more profound. Personally, this scribe will take the 40°C and light, often vague breezes from any number of directions. Frustrating - perhaps. A real sailing challenge – definitely!

Today’s challenge was firstly to stay warm and then not too get angry with the nasty little 1.5m seaway that ran mostly true, but also had a couple of sideways interlopers arrive every now and then. Additionally, it managed to offer a few super short and rather stacked faces for you to tackle. It is Melbourne’s Port Phillip mind you, so caveat emptor and all…

Coming out to play on the Division Zero and One course would be a smaller than usual gathering of dedicated yacht racers. However with craft like the Reichel/Pugh 51, Primitive Cool, a Cookson 50, Terra Firma, the new Hudson Hakes 42, Simply Fun, and a Farr 40, Double Black, it was also going to offer good racing across the size and ratings ranges. A healthy collection of Beneteaus was also on hand, which was lead by the iconic First 45, Ikon. Making a real statement was Cartouche, for she is the first vessel to make the jump from the new Blue Division to the traditional White Divisions of the Club Marine Series.

So then, to honour that achievement, which is what the newest division is all about, let’s review the Blue Division’s day, first off. Honours on handicap go to the softly spoken Malcolm Mitchell and his Bavaria cruiser, Caledonia. The placed ahead of the very fired up and socially attuned crew on board Brian Slater’s, Redline. Clipper III got third today, just ahead of Kathy Macfarlane and crew sailing, Children of Phoenix.

As it turns out, this older Greg Elliott penned craft is leading the 2013/14 Blue Division to date. Always worth a mention for the fact that their name refers to a charity for children being assisted after abuse, the crew are continuing to ply their craft and in doing so, getting stronger all the time. Well done. In second place overall is Sarah Allard and her Elan, Saltair. Usually sailed short-handed, they have shown that the best way to enjoy your boat is to get out there as often as possible. In third place is that happy band of cohorts on, Redline.

Sarah Allard said of the Blue Division, 'We were looking for something a bit different to the windward/leeward courses and the Club Marine Series Blue Division looks like the ticket. Fleet starts and the ability to use spinnakers as and where we can is terrific. Thus far we have loved every minute of it. I can see this gaining even more popularity quickly as an additional inter club race for all manner of boats and crews. Thank you to the organisers and Club Marine for this new race series, which will hopefully get more of those idle boats out for a Saturday challenge.'

Now back out to the Div0/1 course where Steven Fahey of Cartouche was delighted to be out in the main game today. 'Firstly. I just have to say how much we all really appreciate the efforts of all the organisers and volunteers. The Windward/Leeward format causes us to rise to the challenge and it is pretty appealing. In spite of a few small errors, we did OK and that makes us even happier.'

Race Officer, Greg Sinclair, was in charge of this course and he said, 'You’re right - it wasn’t warm! However it was a good day with a tight, two-lap race. It took 21 minutes Terra Firma to get up to the top mark for the first time and then it freshened to be more of the 18knots level and they stepped away comfortably. The breeze did go to the left a little towards the end of the race, but had no major effect on our course axis of 185°, which we ran out over a 2.1 nautical mile range.'

Terra Firma got away to a blinder of a start down at the pin end of the line. Simply Fun was up at the Committee Boat end and was clearly the next best starter. Double Black and Mille Sabords did not have such a good time and were quite well behind. Terra Firma went way left whilst Simply Fun showed her speed straight up the centre of the course. Jake, the J111, would be another to make her intentions clear and Cartouche became the most right hand vessel on the track. When Terra Firma returned from the left, it was clear that she had done well, so it was a shame that she could not hold the lay line into the top mark and had to make a short dig out at the last minute.

On rounding, the first three headed off towards host club for the day, Sandringham, and it was Ikon who gybed and came back in to the centre of the course. A little further back in the fleet, it seemed the fresh breeze had a few crews needing to review their hoist procedures, with one leaving over 8m of halyard to grab and an already full spinnaker underneath it, and some of it trolling for krill at that!

It was indeed the second work to weather where Terra Firma stamped her authority. Simply Fun would also do well, climbing all over Primitive Cool in second place, whilst Terra Firma seemed to do two for one to set up her lead of several minutes before turning for home. As a result, Simply Fun would take out IRC result on the day, which was a great, special birthday present for crewmember, Lex O’Connor. Terra Firma knocked the course over in one hour and nine minutes, but would have to settle for second under IRC, with Primitive Cool landing in third place.

Out there today for the first time on their new boat were Rob Pitts and his crew on the Farr 40, Double Black, which is the old Bribie Star. 'We purchased her out of Queensland last October. We did the Festival of Sails and then this is our next big hit out and plan to do the remaining two rounds of the Club Marine Series in March. Hopefully we can get the other Farr 40 out of Geelong to come and play for them. We were on the Young 11, Wide Load, prior to this and we are loving this new toy! All of us had a great day and really enjoying the racing. Great stuff.'

Overall, Rush still holds a lead from their efforts prior to Christmas, with XLR8 in second and now Terra Firma in third. Look for them and Simply Fun to make the late charge on the podium positions.

In Division One it was a Beneteau day, through and through. Under the IRC ratings, the top five craft were Beneteaus, with the mighty Ikon taking the pool and Cartouche grabbing fifth place. Under the Australian Measurement System (AMS), it was still all Ikon, but Addiction got in for a third. In the Performance Handicap System (PHS), it was still pretty much a Beneteau affair, but it would be Schüss that would grab the top spot. After seven races, Ikon really do have the ratings categories sewn up, but in PHS it is far more of a calculation, with the top eight all able to make an impact. Stephane Howarth’s, Mille Sabords, still leads from Schüss, then Ikon, but it is still possible for Gienah to do something for third if all can go their way from here. A challenge, for sure, and it may include Ikon not racing, but it remains on the table and if you do not go out with a positive attitude, then nothing will come to pass.

Further to the North, the coloured kites of Divisions Two and Three made a huge difference to the whole ambience, given the dark and gloomy skies that would deliver more precipitation after the racing was done. It was more of a lift than you may actually consider, unless you were there, presented with a complete grey out and felt the surge of joy from the visual feast.

PRO David LeRoy was in charge of this course and he set a three-lap race for Div2 and two-lap race for Div3. These were on an axis of 185° like the other, but he would have to do a change of course to 175° for the last work and run of the Div2 race. Division Two got away cleanly, whereas Div3 had three individual recalls and they took some time returning. Vessels called back were Blue Indigo, Take Five and Vagrant, with the latter ending up retiring. Also of note that serial podium dominator and newly crowned Adams 10 Australian Champion, Executive Decision, was skippered by Doyle’s, Col Anderson. Naturally, they won, which is sure to have taken a load off the inshore and offshore legend’s mind.

Josh White usually helms Executive Decision. Today he instead took Absolut around the track. Wavelength had cracker of a day out there and stretched their lead at each mark, but the real stand out, regrettably, is Primo. When it all goes South on you, you pray that it is nowhere near the cameras. Primo would not have that joy today and when you have an orange spinnaker to boot, well, we’ll just be kind and leave it at that. The good news is that you win the UK Sailmakers Prize for the day, which is $500 voucher. Good stuff indeed, and there is a chance you’ll need it, as well. All you have to do is wait for our call. We’re on to you! Alas, it is better to fess up now, or we’ll publish even more pics…

As we just saw, Executive Decision got the IRC win from another Adams 10, Top Gun, with Absolut claiming third. Robert Hick’s little whiz machine, Toecutter, took the AMS prize form ED, with Stitched Up jumping up for third. In PHS, Serious Yahoo, yes another Adams 10, won from Moneypenny and Absolut, the latter two being Archambault 35s.

Overall, ED, Top Gun and White Noise will be aiming to just finish well and protect their tidy lead from all comers in IRC. Toecutter simply owns AMS from ED and White Noise and in PHS, White Noise leads from Dark Energy and Wild Side. All of these craft are sailed well, so it is hard to imagine changes to the final result, so hopefully that comment has not just put the hex on them.

Fantastically, Div3’s Merak got up for the IRC win from Wavelength and Intrusion, with the other triad member, Watermark II, relegated to fourth place on the day. AMS saw Wavelength win from Watermark II and then the S80, Outlaw. With such a good result in AMS, it is not surprising to see Outlaw claim the PHS win from Gravitas and then Merak, which if you’re old enough and a petrol head, does have the Maserati Trident on her topsides. This scribe must confess to being more of a Bora fan…

Now if you're based in Melbourne or nearby and think the Club Marine Series sounds like great fun, then you’d be right. So come out and get amongst it. Casual entry is welcome and in fact, very much encouraged! Just use you home club's entry system and you are in... The next round is on March 15, 2014, and promises to be as entertaining as always.

Blue Division is a new initiative to get novice skippers and/or crew out racing from fleet starts and begin the process of learning their boat and the rules and nuances of racing. If you’re short of crew, perhaps see the Melbourne Sailing website, where there are around 40 sailors looking to get into sailing and out on the water. They range from beginners to intermediates, but all are keen. Full details can be found at www.clubmarineseries.com.au

Many thanks to all the participants for being involved in the Club Marine Series, but also and especially, the many volunteers it takes to run two courses on the day, let alone the preparation beforehand. Thank you also to the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria and Sandringham Yacht Club, who provided the media vessels for the day.

The Club Marine Series is proudly sponsored by Australia's largest provider of recreational boat insurance - details and full information about the series can be found at www.clubmarineseries.com.au