Spinnaker start for Pelican and Nautilus Resorts race

by Rob Kothe on 6 Jan 2005 Spectators on Mutton Bird Hill enjoyed a colourful spinnaker start in the Pelican and Nautilus Resorts race six in the 24th Strathfield Pittwater to Coffs Series today.

The 60-footer Vanguard hit the line with speed or as much as you can have in a three-five knot south easter. Skipper Richard Cawse then gybed his pocket maxi seawards followed by Andy Offord Farr 40 Masim Weapon and series leader Bruce Staples and Jim King’s Dark & Stormy Witch.

The fleet split as John Bacon’s Sydney 39 CR Hussy was fast away with her big red masthead spinnaker on the pin. She ran up the beach with gusts reaching 6-7 knots and was not overtaken by Richard Hudson’s 45 footer Pretty Woman until she was 300 metres from the Campbells Beach mark directly in front of the resorts. Following them was Grant Halliday’s The Business, and Geoff and Chris Payne’s Risk and the bulk of the Sydney 38 fleet.

Stinging from her mistake Vanguard came in from the east hot and fast and managed to slot-in at the mark, seven seconds behind Pretty Woman. Only ten seconds back from her was Hussy, with the crew looking focused.

Marsim Weapon was next and following a few boat lengths back were the leading Sydney 38’s, The Business, inside Risk with a gap to the rest of the Sydney 38 fleet. The resort crowds were out in mass with BBQ’s ablaze and Chardonnay chilled.

Greg McMahon’s Beneteau 44.7 AfterNOON also on the right suffered, as did Dark & Stormy Witch. The fleet then set out for the southeastern buoy four and half miles away and as the breeze shifted, this turned into a single tack leg and there were few passing lanes.

Vanguard rounded ahead of Pretty Woman with Marsim just through Hussy.

Back again to Campbells Beach, the resort crowds enjoyed the spectacle once more as the fleet powered down under spinnaker with poles on the forestay.

For the lead boats it was a fair beat up to the Mutton Bird Hill finish line but as the bulk of the fleet rounded, the wind shifted again and it became a short tack then a long lay straight to the finish line.

Vanguard was first to cross ahead of Pretty Woman, with Marsim only 50 metres ahead of Hussy. Then The Business covered Risk all the way up the leg to beat her Sydney 38 rival by two boat lengths.

Dockside the line honours winner Richard Cawse the owner skipper of Vanguard was all smiles, as he was congratulated by Geoff Turner from Quality Resort Nautilus and Peter Neville from Pelican Beach Resort Australis.

The Crown Lager they provided were going down well with his crew. ‘It was good to be first around the track but it was certainly a mistake to go east off the line.’

John Bacon, Hussy’s skipper was well pleased; 'This was a good time to get a bullet and tomorrow will be interesting.'

The Performance Handicap Race initially followed a similar vein, only in that the largest boat in the fleet did not make Vanguard’s mistake. Owner-skipper John McConaghy sailed straight along the beach and ran away from the competitors.

However, there was a lot left in the race, as the smaller boats came round the yellow Campbell Beach mark the wind delivered them a single tack to the finish.

First on Performance Handicap overall was Graham Friend's Sea Quest, with Flying Fish Let Loose second ahead of Peter Helm’s Isolde (the banana free boat).

Tomorrow’s race, the QantasLink Classic will be the last race in the series.

Full results are available on website now