Heart Breaker wins Farr 40 NA’s

by Event media on 25 Sep 2005 Robert Hughes Farr 40 Heart Breaker won the 2005 North American titles in Chicago. The final point standings are: Heart Breaker, 48; Flash Gordon, 53; Barking Mad, 55; Kokomo, 57; Inferno, 62; Nitemare, 65; Virago, 72; Pendragon, 78; Team LaSalle, 95; Iskra, 95; Ohana, 119; Sea Hawk, 142.

Choppy seas and moderate to light south east winds opened the fourth and final day of racing for the Farr 40 North American Championships. The standings were tight with just one point separating first place Heart Breaker and second place Barking Mad. Flash Gordon, in third place, had 7 points to catch up a place. The course was a 5, five windward-leeward legs with and upwind finish.

At the start, Flash Gordon was called back. Inferno and Iskra split with the fleet and went to the right side of the course. The bulk of the racers went left anticipating a left shift. It never came making Inferno and Ikea’s strategy looked pretty savvy. At the windward mark, Inferno, on port, had to duck Virago who planted and pinched her way around the mark. Iskra followed Virago and Inferno.

Heart Breaker coming in on port had to duck a line of starboard tack competitors including Kokomo, Barking Mad, Ohana and Team LaSalle. That put two boats between Heart Breaker and Barking Mad making the regatta lead look as though it was in for a switch. Flash Gordon who had been recalled at the
start rounded the weather mark in tenth place.

Having been the eleventh around the windward mark, Pendragon went off by herself to the port side of the course and as the fleet neared the leeward gate it was obvious that that was a money maker for her. At the leeward rounding it was Virago, Inferno, Pendragon and, in a remarkable come back, Flash Gordon, coming from tenth. Nitemare, too, had battle her way back, coming from 'DFL' at the weather mark to fifth. Heart Breaker slipped to tenth and Barking Mad slipped below her.

Back up wind, Virago held her lead and Flash Gordon finessed her way into second place. Inferno fell to third and Pendragon to fourth. Heart Breaker climbed back to take fifth. Nitemare hit the mark and had to reround.

At the bottom of the course, Virago still clung to first followed closely by Flash Gordon who made a beautiful tight rounding. Inferno was in third, with Pendragon, Heart Breaker and Ohana trailing in that order.

At the finish line, Virago and Inferno were both taking a port tack approach. Flash Gordon was coming in on starboard. Inferno tacked in to a safe leeward on Flash Gordon while Virago had to duck, making the first three finishers: Flash Gordon, Inferno and Virago. Fourth place went to Pendragon with Heart
Breaker in fifth.

After the first race the standings were: Heart Breaker in first with 39 points; Barking Mad, second, 44 points; Flash Gordon, third, 45 points; Kokomo, fourth, 52 and Inferno, fifth, 55.

With a backdrop to the east of lavender blue skies along the horizon, the second race tried to begin several times. The initial attempt was aborted with a postponement due to a last second 30 degree wind shift. It was the left shift that so many had sought in the first race. Too late.

Then an over-eager group jumped ahead of the gun necessitating a general recall. With four and a half minutes left to the start, Kokomo decided to change jibs. With pit crew efficiency, they got the job done in one minute and twenty seconds. At the start all were clear.

With the winds going soft there was concern that the first boat would be unable to round the weather mark within the class mandated time limit. However, Team LaSalle saved the day rounding well within the calculated time. Barking Mad got caught on the bad side of a fluky isolated shift and was stuffed.

Jim Richardson, Barking Mad’s skipper, when asked what had happened on that leg responded: 'That’s what we’ve been asking our tactician.' Ouch.

At the first leeward rounding, Team LaSalle held first with Nitemare and Virago splitting gate marks and rounding virtually simultaneously. Pendragon took the port gate mark in fourth and Kokomo went starboard in fifth. Inferno held sixth followed by Iskra, Heart Breaker, Flash Gordon Barking Mad, Ohana
and Sea Hawk.

Back at the top, Virago had overtaken Team LaSalle with Nitemare breathing down their neck. Pendragon held fourth. Heart Breaker seemed content to cover Barking Mad and the two, previously one and two, were 10 and 12 respectively. Jim Richardson did comment after the race that it was very thoughtful of
Heart Breaker to keep them company back there.

The finish saw two of the event sponsors finish one and two. Stuart Townsend’s Virago won the prize. Stuart’s company, RealTick, is one of the event’s sponsors. In second was Team LaSalle, sponsored by LaSalle Bank, another of the event’s sponsors. Pendragon took third, Nitemare fourth, Kokomo in fifth,
Iskra in sixth, with Inferno, Flash Gordon, Heart Breaker, Ohana, Kokomo and Sea Hawk filling out the standings.

When all the races were added Heart Breaker remained on top, never relinquishing the lead she established on the first day. The final point standings are: Heart Breaker, 48; Flash Gordon, 53; Barking Mad, 55; Kokomo, 57; Inferno, 62; Nitemare, 65; Virago, 72; Pendragon, 78; Team LaSalle, 95; Iskra, 95; Ohana,119; Sea Hawk, 142.