Wild Winds for d’Albora Marinas Sydney 38’s.

by Rob Kothe on 9 Oct 2005 With a fast moving weather system on the NSW coastline it was a wild Saturday morning, even before the Sydney 38 fleet left the d’Albora Marina in Nelson Bay, with 30-40 knot winds having blasted through Sydney and 30 knot winds sweeping across Port Stephens.

However, by the time the fleet was out on the bay the wind had dropped to 15 knots and then glassed out before scheduled start time. Principal Race Officer Denis Thompson held the fleet for almost 90 minutes, under complex and threatening skies, which were producing nothing.

Finally a seven knot southerly established over the course. When the fleet was finally gunned away, defending NSW title holder Steve Kulmar’s Shining Sea had a good start, pushing left in nice steady pressure. Tactician Steve McConaghy kept her going, she was furthest boat left by 80 metres, but she then tacked on a little header and slowly lifted to the top mark.

Over on the other side of the course, Geoff Masters' Contentious Issue with Heath Walters calling tactics, had been the first boat to break right, finding a big right hander, along with Geoff Payne’s Risk.

Closing on the mark, Contentious Issue was leading by four boat lengths from Justin Lambeth’s London Tavern, who had come up the middle of the course.

Five or six boats on the left looked well over stood on the port lay line. From that group, Shining Sea with her bow down, came in fast and rounded ahead of Issue and London Tavern. Yesterday’s overnight leaders, Guido Belgiorno Nettis’ Transfusion and Geoff Bonus’ Calibre, were back towards the tail of the fleet.

Then at last the skies delivered, with a westerly wind of 25-30 knots coming out of the right, turning the second beat into a beam reach. It looked like it would be a soldier’s course, but Shining Sea who had been bow on bow with Contentious Issue, fell into the only soft patch on a white-capped sea and in less pressure had to tack up to the mark.

Back down what would have been a run the westerly built, pumping at 30-35 knots and the fleet sailed a fast two sail reach back to the finishing line, with Contentious Issue clearing out from Risk.

Steve McConaghy; ‘I could not believe it, when we lost pressure coming up to the top mark we went from first to fifth, then Estatemaster piped us on the line, so our sixth was disappointing.’

The second race required PRO Thompson and his team to carry out major course re-laying, with the set up of a 1.5 mile windward leeward course starting midday, the fleet racing up towards Barcoola Island.

By the start time of the race the wind was in the teens. From the gun Estate Master went right and seemed to have more pressure than the bulk of the fleet.

London Tavern, having started in middle midline, was well advanced with Transfusion sailing up to her, Robin Tedder’s Stonybroke was close behind. Over on the left, a group including Calibre, was suffering in lighter pressure.

As the fleet merged, Estatemaster kept on controlling Transfusion and Shining Sea, with London Tavern coming across from the left.

Down the run the leaders retained their positions, but there was drama at the bottom mark. Estatemaster was first around on the right hand pin. Behind her Transfusion stalled with a twisted jib, right on the pin. London Tavern rounded cleanly on the left hand pin.

Transfusion dropped her twisted jib, with four people on the foredeck. Amazingly, she was still in touch with the leading bunch.

Estatemaster led up the beat with Shining Sea ahead of London Tavern, then Risk. Transfusion was coming again, in seventh place.

The breeze was building, 25-26 knots, as the fleet reached the top mark for the second time. Chaos down the run, with gusts into the mid 30’s, from the back to the front of the fleet. Boats were going down as they tried to gybe to the mark. Transfusion was down for an eternity. London Tavern was fast over and fast up.

Shining Sea did one gybe and kept upright for a win. After five races in the series, Shining Sea on 21 points, leads from London Tavern on 22 with Transfusion on 25.

McConaghy commented, ‘we’ve had a good day and the crew is calm and confident. We are looking forward to the final races tomorrow.'

Justin Lambeth. ‘We had a good day but I am immensely frustrated that I did not stick the last gybe, it was 31 knots, got through it nicely but I went a little deep and it was all over, we were on our ear. A good recovery from our team, so we only lost one place but that is how far we are behind Shining Sea. We will have to do better tomorrow.’

d'ALBORA MARINAS NSW SYDNEY 38 ONE DESIGN STATE CHAMPIONSHIP'S
7th, 8th, 9th October 2005
Provisional


Pos Sail No: Boat Name Owner: Race 1 Race 2 Race 3 Race 4 Race 5 Race 6 Race 7 Race 8 Total
1 6338 Shining Sea Steve Kulmar 5 1 7 6 2 21
2 6157 London Tavern Justin Lambeth 1 4 4 8 5 22
3 6211 Transfusion Guido Belgiorno-Nettis 2 2 3 10 8 25
4 R38 Outlaw Tom & Alan Quick 6 9 1 9 4 29
5 7027 Estate Master Martin & Lisa Hill 9 7 9 5 1 31
6 5944 Risk Geoff & Chris Payne 3 18 5 2 3 31
7 7777 Calibre Geoff Bonus 4 3 2 16 11 36
8 6492 Contentious Issue Geoff Masters 11 8 8 1 14 42
9 6231 Stonybroke Robin Tedder 7 5 11 16 6 45
10 R33 Chutzpah Bruce Taylor 8 12 15 4 9 48
11 6305 Easy Tiger Chris Way 12 6 12 7 13 50
12 6340 Uncensored Chris Lobb 10 10 13 17 7 57
13 3838 Zen Gordon Ketelbey 13 16 14 3 15 61
14 8838 The Business Grant Halliday 17 13 6 15 10 61
15 6051 The Bigger Picture TBP Syndicate 15 14 10 11 12 62
16 6155 Yandoo Peter Goldsworthy 14 11 15 13 16 69
17 6073 Swish Proud & Hutcheson 16 15 17 14 17 79