Match racing in Hong Kong- size does matter!

by Guy Nowell on 13 Mar 2006 It’s not often that you see 76’ boats match racing in Hong Kong. Come to that, it’s not often that you see 76’ boats match racing anywhere, unless on an America’s Cup race course.

After conducting a week’s training camp for 15 young Chinese hopefuls at Longcheer Yacht Club (Daya Bay), China Team brought six of their apprentices to Hong Kong to participate in two days’ exhibition match racing at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. Boats (and a crew to race against) were kindly supplied by well-known Hong Kong yachtsman Frank Pong. Jelik and Boracay both measure officially at 76’ - they are not identical, but certainly close enough for exhibition racing purposes.

Pong’s match racing experience is strictly limited, so losing Saturday’s first match to Pierre Mas and the China Team on Boracay was not a surprise. In the second race Jelik approached the finish line with a small lead, and only a tactical error (lap counting!) on board Jelik allowed Mas to take that race as well.

On Saturday evening China Team hosted a Gala Dinner at the RHKYC for sponsors TAG Heuer and Lladro, the China Yachting Association, and other VIPs.

Sunday’s racing, once again in very shifty light-to-moderate breezes, again resulted in China Team scoring two wins. Mas said afterwards, ‘Frank says he’s learning fast – I can tell you it’s true, and he is learning a LOT!’ Pong announced that the boats would be available if China Team wished to come back for a re-match.

China Team’s next appearance on the water will be in Valencia, at the next Louis Vuitton Act. They will be using a ‘new’ boat – the No 2 Areva boat from AC 2003, now numbered CHN 79. And very shortly a new boat will be built to current AC regulations – at a new boatyard in Dongguan, part-owned by Australia maxi boat builder John McConaghy.