San Fernando Race - Red Kite takes all

by Lindsay Lyons on 12 Apr 2009 If a yacht race could ever be likened to a ‘game of two halves’ this would be the one. Any boat within a shout of the finish line at 0700hrs this morning reached San Fernando on the Luzon Coast with barely a hiccup.

Crystal was the last of the steady procession of competitors to arrive on the overnight breeze, finishing at 0922hrs this morning – it was to be another six hours before the finish boat was troubled again, as the ‘Luzon Hole’ claimed the back half of the fleet.

As predicted, Pete Churchouse’s Moonblue 2 led the way for the IRC Premier Cruising boats, followed closely by Peter Forsythe/ Jing Lee’s X55, Xena. Xena took the title on corrected time for Premier Cruising, but Churchouse was undaunted, describing his race as 'fabulous moonlit sailing, one of sailing's great joys on a flat sea with a spectacular moonrise and even more spectacular moonset. It is for this reason that Moonblue 2 has its name.'

Forsythe and Lee were equally enthusiastic, saying that they were 'delighted that the yacht was on the start line after only three weeks in Hong Kong. A fantastic team effort by all concerned. We're very pleased with Xena's performance and, as a result, ….. planning to sail more offshore events'.

Xena had to settle for a second overall under IRC handicap, as the smallest boat in the fleet, Anthony Root’s Archambault 35, Red Kite II, took on all comers, arriving at 0500hrs this morning and securing a first in IRC Racing Division, together with (as they found out over the course of the day) IRC First Overall.

In spite of the fatigue of over 64 hours of sailing, Root could barely contain his delight, and shared the following insights with the shore crew in San Fernando;

'The game plan was to sail to the boat's strengths and make as much use of boat speed as possible and take advantage of strong winds, avoiding the infamous 'Luzon Hole'. At one moment Red Kit was deep south and the other boats were all north of the rhumb line but instead of climbing up we stuck to our game plan. It's an intense form of sailing ~ a small boat means you have to be totally engaged and working all the time.

We had a fabulous crew who were a credit to the boat and worked as a team. I would especially like to thank Roger Eastham and the team at RHKYC for getting the boat ready.

It was a fabulous race, just the right length for crew new to offshore sailing - the ultimate offshore experience with champagne frothing in the wake. Basically a three day adrenaline fix!'

But spare a thought for the competitors stuck in that infamous ‘hole’ – it cost Emocean, Soko and Kei Lun six hours on their elapsed time, and forced Wizard to retire. Bruce Perkins reported that their ripped mainsail (with running repair) had served the boat fine in 25 to 30 knots, however once they hit the hole, the sail had no shape, and they were forced to throw in the towel at around 1700hrs this evening.

Kam Loong and Harmony have also reported turning their motors on and should reach San Fernando in the next hour or so.

Julan and Nauti Cruiser are approaching the finish line with an approximate arrival time of 2100hrs, with Dearg Doom in close company, still racing. Last boat on the water is plucky multihull Long Reef, still 11 hours out if the conditions hold, but still in time for tomorrow’s party.

Provisional results are available at http://www.rhkyc.org.hk/sanfernandorace/results2009.htm