Black Rock Yacht Club Xmas Regatta - Overall

Black Rock Yacht Club Xmas Regatta © Ben Strong & Daniel Farthing

Melbourne put on a show for the final day of the Black Rock Xmas Regatta with light winds and hot temperatures of 34 degrees C, great for the beach goers, but quite uncomfortable for the sailors.

Race one kicked off in 8-10 knots of breeze just enough to be twin wiring. Lindsay Irwin / Andrew Perry found a nice groove up the left-hand side of the course rounding the top mark first with Roger Blasse / Andrew Gilligan and Ben Strong / Daniel Farthing followed closely behind.

The lighter crew weight of Anthony Anderson / Daniel Vaughan helped them pick up 3rd spot downwind keeping left and closing in on the 2 leaders.

Black Rock Yacht Club Xmas Regatta - photo © Ben Strong & Daniel Farthing

Lindsay Irwin and Anthony Anderson both worked the left side up the next upwind with Roger Blasse staying more central. Lindsay rounded with a small lead followed by Roger and Anthony hot on his heels, all teams worked the left side downwind and it was Lindsay Irwin / Andrew Perry finishing first, Roger Blasse / Andrew Gilligan holding off a fast-charging Anthony Anderson / Daniel Vaughan.

The breeze dropped out for the 2nd race and a big left-hand shift before the start caught a couple of boats out missing the start completely, all boats on the line got away on port tack as it was near impossible to lay the pin from starboard. It was a race to the left side of the course in the ailing breeze, just enough to carry 1 trapeze wire. It was once again Lindsay Irwin / Andrew Perry finding the best of the breeze and rounding first with a very hot and hungry pack of Roger Blasse, Ben Strong and Chris Vaughan.

The lighter crew weight of Anthony Anderson / Daniel Vaughan once again allowed them to run deeper downwind catching up to the lead pack. Crews were up on the foredeck for the next upwind leg trying to keep the boats moving as much as possible, Lindsay Irwin and Anthony Anderson stuck to the left side of the course which paid off, Lindsay extending his lead over Roger Blasse and Anthony moving in to 3rd spot. The last run downwind was an uncomfortable affair for the crews, it was a battle to see who could sit in the most awkward position possible to squeeze out very last bit of performance out of the boat. In the end it was Lindsay Irwin / Andrew Perry taking the win with Roger Blasse and Anthony Anderson battling it out for 2nd and 3rd.

Well done to Lindsay Irwin / Andrew Perry winning the last 3 races and taking out the series and thank you to Black Rock Yacht Club for hosting a fantastic regatta.

Overall Results: