Please select your home edition
Edition
Armstrong 728x90 - MA Foil Range - TOP

SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week Day 3: A change of pace and winners

by Di Pearson/SMIRW media 2 Sep 2024 02:03 PDT 29 August - 4 September 2024

A change of pace and winners

Layday at SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week 2024 was enjoyed by all yesterday, but today it was back to serious business for 'It's Live in Queensland Race Day', when Division 1 and the Sports Boats were put through their paces with two windward/leeward races each, while the rest were set one longer course.

The Rob Reynolds chartered Farr 40, Bobby's Girl (NSW), took out Race 3 in Spinnaker Division 1's first race of the day, while Gordon Ketelbey sailed his TP52, Zen (NSW) to a win in 4.

Even so, it's the Malcolm Roe chartered DK46, Amazing Nizam (NSW), that sits atop the leaderboard due to slightly more consistent results. However, that scoreboard is so close, just two points separate the top five boats.

"The first one (race) we loved," Reynolds said of victory in Race 3. Not so much the second one," he said of seventh place. The breeze was only 5-6 knots in the first one. The second one was up to 9 knots. It was a good breeze, a bit light for us, but everyone else had to suffer too.

"We had to do two races and everyone seemed to enjoy it. The Race Committee sent us on an appropriate course. Full marks to them."

Sydneysider Reynolds brought the sails from his Farr 40 here to Magnetic Island. "Easier than bringing my Farr 40 here," he said laughing. "This is my fifth year here - you get used to Maggie," he said of the Island that lives up to its name.

Amaya II (Qld) had the goods in Division 2, her timely win moving her into contention for the overall win. Owned by Ben and Matthew Kingsley, their Farr 11.6 moved up to third place but is on equal points with John and Andrew McDougall's Mac 2 after the latter scored 11th today, her worst result (I think she underwent a handicap adjustment) following a pair of wins.

Second place in Race 3 handed Andrew Clark's Adams 10, Single Malt, a one point overall advantage on the aforementioned pair though.

"It's been a fabulous regatta and I'm enjoying it immensely," Clark said this afternoon. "Fabulous people, fabulous location, fabulous sailing, fabulous everything," he enthused. "This is my sixth time here and the third with my own boat. It's the best regatta in Queensland!"

Today's racing, he said, "Was beautiful - champagne sailing. Sunshine, blue skies, nice breeze, everyone sailing along nicely. Everyone is being very respectful, no crashes, very tidy, nobody barging the start.

"The course took us right over to the other side of Cleveland then all way to White Rock and home, sitting in 10-12 knots. It dropped to 8-9 knots, depending on where you were on the course and we had nice flat seas, no swell. The breeze was just enough to keep you nice and cool. It doesn't get any better than this."

Jason Lea's Pali Pali (Qld) continued her solid form in the regatta to-date, adding a second win to the scorecard to retain the Multihull Division lead. Rod Sweeney's Rhomberg Sersa Australia (Qld) placed second, her best result so far.

The crew of Julian Bethwaite's Bethwaite 89er, Don't Panic, let their heads go and moved to the top of the Sports Boat division following third and first places in the day's two races. However, yesterday's leader, Justin Van Stom's Thompson 7, Bambalam, is on equal points.

It has been interesting observing one pristine and beautifully dressed mature crew over the past few days - butter wouldn't melt in their mouths. I'd met one of them on the ferry coming over to the Island on Thursday (we'll call him 'Lord Barry' for anonymity sakes).

Lord Barry shared the crew's dark little secret with me. He gleefully revealed their cache of golden amber, otherwise known as rum, disguised in a musician's case. I was given a quick glimpse. This morning he informed me that what I saw was just a portion of their goodies.

Shocked, when I counted the number on the small crew, I asked if they were drinking while racing, but he assured me that "No, we save it for after racing only." Talk about wolves in sheep's clothing! Their secret is safe with me - no names - no pack drill.

Racing here too is official clothing partner, Musto's David 'Oli' Oliver, helping Mike Steel's E5 Elan, Boadica go fast. Musto is familiar to SMIRW, as is Oli. Crew on the winning 2013 Rolex Sydney Hobart yacht, Victoire, among his accolades, Oli is also here showcasing a new attractive women's leisure wear line and sailing gear for all - and the range is selling well.

In other news, this morning Principal Race Officer, Denis Thompson was looking at racing for today and also the days ahead. "It looks OK tomorrow, a nice breeze, but there's a wind warning for Wednesday. I'm planning the Round the Island Race for Wednesday," he said.

"It's predicted to be 25-30 knots and if that's the case, we won't race. If it's 20-25, we will consider it, depending on the seaway of course," he said.

"We may start an hour earlier (10am instead of 11am), so the smaller boats aren't caught in the predicted building breeze, but I'll decide on the morning, once I've checked the weather models again. I don't want to make decisions too far ahead; I just want to have a contingency plan ready and do the right thing for competitors," Thompson ended.

Racing continues tomorrow.

For all information including full results please visit: www.magneticislandraceweek.com.au

Related Articles

The X-Yachts Gold Cup Experience
A celebration of sailing, of X-Yachts and, most importantly of all, people Having just returned from Haderslev, Denmark - which is the home of X-Yachts and played host to the X-Yachts Gold Cup 2025 - I was left wondering if this was a racing event, a rally or a social celebration amongst close friends. Posted today at 7:00 pm
Three Rivers Race bridge mast drop compilation!
Horning Sailing Club's event is iconic for many reasons The Yachtmaster Insurance Three Rivers Race at Horning Sailing Club is an iconic event for many reasons. The most unique scenes are at the bridges, where the sailors have to drop their masts and row underneath, often leaving it to the very last minute. Posted today at 2:49 pm
2025 IRC National Championships preview
This year's event has teams racing from all over the world The 2025 IRC National Championship, part of the Royal Thames Yacht Club's 250th Anniversary Regatta, will bring together over 50 IRC-rated boats for three days of competitive inshore racing in the Solent. Posted today at 1:52 pm
Loro Piana Giraglia Day 3: Capricorno rising
Upset on day three of the inshore racing The pecking order at maxi events is typically well defined with the largest, fastest yachts coming home first. However this was nearly upset on day three of the inshore racing at Loro Piana Giraglia, organised by the Yacht Club Italiano Posted on 9 Jun
Freestyle Pro Tour Sardinia day 4
Caers, Huvermann and Pezetti win in full-power freestyle conditons Day 4 at FPT Sardinia delivered a full dose of high-wind freestyle, with Juniors, Women, and Men's fleets all completing full eliminations under the blasting winds. Posted on 9 Jun
5.5 Metre World Championship Day 1
Strong winds delay the start of racing in Sopot No racing was possible on the opening day of the 2025 5.5 Metre World Championship in Sopot, Poland, with winds of 30 knots across the bay for most of the day. Posted on 9 Jun
Black Foils into top three for SailGP Season 5
The Black Foils have moved into third place in the season long Rolex SailGP Championship The Black Foils have moved into third place in the season long Rolex SailGP Championship after a second place at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix. Posted on 9 Jun
Prize Round the Island Race for 84-year-old Peter
Taking line honours on the helm of his old boat Peter Cunningham hailed the Round the Island Race after taking line honours on the helm of his old boat. Peter, who was first to finish the 2021 race with his PowerPlay Racing Team, repeated the feat on the multihull MOD70, now Zoulou. Posted on 9 Jun
32nd International Optimist Regatta starts soon
A fleet of nearly 100 sailors will compete at St. Thomas YC One week, three events! The TOTE Clinic kicks off Monday through Wednesday, the TOTE Team Race is on Thursday, and the 32nd International Optimist Regatta (IOR), hosted by the St. Thomas Yacht Club (STYC), runs from Friday through Sunday. Posted on 9 Jun
Registration now open for GKA Youth events
Germany and Spain events will have U14, U16 and U19 divisions Registration is now open for the two upcoming GKA Youth events of the 2025 season. First up is the GKA Youth Big Air Kite World Championship in St. Peter Ording, Germany. Posted on 9 Jun
PredictWind - GO! exec 728x90 BOTTOMNorth Sails Loft 57 PodcastSwitch One Design