July 12 2015
By AsianYachting MultiMedia
Victory for Hurricane, Twin Sharks and Star Fruit.
The easterly breeze moderated to the low teens, and everyone who could ventured out for the final showdown. All eyes were on the battle between Alan Carwardine’s Stealth 11.8m Asia Catamarans Hurricane and Mick Coleman’s sister ship Java, for the Racing Multis (OMR) title. With four wins on the board, John Newnham’s Twin Sharks skippered by Brent Gribble had all but wrapped up the Firefly 850 Sports title and was eager to get on with the job. A couple of Corsair Pulse 600 trimarans continued with their exhibition event, and Tatiana Bogatyzova’s Lagoon 380 Star Fruit continued to rotate as the sole entrant in the Open Multihull Class.
Java led for most the first race until Hurricane drove deeper and faster on the downwind legs to snatch the lead and open up the separation needed for a handicap victory. When the calculations were made, Java won the race by just three seconds from Hurricane. Grenville Fordham’s Image Asia Nina climbed up into third place. As five races were completed the drop race was introduced if a sixth race was run. This resulted in Java and Hurricane being tied on points for the lead when Hurricane drops their retirement yesterday and the last race being the decider.
Hurricane nailed the start line and was never headed. They extended on every leg to win the race and the overall title on countback. Java never finished worse than second place in six races, and although they put up a brave fight had to settle on second place. Two third places for Nina elevated them into third overall and, after holding third place for two days, dispatched Henry Kaye’s Seacart 26 Sweet Chariot down to fifth overall. As the tie was broken among the back markers, Kirill Stashevskiy’s Stealth 13 Gokova Phuket Galeforce slotted in fourth overall after trailing in the mid fleet.
Only two Firefly 850 catamarans fronted up on the final day. George Eddings’ Blue Nose hit the start line with speed and made a change to lead around the entire course. Twin Sharks closed in on every leg and, as they approached the finish line, were alongside Blue Nose, which made it too close to call on the water. An extra puff of wind and a better angle pushed Newnham’s Twin Sharks over the line to win by three seconds. This made it five wins in a row for Twin Sharks and wrapped up the title with a clean sheet. This result leapfrogs George Eddings’ Blue Nose into second overall and relegates Neil Ayre’s Advanced Racing Team to third place for not turning up on the final day.
Rushing the Corsair Pulse 600 trimarans into action and strong winds on their debut has revealed some teething problems and, not having an official OMR rating, it was decided to use this regatta as a exhibition event. Bob Garner’s SuDu Red finished all races and becomes the inaugural winner of the Corsair Class.
This left Russia’s Tatiana Bogatyzova’s Lagoon 380 Star Fruit the sole entrant in the Open Multihull Class and they thoroughly enjoyed every moment despite rotating alone.
Summary
The strong wind made racing for crews with iron constitutions. It restricted the boats to the Ao Chalong Bay, but there was plenty to play with for the brave hearted. It also caused a high rate of attrition, but those that came prepared and used to driving the boat hard, they reaped the benefits. It’s great to see the revival in multihull racing in Asia and long may it continue. The Ao Chalong Yacht Club must be commended for holding the event and Multihull Solutions for their generous sponsorship and support. Multihull enthusiasts should make this regatta a “Must-Do” event. It’s a superb chance to enjoy fun but competitive racing with a bunch of like-minded sailors while experiencing unforgettable Asian hospitality.
More information:
To find out more information on this fabulous regatta, please visit the Ao Chalong Yacht Club website: http://acyc.asia/regattas/multihull-regatta/
To register your interest in next year’s regatta please email us.
