Strong winds severely test the Multihulls on day 1

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Strong winds severely test the Multihulls on day 1

Day 1 report from The Multihull Solutions Regatta

Strong winds severely test the Multihulls on day 1

PHUKET: -- July 11th: Under an overcast sky and the watchful eyes of the big Buddha statue, racing got underway in 15 to 25 knots from the South West. Yesterday John Newnham's Twin Sharks nose dived and capsized during practice, sending a message to other skippers to beware.

A pressure system in the Bay of Bengal has generated a strong South Westerly flow for the last week and is predicted to increase for the weekend.

As the crews made their way out to the start line, the mainsails were being reefed and all precautions were being taken. The radio crackled and Henry Kaye's Seacart 26 Sweet Chariot became the first casualty when the rotating mast unstepped itself and the spreader speared through the mainsail.

The 10 Racing Multi's (OMR) were first off the rank, on a three lap windward/leeward race. Mark Horwood's Formula 40 trimaran Adrenalin became the second casualty when the main beam broke loose and Werner Amstutz's Corsair 28 Flying High joined the retirement list.

The Stealth catamarans took off in a cloud of spray, with Mick Coleman's 11.8m Java leading the way and closely being stalked by Alan Carwardine's sister ship Hurricane. Only 30 seconds separated them at the end and stayed in the same order after handicaps were applied. The strong wind helped Grenville Fordham / Bob Mott's Andaman CabrioletNina to lift their game and closed with third place.

The second race saw three more retirements, Alan Carwardine's Hurricane (Mast rotation), Peter Boyd's Corsair 31 Zig Zag after trawling the spinnaker behind and David Liddell's Stealth 12Afterburner for fear of breaking a borrowed boat. Mick Coleman's 11.8m Java made it two wins out of two races and snatches the overall lead.

After leading off the start line and having a scathe free race, Grenville Fordham / Bob Mott'sNina scored second place and line up in second overall. Shane Grover / Zam Bevan's Corsair Sprint MK2 Bullet survived the testing conditions and claimed third place and third overall as the others fell by the wayside.

In the Firefly One-Design guidelines, they won't start if the wind speed is over 22 knots for more than three minutes. Consequently, the second start was aborted when in sequence and a short wait for the wind to abate. This didn't stop Hans Rahmann's Voodoo from putting the pedal to the metal and winning both races in fine style. George Eddings Blue Noseclaimed second place but retired with steering problems in the second race.

In the past few months we have seen some remarkable comebacks. This time yesterday, John Newnham's crew were coming ashore after capsizing Twin Sharks. After a remarkable effort, they were back out today and although a little late for the first race, they climbed up to 4th place and scored 2nd place in the second race, to hold second overall in the standings.

Undeterred by the conditions Roger Kingdon's Moto Inzi scored 3rd and 4th places to hold third overall. Neil Ayre's Advanced Racing Team (Mamba) retired from the first race but returned to score 3rd place in the second race to stay in the running.

All three Open Multi's (NHC Handicap) yachts survived the onslaught and the juggling of places leaves them all tied on four points. By winning the second race Tim Milner's Whitehaven 38 Seekronghuk takes the overall lead. Roman Shirokov's Lagoon 380 Star Fruit won the first race to slot into second place and two second places for the all Thai crew on the Nautitech 395 White Conch skippered by Hin is third and everything to play for.

Racing continues today and repairs are underway, to such an extent that most skippers expect to be back out on the water, despite the predicted increase in wind speed.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/strong-winds-severely-test-the-multihulls-on-day-1-47312.php?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

-- Phuket News 2014-07-12