H10s 2014 Aust Champs Race 2

Courtesy of Peter Burgess from the NSW 10s

By the start of Race 2 breeze had settled into an 8 knot Nor-Wester which was in the sweet range for the big number 1 rigs, with gusts to 10 knots. The start saw the fleet clean away at 1200.

Immediately after the start the fleet split in half as they searched for the best pressure to take them up to the top mark. Jan, Ramona II, Jessie and Merle went right while the remainder headed to the point. In the rush to the mark, Truant II got hit and turned over by a gust which saw it left behind as the boats rounding the mark went high or low on their spinnaker sets to avoid her.

Miss Marlene led the fleet around and quickly set her kite heading off down the shore. Merle and Irene-M finished off the top three. Unfortunately the gremlins hadn’t finished with the fleet at the top of the course. Jan, having set her kite and opted for a run in the pressure line straight down the river, got hit by a gust before she had everyone settled in and that was here race over. Alas, there was one more gremlin waiting in ambush for Miss Marlene.

While running down the shore, extending her lead, the mast snapped under compression. Her series, and the chance of wining four titles in a row, now gone.  This allowed Merle to hit the lead momentarily before being picked by Wrecker at the bottom, who had showed great teamwork in gybing down the mark.

The margins between each of the first three places were all less than 1 minute. Another very close finish.

Results