Commodore and crew win the Jubilee States

Jubille Racing Round Up

Day 1

Race 1

What a great way to start the Jubilee JA Linacre State titles with blue skies  and a steady 8 knots of breeze from the northeast. 10 boats lined up for the start which included the standard sounds of Up Up Up herd. With the fleet staying light throughout the race it made for great photos as they sailed under spinnaker to the bottom mark.

After a closely fought first race we saw Wattaworrie in first Shiraz second and Sea Eagle third with less than a minute between them

Race 2

With one race under their belts and the adrenaline rushing it showed on the start line when we heard the 2 horns sounding and the general recall flag hoisted. After a second start and the weather holding they were quickly swapping positions looking to improve on race one. Whilst coming down to the first leeward rounding the crews racing nerves were tested as they came across a fleet of keel boats. On show was remarkable racing skill with all yachts passing each other with no yelling herd from either fleet. The race finished up with a change of podium with a very convincing finish by Lyla in first place, finishing after 2 minutes was Shiraz in second and Wataworrie in third.

Race 3 

With the knowledge that it was going to be the last race for the day and wanting to have bragging rights back at the club all boats were keen to get started. Due to being very lucky with the weather, the wind was holding at a constant 10 knots from the NNE. Now having just done 2 races in succession it showed in the finishing times as there was less than a minute between first and third with the rest of the fleet hot on their heels.

In first place we had Lyla, second was Shiraz and in third came Sea Eagle.

Day2

Race 4

  Paying the weather man payed off as we awoke with a beautiful autumn day.

With the first three places for the series separated by only 3 points it was expected that we would be seeing some nail bitting racing. Someone forgot to tell the wind gods. The day start with light winds between 0 and 3 knots coming from the NE. The designated start was delayed until 11.30 with all 10 competitors on the start line. Once again everyone had their manners aboard as we had no yelling and screaming on the line. With the light and fluky winds it was going to get down to which crew had the better eyesight looking for those small puffs of breeze. Wataworrie must have eaten their carrots for last night’s dinner as they crossed the line first 4 minutes ahead of Andiamo in second and Lyla in third.

Race 5

With all four races calculated it showed there was a tie for first place and depending on how the top 4 boats finished we could be looking at a shake up of the top 3 places in the series. At the start of race five we had Lyla and Wattaworrie tied for first followed by Shiraz then Sea Eagle.

Causing much angst the race could not be started due to lack of wind. As all local sailors would be aware when we have any thing from the north to north east it can bring irregular wind shifts and variance in strength. With all marks being repositioned   and the fleet getting a bit edgy the racing committee finally started the fleet off with a steady 7 knots of breeze. On the start we saw three boats cross early which included Wattaworrie tied for first and Sea Eagle in 4^th for the series. Unfortunately both boats sailed on with out coming back over the line. As many sailing guru’s say; “if in doubt go about”.

Due to the fleet being well represented by many local crews it showed as they headed of to the most favourable east side of the track. Due to the standard behaviour of the wind (fluctuating strengths) the committee boat decided to shorten the course slightly. The last leeward rounding we saw a few competitors raising their elbows and always politely touching each other up. We herd the skipper from Lyla giving his crew some encouraging words of instruction knowing the series was in the balance and the fleet hot on their heels.

On the finish line it was consistent performance by the John Spencer and his crew to come first under colourful spinnaker. There was a huge cheer from skipper and crew in the knowledge they had just taken first place in the series. Finishing closely behind was the usual suspects Shiraz, Wattaworrie, and Sea Eagle. For Wattaworrie, who was equal first at the start of the race; it was crushing news to find out they were OCS which took them to third place over all. Coming second in race five was Shiraz which meant they finished second overall for the series.