20th Singapore Straits Regatta

20th Singapore Straits Regatta - Day 1

by Icarus Sailing Media 16 Jan 2014 06:57 GMT 14-18 January 2014

Ideal start with 3 races completed in perfect conditions

Welcome to the 20th edition of the Singapore Straits Regatta, the third part of the Asia Sailing Circuit for the Perpetual Cup series, which includes the Raja Muda and Phuket's King's Cup. Sailors from Singapore and abroad will compete in 9 races over 4 days across two spectacular destinations – Singapore and Batam island in Indonesia.

In Singapore the fleet was based at One degree 15 marina, a modern, fully equipped marina on Sentosa island where preparations began for the 16 nautical mile passage to Batam island in Indonesia. Nongsa Point Marina is hosting the IRC B and IRC C classes plus the one-design J24s over the next 3 days. The weather was tough with strong winds, choppy waves and strong current which all helped the boats reach their destination faster.

Today was the first day of racing with ideal conditions forecast. The fleet was ready on the Nongsa Point marina for 3 windward/leeward races, and anticipation was intense amongst the crews looking forward to some great sailing ahead.

With races schedule to start at 11am sharp, the crews checked over their sails and equipment for the strong weather conditions.

The boats spread evenly across the first startline, and David Dimmock's Blue Note quick off the line. Two windward marks were set, a short course for the IRC C and one-design classes, and one further out for the IRC B class.

The wind increased halfway up the beat and the battles between the boats were close and exciting. Blue Note – the biggest boat of the fleet, was first to round the windward mark followed by Rekering Dream, while on the shorter course the J24 from SMU, Singapore Management University, was neck and neck with the Platu 25. As the fleet hoisted their spinnakers the wind picked up to 18 knots and the big waves made conditions trickier for the crews, causing a few boat handling issues.

By the time they reached the leeward mark the wind was even stronger with rain added to the mix. With 3 loops scheduled for each race there was plenty of racing to come and the crews gave their best as they headed for the second upwind. The strong conditions forced several boats to retire due to gear failure, but it also created great opportunities for others to make gains, like IRC Waka Tere who had some close encounters during the second downwind with Shung Fung TOO. So, the fist race was away, and boats didn't have long to go before the second was underway.

By the start, conditions were significantly lighter and they stayed that way for the rest of the day. Three races were completed for the IRC C and J24 classes.