Cowes Week Day 3: Sun, spectacle and tight finishes
by Rupert Holmes 29 Jul 19:27 BST
27 July - 2 August 2024
Racing today kicked off in a dramatic fashion, with the fastest yachts at the regatta, competing in IRC Class 0, starting close inshore and manoeuvring only a few boat lengths from the beach, before heading east from the Royal Yacht Squadron line, well powered up in a south-easterly breeze.
The spectacle repeated for the following 20 classes that started on the RYS line, across a huge variety of craft from 65ft Black Group yachts through the 20ft Flying 15 keelboats to the 113 year old XOD fleet. Today was also Charity Day, which highlights the work of the Regatta's official charities, the Tall Ships Youth Trust and RNLI, with a number of on shore events and demonstrations.
There are also a number of charities with boats competing throughout the regatta. The Flying 15 fleet, for instance, is one of several in which the Scaramouche Sailing Trust, which supports students from the Greig City Academy and other inner city state schools, has a presence. Kai Hockley & Jessye Opoku-Ware scored their best result so far of the event, taking seventh place in Flip Flop.
Class Detail
A building east going tide threatened to sweep an increasing number of boats prematurely across the line as the starting sequence progressed. Many Flying 15s, for instance had to dip downwind in the final 30 seconds to avoid jumping the gun. Even then, Graham Deegan's Akarana and Duncan Grindley's Riffraff pulled the trigger marginally early.
Shortly after the start Mike & Alex Tatlow's Affore the Weak looked to be very well positioned inshore with a windward advantage, although Richard Jordon's Off Course was also well placed a little to leeward and appeared to be sailing both higher and faster. Rupert Mander, a past world champion in the class, made a more conservative start in Men Behaving Badly but estimated they were already in third place by half way up the first beat.
"Then we managed to squeeze through into first," he says. After that Men Behaving Badly was never overtaken, but they were frequently threatened. "Off Course and Akarana closed the gap and the three of us were very close together, before we pulled a little bit ahead on the last beat and held it to the finish," he continues. "It was an exciting race - we were slightly faster upwind and downwind, but the others were faster reaching."
Off Course took second place today, while Akarana was third, despite losing time having had to return to start correctly. After three days of racing Mander is leading the class with an unbroken run of first places, while Jordan is second on seven points and Deegan third on eight.
Almost half the J/109 fleet started early and had to return, while Charles & Rosie Berry's Jenie got away cleanly and established what looked like a useful early lead. John Smart's Jukebox appeared to have a more conservative start, but held a narrow victory at the finish. Despite having had to return at the start, Dutch entry Arjen van Leeuwen & Silvy Leijh's Joule made a good recovery during the 21 mile race, finishing second only 30 seconds behind Jukebox, while Jenie took third place five minutes later.
In IRC Class 6 Giovanni Belgrano's 38ft Laurent Giles classic Whooper set up for the start early, roughly one third of the way along the line from the shore, initially sailing slowly on starboard tack, while others overtook only to be called OCS.
Just before the gun Toby Gorman's Sigma 33 Stan the Boat sailed through to leeward of Whooper with speed, gaining what appeared to be an early lee bow advantage. However, she was marginally early and was therefore scored OCS. French entry, Charles Benoit's André Mauric designed Delph 28 Insolent, started inshore, getting away in clean air with a useful windward advantage on the fleet, though with a tidal disadvantage.
Whooper went on to take line honours, but one of the lowest rated boats in the fleet, the Handley and James families' Mustang 30 Banter, scored victory on corrected time, 54 seconds ahead of Belgrano, while Peter and Alison Morton's immaculate classic Swan 36 Scherzo of Cowes took third.
The XOD fleet held back from the line until the final 30 seconds, but a few pulled the trigger early and were forced to bear away along the line to burn time. Even then two boats were called OCS, only one of which returned. Barry and Carol Dunning's Crumpet initially appeared well placed, just to windward of Roger Heath & Roger Ewart Smith's Onyx, while Roger Yeoman's Xcitation and John Tremlett, Tim Copsey, Fraser Graham's Astralita also looked good.
These two boats prevailed at the end of the 170 minute race, with Astralita taking a third consecutive victory 90 seconds ahead of Xcitation. The race to complete today's podium could hardly have been closer, with Richard Faulkner's Swallow taking third place, at the head a group of seven boats that crossed the line in only 30 seconds.
Sonars were among a number of dayboat classes that started from a committee boat to the east of the Bramble bank today. Alistair Barter & Richard Bailey's Bertie took their first win of the regatta, 41 seconds ahead of the Andrew Cassell Foundation's ACF Dolphin, while the Cowes Match Race youth team skippered by Ruby Sunderland took third.
The Andrew Cassell Foundation was set up to enable those with physical disabilities and impairments to race competitively on a level playing field with able bodied sailors. ACF Dolphin's crew of three this week includes Lizzy who handles the mainsheet, despite being blind and 50% deaf, while Bex Foulsham has a mix of autism, ADHD, prosopagnosia (face blindness), anxiety and dyspraxia. The Foundation's two other Sonars racing this week, include ACF Limbitless. Her skipper, Laurence Greenough, is an above the knee amputee, while crew members are recent amputees recruited via the local St Mary's hospital.
Cruiser classes continue to be popular at Cowes Week, with 36 entries across two Club Cruiser classes aimed at genuine cruising yachts. Today Club Cruiser Class C started cleanly, with the Greig City Academy's 45ft Scaramouche at the outer end of the line at speed, while Louis Kenna's Morris 36 Chameleon of Cowes was perfectly positioned at the inshore end.
The highest rated boat in the fleet, Gordon Lyon's Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 41DS Wight Lyon, took line honours with a large enough margin to score victory on corrected time ahead of Dan Law's Beneteau First 33.7 Antigua Sailing Week and Chameleon of Cowes.
In Club Cruiser Division D one boat started prematurely, but Nick Hampton's Sun Odyssey Scandal also responded to the recall signal, leaving Barnes & Smyth Westerly Fulmar Panda of Hamble looking very nicely placed towards the inshore end of the line, with a windward advantage over the pack, while Mark Hiley & his Moustachioed Mariners' Beneteau Oceanis 37 Mon Dilemme also looked good a few lengths astern and to windward of Panda's starboard quarter.
Panda took line honours and victory on corrected time, with Mark Attrill's 1986 Dehler Aqua Ushaka second and Scandal third. After three races Panda and Scandal are tied on eight points, while Aqua Ushaka is tied on 12 points with Richard and Ursula Hollis' H-Boat Warrior.
The Weekend Warriors Trophy, presented to the best scoring Club Cruiser entered in only the first three days of the Regatta, was won by Ali McGregor's Poncin 44 Sprint, with Peter Dickson and Andrew Yates' First 25.7 Star-Born 4 second and Geoffrey Yeowart's Baltic 35 Karelia third.
Racing continues on Tuesday, which is again forecast to be hot and sunny, with lighter winds. It's also Women's Day at the Regatta, which celebrates the achievements of the many female sailors in the sport, and is the final day of the 12 race short series for J/70s and SB20s.
Find more information at www.cowesweek.co.uk