Grant Bartlett on Tony Levett's Eleni: win the Sydney 38 Division of Sydney-Hobart

E-mail corro below:

[sent to King's Cup mailing list] 
Hi all,
Hope you were following the great and close racing in the Syd38 Div in the Sydney Hobart, with our Xena crew-mate Grant sailing on Eleni.*  They won the Division by 29 seconds

Babs' photos

Stevo, G, Ray, Petra, Bicky, Klaus, Peter, Jing, TC, Babs, Digger, MC

Crew photo: thanks Catherine
Below there's also Babs' photos of crew and the beach post-storm...

Ray's photos: out of uniform

OUT OF UNIFORM

Back row: Digger, Ray, Iris, Peter, Jing, Petra

Front row: Klaus, Babs, TC, Stevo

Ray's photos: in uniform

Ray took some great photos and I'm dividing them into two broad categories: one "in uniform" and one "out of uniform".  Thanks Ray, well selected! (Peter)

IN UNIFORM

Going out to the start, Noel and Digger in front

The Party

On a lighter note (than this), the prize giving and the after party were spectacular. Our Kiwis would say AWESOME, BRO!

Revellers "invade" the stage (iPhone)

The Beach

The Royal Thai Navy 1, photo Guy Nowell

As we leave Kata we wander to the beach for a last look. There's Walawala, now buried up to her cockpit coamings in sand. Ichi-ban is beside her, facing the beach, forlorn, as she has dug her own grave, the keel yawing a big sand hole with the constant buffeting. Rapscallion, nearby, on her side, like Walawala, slowly being buried by sand. The Royal Thai Navy sloop and Sea Bees, make the five yachts beached and written off.

King's Cup Carnage

Some of the 11 yachts beached (Later:13 beached) 

they were to be further driven on the beach and irrecoverable (iPhone photo)

Later:Babs Photos: one here >>

Walawala, Hong Kong boat. First 44.7

Arrive at Kata Beach this morning to a scene of carnage: 13 yachts -- nine sloops and four catamarans -- beached in the westerly storm that blew in overnight. 30+ knots; who said it doesn't blow in Phuket?

Later: see Babs' photos here.

Day Four: the curate's egg. Final Results

Results today: Line Honours and pipped into second on corrected time by one minute 24 seconds.

Final Results: Four Races: Four Line Honours, Two wins, Two Seconds, equal first on points, second on countback.  Gutted.

Day Four: Rest day, no racing

G and TC at Crew Dinner, Kam Eang Restaurant, Cholon beach (iPhone)

This page intentionally left blank -- to post some photos in due course. Hah! When I get my act together and catch up with Babs and her laptop.... [Later: now some here, as you see....]

Day Three: the Regatta website's write up

I'm posting a cut 'n paste from the regatta website News page because it will be taken down in due course, and I'd like it here for the record. My own write-up is the post immediately below.

Day Three: One, Two

Jing and TC, Kata beach (photo: Peter's iPhone)

Results today: Line Honours and second corrected.

It was a beautiful day, sunny, with easterlies of 10-15 knots. The first day that was not overcast or threatening rain, so the sun bloc was liberally slip, slop and slapped on.

Day Two, another Bullet

Finish Race two [photo & champagne, courtesy Guy Nowell, via TC]

Today's result: Line Honours and First on corrected time. This time second over the line was the Warwick 66 Storm2 and third over the line the Beneteau 53f5, Baby Tonga, which took second on corrected.

Day One Double Header

Today's result: line Honours and Win on corrected time, beating Baby Tonga into second on corrected by 1 minute 12 seconds.

Day Zero: practice day

"G", PF, Petra watching the opposition...

(thanks to Babs)

Blogging from my iPad in coffee shop of Kata Resort, so can't upload (yet) photos taken by Babs, as I have to work on HTML... aaargh, enough of the technobabble, already!

Note the winches: Grant, Iris and the boyz did a great job in delivering her pristine and light!

09:00 saw the crew beachside ready to take Longtail boats out to Xena.

Xena anchors at Kata Beach

108 yachts at Kata Beach (PF's iPhone)

SMS just in from Ross Dawson, our friendly reporter in Phuket (on FreeFire the new TP52):
"Xena is just dropping anchor at Kata beach now".
Thanks Ross, for thinking of us! Cheers.
Peter
(Jing and I are still in Hong Kong, having skived off all the prep work.... we arrive there tomorrow lunchtime)

Samui 2011, People photos

[Yes, these are photos from  June 2011 Samui, even though the date is Dec '11: just that I've "cannibalized" the previous contents of this post, and replaced with these photos....]

Crew at end of Race 3.  This is a great photo!  Taken by Mike in the dinghy.
Note TC with the "manual zoom" -- the dinghy's painter!  The crew had this enlarged to 8x10 and
framed for Jing and me, gave to us at the Library dinner on lay day.  Lovely thought!

Contemplative Cess

Contemplative Jing

Contemplative Michael, main sheet trimmer

Contemplative Cookie

Contemplative Digger

Digger, Iris and Grant check out the pink brollie (aka "mini-bimini")

Handing out shirts on practice day: Michael, Iris, Peter, Jing, guest Lauren

Iris on the "ladies' lounge"

Judy readies for Pit work

Cess, Judy, TC and Stevo at the Tradewinds, drink at day's end.

Peter and Peter.  Peter Sorenson ("Soro") presents Peter F the inaugural
"TongZena Cup" at the Samui Awards night.  And wow, weren't it hot!
We were equal on points both at King's Cup '10 and Koh Samui '11. On countback
Baby Tonga won at KC (and won the Cup); on countback Xena beat Tonga at Samui.
Note PF's hat: a gift from the crew at the Library dinner, together with the photo, first above.

With any of these click to enlarge and click again to enlarge further.  If you want one for printing, just drag and drop to your desktop.

Boat picture selection here.

Photo already in, from TC

This one from Ben ("TC"), with the comment:

Late edition Ray leading the way to the chandelry - Nice bike!!!!

  

Samui 2011, Boat photos

[click to enlarge any of these; click again for even larger] Note: that I "cannibalised" this post from back in December '10, to put these photos from June '11 onto it.

Anne-Sophie of Samui pics took this atmospheric one.

Heading out to the racecourse

I just like this for the vibrant contrast of the flat white and bright red

This one's pretty cool too: value added b & w and flash of colour
courtesy Anne-Sophie of SamuiPics.com

Another one black and whited by Anne-Sophie of SamuiPics

Sail gazing in the late arvo sun

Getting a jump of the fleet...that's us at far left of the fleet, committee boat end

Just a nice piccie....

...As is this....

Taken at some funny angle, and sepia-toned by Anne-Sophie:
That's us to windward just sneaking by Aussie Ichy-ban and HK's Mandrake

Coming back to the line, between races

This is Islands race 6: note the fleet on the horizon: where they should be!

This would make a great poster: Xena in the middle heading home in Race 6.

Just to show some of the frustrating light-airs sailing this year:
our A1 spinnaker barely drawing breath...

The racing fleet: Ffreefire, Hi-Fi and Jelik.  Where is Frank going?

Classic photo: one almost identical was taken last year.

Stevo helps our light-air A1 spinnaker out of the bag.
Noel and Digger at the mast

This is the finish of "race" 3, ending with zero wind.  That's us finishing first over
the line, with others in IRC 1 division just behind.  Check the flappy spinnakers..

More light-air sailing with Digger's matching shoes in the frame.

First in series: us at pin end, coming fast and high....

... speed brings us up...

... and up...

... going faster and higher, past Zanzibar...

... and into clear air, a perfect start!

With any of these pics, you can click to enlarge, click again to enlarge even further.  If you want one for printing, just drag and drop to the desktop.

Picks of the People pics here.