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.


We set off on Course 35, a strange kind of geometric, not brilliantly off the line, being squeezed by Farr Out and from there struggled round the first half, lying fourth at the fourth mark, behind Storm2, Moonblue 2 and Baby Tonga. A couple of handling errors along the way didn't help, though they didn't cost the race.

After the fourth mark, Bickie took over the steering, as the kindest thing I could say of myself was that I'd not had the focus I did yesterday. That, and Stevo making some very smart tactical decisions - and Storm, for some reason heading in close to shore, which didn't do herself any favours - brought us right in behind Baby Tonga, in the final beat to the finish. Stevo had us throw a few tacks at them, which bought us distance every time, till we managed to catch them in sight of the finish and cross 1 minute 30 seconds in front of them, over the nearly four hour race. Sadly (for us), we give them rather a bit of time on handicap that they finished up the winners on corrected time by some ten minutes. Well done to the crew of Baby Tonga, who sailed a great race. They're skippered by Peter Sorenson, Aussie legend, Olympic sailor and multiple Worlds champion in a variety of classes.

Our old sparring mates on Aussie Maid and Moonblue 2 finished third and fourth over the line and the same in handicap order.

That means that it's all to fight for on Friday, as it seems that the race on Saturday, after the sail-past to honour the King - himself a keen world-class sailor - is a separate one and doesn't count toward the regatta. That's not the way it's been in the past apparently, and doesn't please all.

We still lead the Regatta, with 3 points, to Baby Tonga's 4, after one drop.

Full results here.

Asian Yachting report:

On the northern courses, Peter Forsythe & Jing Lee's X-55 Xena once again took line honours but this time they were not far enough in front of Peter Sorenson's chartered Beneteau F53 Baby Tonga to take the handicap honours. By consistently scoring third places, Jon Wardill's Cassidy 55 Australian Maid holds onto third overall. Depending on how many races are sailed on Friday and the placing's posted will determine the final outcome.  [Full report here]