Last weekend saw plenty of racing heading north to Pittwater with the Ocean Pointscore making for Lion Island and return and the Short Haul Pointscore racing up Saturday before racing home Sunday.
Ocean Pointscore
The Ocean Pointscore Lion Island Race was the first to set off from Sydney Harbour at 1000hrs. Competitors faced a fickle 7-9 knot east-sou-easterly breeze to send them down the Harbour before the wind shifted into the east and slightly eased.
Happily though, as the day warmed, the breeze eventually swung east-nor-east and slowly increased to 9-11 knots., welcome relief after a slow start to the day.
Craig Neil’s TP52 Quest was the fastest boat on the day, crossing the finish line after 6 hours, 22 minutes, 27 seconds, just minutes clear of rival TP52s Zen and Gweilo. Quest posted a strong enough time to hold IRC, claiming the top spot ahead of a stellar fleet. IRC Division 2 was won by Alexander Flecknoe-Brown’s X 41 Patrice Six.
ORCi first place was taken by Andy Kearnan and Peter Wrigley’s TP52 KOA while Division 2 went to Greg Barter’s Mount Gay 30 Shaya Moya. PHS went to Julian Farren-Price’s Cookson 50 About Time while the Division 2 crown was won by Patrice Six.
The weekend’s Lion Island Race marked the final race of the 2020-21 Ocean Pointscore.
Short Haul Pointscore
The Short Haul Pointscore Sydney to Pittwater Race set off from Sydney Harbour at 1100hrs just before the breeze went east and died out. It wasn’t long though before the east-nor-easter came through though to perk up the competitors.
For the race north, Michael Selby’s X 412 Cyrene 3 was too good, claiming the IRC top spot while Murray Hayward’s Sydney 36 Yputakiteup claimed PHS.
The race south the following day was part of the Short Haul Passage Pointscore and set off from Pittwater 1100hrs in a crisp 8-10 knot sou-sou-easterly breeze. Happily, there was more breeze to come than the previous day and competitors enjoyed pressure up to 15-20 knots as they beat home to Sydney Harbour.
Making the most of the conditions and claiming the IRC handicap was Ian Guanaria’s Beneteau First 35 One More No More. PHS victory was won by Yputakiteup who enjoyed a successful couple of days racing.
The next Short Haul Pointscore race will be held this Saturday 27 February with the Short Ocean Race. The weekend’s Pittwater to Sydney Race marked the final race of the 2020-21 Short Haul Passage Pointscore.
