It was a gloomy start to the day as crews prepared for the second race of the series. With rain forecast for the first half of the day and moderate winds expected it was looking to be an eventful race.
By the time racers made their way out on to the harbour the clouds had parted and clear skies were on the horizon. When racing got underway the breeze was working up to its forecast 12-15 knots from the north but as the day progressed the wind became anything but predictable.
Les Goodridge and his crew on Wax Lyrical were able to make their way through the course before the breeze abated and left some crews adrift.
“It was luck of the draw with the weather, we managed to get across the finish line with some wind but just after we finished many boats really struggled to get to the line,” said Goodridge.
“We were very pleased with coming all the way back to the front after starting last in our division. Starting behind is great on a day like that where you can see what’s happening in front and get a bit of an advantage by avoiding spots that look bad. That breeze strength of around 10 knots works well for our boat, when it starts to get lighter we are a bit too heavy with all the bedrooms and bathrooms downstairs.”
Even with many months off the water teams are showing that their skills have not suffered and are able to get straight back in and race competitively.
“The crew worked really well, we didn’t stuff anything up, everything went up and came down and nothing broke which is always good.”
The series continues next week with many now expecting the string of sunny weather to continue as the winter progresses.
This week’s divisional winners include:
| Division | Boat | Owner |
| Spinnaker (PHS) | ||
| A1 | Quest | B Steel & C Neil |
| A2 | Exile | R Reynolds |
| B | Wax Lyrical | L Goodridge |
| D | Foreign Affair | M Wilkinson |
| E | +GST | J Girdis |
| F | Cyrene 3 | M Selby |
| Non-Spinnaker (PHS) | ||
| J1 | Emily | J King |
| J2 | Tea for the Tillerman | R Allen |
| K | Morning Calm | K McKenzie |
| Sydney 38 (PHS) | Thirlmere | M Logan & D Belcher |
