19th Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta 2008
AY Race Report 1

Overcoming the obstacles
A strong outgoing current combined with a light downwind start found several boats on the wrong side of the line, making it extremely difficult to return and start properly. That was the first obstacle for the unwary. No trouble for the racing class as they held station to windward above the line and peeled off with a minute to go, to nail the line with spinnakers flying at full speed. All to no avail as they ran out of wind just after the start and patiently waited till the a light north westerly appeared. Organisers were hoping the tropical disturbance presently in the South China Sea would produce some windy conditions as it closed in on the Malay Peninsula. Unfortunately not to be as we motored through the fleet in the evening most boats were becalmed, some on anchor with a few zephyrs of breeze around them to keep expectations high. The racers had edged closer to shore to stem the incoming tide and ghosted along with spinnakers hoping the evening land breeze would materialize. Talk about painted ships on a flat calm sea, so a long and difficult night lay ahead.

Almost every one has a fishing net story to tell. Some longer than others but never the less joining the list of obstacles that needed to be overcome. The moon rising produced some steady wind, enough to propel the faster boats to the finish line. Neil Pryde managed to get his Welbourne 52 Hi-Fi clear of the pack and do a horizon job on them to take Line Honours at 3:23 in the morning. After a long wait at the Seaview Resort they were also awarded Handicap Honours in front of Ray Roberts on Quantum Racing by a little over seven minutes. Although the Fred Kinmonth / Nick Burns owned Mandrake piped Quantum Racing by two minutes on the line they had to settle on third place after the handicaps were applied.

The vagaries of leg 1 continued into the morning as the wind deserted the late arrivals within sight of the finish line. Hans Rahmann's crew on the Judel/Vrolijk 70 Yasooda worked hard to keep the boat moving and were rewarded with Line Honours in the Premier Cruising Class but Anthony Hastings smaller Beneteau 53 Baby Tonga did even better by securing Handicap Honours by well over two hours. The light weather did not spare anyone and even the Royal Selangor Yacht Club Commodore and Regatta Chairman Dato’ Alex Nah's Hunter 49 Virgo was parked up at the finish line and after a long wait managed to displace Yasooda for second place. Dr Ian Nicolson elected to retire his Dubois 80 Intrigue after the wind and crews patience had died out.

In IRC 3 the Royal Malaysian Navy kept their Farr 520 Zuhrah up with the race leaders to snatch their first ever Line and Handicap win at the Raja Muda. About three hours after the Navy finished, three boats crossed the line with a little over three minutes separating them. After handicaps were calculated Peter Jones Bashford Howison 41 Moya Hin claimed second place, Ben Copley's Club Swan 42 Katsu slotted into third and Dr Jon Wardill's Cassidy 55 Australian Maid had to settle on fourth place.

After a stop and go battle throughout the night Jonathan Mahony's Mumm 30 Happy Endings led the 10 boat IRC 4 fleet across the finish line. Following close behind Heinz Heyer's X 402 Super Duper took the handicap honours by seven minutes from Happy Endings. John Kara's Dehler 34 Skybird came from behind to secure third overall leaving some of the more fancied runners trailing down the order. The up and down nature of race 1 saw one minute heroes and next minute zeros. Initially Graham Lind's Hustler SJ35 Sumatra provisionally scored fourth place but after the International jury adjusted Niels Dgenkolf's X 3/4 tonner Phoenix time by nine minutes they have exchanged fourth and fifth places.

Being out on the water for over 25 1/2 hours and closing in on the 3:00pm cut off time Simon Morris patient crew on the Thistlewaite Topsail Schooner Sirius 1935 paid dividends to secure first on handicap in Class 6 Non IRC Cruising. After balancing the motoring hours with the sailing hours Gavin Welman's Hallberg Rassy 53 Rascal crossed the line first but got relegated to second overall. John Clayton's Millenium only motored for five minutes but ended up in third place and may have to re-look at the strategy of his cagey class competitors in future races.

Racing continues on Monday 17th with Leg 2 Pangkor to Penang passage race.

Full Results and more RMSIR 08 details at: http://www.rmsir.com

Online AY Race Reports with photos can be accessed from:
RMSIR 08 Photo Gallery: http://asianyachting.com/photos/photo.htm?RMSIR08
Race Report 5 & Summary: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08e.htm
Race Report 4: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08d.htm
Race Report 3: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08c.htm
Race Report 2: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08b.htm
Pre-Race Report: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08.htm

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