19th Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta 2008
AY Race Report 4

Make or break race to Langkawi
As the regatta passes the half way mark, time is running out for competitors to post good results, especially if they expect to secure podium places. The fifty five mile sprint from Penang to Langkawi is usually the windiest leg of the whole regatta. The gray cloudy sky initially looked a bit disheartening but the classic North Easterly breeze arrived just before the start and saw the fleet get away on time. As the yachts exited Penang Harbour the breeze turned to the North and increased, so it was game on. Frank Pong had to return to Hong Kong and left Jelik in the capable hands of his Philippine skipper Louie who relished the opportunity to put the pedal to the floor and that's just what the crew prepared to do.

Close reaching on one tack in 15 to 20 knots for 55 miles is very exhilarating even for the small boats. After a slow start Frank Pong's Reichel-Pugh 75 Jelik streaked of into the distance and averaged a touch under 11 knots to secure first and fastest by a country mile. In these conditions Neil Pryde's Welbourne 52 Hi-Fi is the only boat that could come anywhere near toppling Jelik but by finishing over 40 minutes adrift had to settle on second place and takes a commanding lead in the overall stakes. Waterline length also helped Fred Kinmonth / Nick Burns Mandrake into third place leaving Ray Roberts DK46 Quantum Racing down in fourth and may have seen there chances of defending the title dwindle somewhat.

In the Premier Cruising Class Hans Rahman's Judel/Vrolijk 70 Yasooda once again set a cracking pace to take line honours but Anthony Hastings Beneteau 53 Baby Tonga also reveled in the breeze to correct out in first place. Not wanting to be left behind Royal Selangor Yacht Club Commodore Dato’ Alex Nah got the most out of his Hunter 49 Virgo to slip into second spot missing out on first by a little over a minute but relegated Yasooda down to third place. With only one race to go in this class Baby Tonga holds a two point advantage which maybe enough to rap up the title this year.

Dr Jon Wardill's Cassidy 55 Australian Maid is famous for excelling on the Langkawi leg and held the record for many years in the early days when the race finished of Pelangi Resort. Living up to this reputation they scored the IRC 3 daily double in fine style to lift there overall chances. Ben Copley's Club Swan 42 Katsu drove on mercilessly to score second place and goes to the top of the leaderboard. Peter Jones Bashford Howison 41 Moya Hin has been knocking on the door of a win but settled on third place to dramatically close in the overall pointscore and set the stage for an exciting final days racing. Two fourth places in a row sees the Royal Malaysian Navy Farr 520 Zuhrah give up the overall lead after two early race wins and will have to regain that form if they are to secure overall victory.

Waterline length also played a big part in the IRC 4 class. A three boat tussle developed at the front of the ten boat fleet. Jonathan Mahony's Mumm 30 Happy Endings, Stuart Williamson's Beneteau 34.7 Skandia Endeavour of Whitby and Heinz Heyer's X 402 BMW Super Duper finished within two minutes of each other. Happy Endings held on to take line honours followed quickly by Skandia Endeavour of Whitby then less than a boat length or five seconds came BMW Super Duper. After handicap calculations BMW Super Duper took the win from Skandia Endeavour of Whitby and the higher handicapped Happy Endings dropped down to sixth place. Niels Dgenkolf's X 3/4 tonner Phoenix slipped into third place and missed out on second by a mere second. This result brings changes to the overall pointscore. Heinz Heyer's BMW Super Duper jumps up into first overall leading Jonathan Mahony's Mumm 30 Happy Endings by two points and Niels Dgenkolf's Phoenix in third place, five points adrift of the leader. With the possibility of three races on the final day there could be swings one way or the other and very much open for the taking.

Gavin Welman's Hallberg Rassy 53 Rascal continues on there winning ways to triumph in race five and hold top place in the pointscore. With all sails flying Simon Morris Thistlewaite Topsail Schooner Sirius 1935 secured second place in magnificent style. John Clayton's Millenium drove on relentlessly to take Line honours but ended in third after handicaps were applied. As there was enough wind to move the slowest of boats on a close reach Dato’ Richard Curtis Shanghai Gaff Rigged Cutter Eveline managed to sail all the way to pick up fourth place. The International Jury led by Brian Willis have ruled that the places obtained during the Penang harbour race will stand.

Two harbour races are scheduled for the IRC classes and one race for the Cruising Classes on the final day of racing in Langkawi. Time permitting PRO Gerry Rollin will try for three races to make up for the postponed race in Penang. As most classes are open for the taking and the North Easterly tradewind seems to have arrived we can expect some exciting close racing on Bass Harbour to conclude this years challenge.

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

Online AY Race Reports with photos can be accessed from:
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Race Report 5 & Summary: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08e.htm
Race Report 3: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08c.htm
Race Report 2: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08b.htm
Race Report 1: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08a.htm
Pre-Race Report: http://asianyachting.com/news/RMSIR08.htm

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