Top of the Gulf Regatta 2006
AY
Race Report 4 & Summary
Blustery
conditions decide the overall outcome...
The final day started off well but the rain storms lingering around out
to sea had a threatening look about them. The first classes got away cleanly
but a little after the last class started the breeze moved hard right
and strengthened to over 20 knots turning the windward/leeward course
into two hair raising blast reaching legs. The light weight multi's took
off in a cloud of spray and some keelboats were clearly overpowered carrying
to much sail and broaching up to windward. As the course turned into a
soldiers course and dangerous for yachts converging on each other Race
Officer Jerry Rollin wisely shortened the course after one lap had been
completed.
After
relaying the windward mark and start line to suit the new wind direction
the race committee got the starting sequence going again. The yachts had
only just got into the first leg when all hell broke loose as the offshore
storm swept across the course bringing a blinding deluge, interspersed
with 20 knot squalls. The entire fleet began checking the helms course
as they disappeared into the rain and mist, searching for the first mark.
Eventually as the storm passed and wind decreased, seven yachts were found
converging on the mark together and readying spinnakers for a lively downwind
ride to the once again shortened course finish line. Wow! What a day to
finish up on, this regatta has had it all.
Class
1 (Keelboats IRC)
Despite an overnight disqualification and only managing a fourth and second
place in the final races, David Lindahl's four earlier wins on the Swan
42 La Samudra was enough to sail away with the overall pointscore
victory. Pascal Leray's X99 Hi Jinx has consistently finished
in the top three to earn his crew a well deserved second place on the
podium. Last years champion Gary Baguly's Magic Roundabout suffered
from some early breakages but came good towards the end to secure first
place in race six and third spot overall. David Bell's crew hung around
looking threatening on Pink Pussycat but had to wait till the
last race to claim a well earned win against his bigger competitors and
fourth place overall.
Class
2 (Keelboats Thaicap)
Cruising Jim Ellis and his crew of mainly beginners had their dreams come
true when the S&S 42 Remington won both the final races to
secure a resounding overall class victory. A late start for Dick Sanders
on Thai Raver may have sealed their fate but a final second place
saw them knocked off the top perch and settle for second overall. Weera
Leksomoon's Wes did not fare to well today but consistently finished
amongst the place getters earlier on to windup with third on the podium.
Class
4 (Platu) Coronation Cup
2006
Being
tied on points coming into the final races Marty Kaye's plans for Pom
Rak Khun was to get an early advantage then keep a tight cover on
Scott Duncanson's Lee Marine to better them on the first race
of the day. Then quickly repeat the exercise and drag them to the extremes
of the course in the final race, dispensing with this race result to secure
the Coronation Cup. A ding dong battle resulted and went roughly according
to plan with Pom Rak Khun taking Race 6 by thirty seconds from
Lee Marine and both finished up at the back of the order in Race
7 to become the discard race. Marco Belonje's The Ferret has
kept the pressure on all series to scrape into third place with a chasing
pack breathing down their necks. Goto the excellent blow by blow summary
compiled by Marty Kaye's winning Pom Rak Khun crew members here...
Class
5 (Ocean Multihulls)
Despite skipper Redab Kanjanavanit having to depart for overseas his crew
on Cedar Swan scored a first and fourth to keep them on the top
of the leaderboard. By securing a last race win Olaf Reese's Voodoo
Child jumped back into second place overall in a hotly contested
grouping. Henry Kaye's small Farrier trimaran The Sting is regularly
first off the start line, have shown they can mix it with the big boys
by ending up in third place overall.
Thai
Optimist National Championships
For the second successive year, 14 year old Benjamas Poonpat (nicknamed
Nhueng) from the Yacht Racing Assoc of Thailand (YRAT) convincingly took
on and beat over 70 other contestants to be crowned the Optimist National
Champion. However she did not have it all her own way as her closet male
rival Navee Thamsoontom won two races and was level pegging midway through,
only to be over run in the last two races to end in second place. Young
Patteera Meeyousamsen finished in third spot after a tough battle at the
top end of the order.
Beach
Cats
Thai national sailor Damrongsak Tongtim has been in superb form in the
beach catamaran class, winning six of the seven races and the overall
championship. Second place went to Bob Garner while Narongrit Beakaew
edged out Alberto Cassio by one point for third place.
Laser
Class
Thanakan Korkerp of Thailand won the overall title after nine races. Nicholas
Henley came second and Sai Chimaswat third.
Mott
Class
Thailand’s Chindanai Tanbuakee finally won first prize in the SuperMod
class after leading all three rounds since Thursday. His compatriot Kit
Buthsri was second and Surapong Witayaku third.
More on the Top of the Gulf Regatta can be found at: http://www.topofthegulfregatta.com/
Goto the excellent blow by blow summary compiled by Marty Kaye's winning Pom Rak Khun crew members here...
Big
day for some out on the Gulf...
David
Lindahl's Swan 42 La Samudra added a forth win in a row but had
to settle on 5th place in Race 5 that ruined his clean sweep to date.
Pascal Leray's X99 Hi Jinx scored two second places today to
keep him firmly in second place overall. Gary Baguly's last years winner
Magic Roundabout completed the day with two third places which
is a little to late for defending the title. David Pollard's Foreign
Exchange II was responsible for La Samudra's downfall in
Race 5 taking out the daily double of Line and Handicap honours in a mixed
fleet that finished within twenty minutes of each other on the long passage
race.
The
Class 2 Thaicap Keelboats started early on a long passage race that was
to last all day. Jim Ellis is determined to make a point that his classic
S&S 42 Remington if sailed well, can take on Dick Sanders
more recently built Thai Raver and overcome the age difference.
Yesterday after leading the fleet at the windward mark by a proverbial
mile only to be run down by the yachts carrying spinnakers and ending
up third place, Jim had to wait till today to earn his revenge and also
take out the daily double in the only race today. Dick Sanders Thai
Raver finished second and goes into tomorrows final with a slender
one point overall advantage over Remington. Weera Leksomoon's
Wes came in third and holds onto third overall and with the present
points difference can only watch on as the two leaders battle it out for
the title.
Things
are also hotting up in the fleet racing for the Coronation Cup on identical
Platu 25 keelboats. There does not seem to be any love lost between the
Phuket and Pattaya based sailors and perhaps some past grievances are
being aired.
Scott
Duncanson's Lee Marine snuck into first place in Race 4 by a
mere six seconds from Vivat Poonpat's Naiad on the short windward/leeward
course to replace yesterdays missed race. Marco Belonje's The Ferret
third place keeps him up with the leading pack.
The start line may have been a bit short and starboard biased for the
seven fast approaching multihull's, as two were forced over early and
Damien Kimball's brand new X Ta Sea was forced to tack away after
a luffing duel then slammed straight into the side of Kirati Assakul's
Sonic shortly after the start.
Redab
Kanjanavanit's Cedar Swan took hold of the situation with a first
place and Roger Kingdon's Moto Inzi did well to recover from
the early start for second place. After the collision Kirati Assakul's
Sonic managed to keep their wits together for third place on
the short windward /leeward course.
Down
came the rain to interrupt play...
The
Optimists, Mott's, Lasers and Beach Cats got straight into it on the inshore
courses using the fresh breeze that had arrived with the passing storm.
The keelboats were a little longer getting going and probably wasted a
good opportunity as the breeze dropped to a whisper by the time the leading
yachts got to the top mark and had to rely on the luck of the wind gods
for the rest of the race.
David
Lindahl's Swan 46 La Samudra led from start to finish, thereby
adding a third victory to his tally. David Bell's Fremantle 8 Pink
Pussycat re-entered the frey with a second place and Pascal Leray's
X99 Hi Jinx crept up into third spot before Race Officer Jerry
Rollin's shortened the course and called a finish to the days racing.
The
Platu's competing for the Coronation Cup struggled around the complete
course in a dwindling breeze and Marty Kaye's Pom Rak Khun managed
to hold onto the lead through out the race to score a handy win at this
stage in proceedings. In second place Pote Suyasinto Platu 122
did the best of the Thai sailors to hold of a charging pack lead by Marco
Belonje's The Ferret in third that finished within twenty five
seconds of the next three competitors.
In
the Multihull Class the Farrier trimarans of Henry Kaye The Sting
and Redab Kanjanavanit's Cedar Swan showed their light wind advantage
to score first and second respectively but decided to gracefully retire
as there was a protest lodged against them both for allegedly not rounding
the last downwind mark before proceeding to the finish. Roger Kingdon's
Moto Inzi completed the correct course to finish up in third
place and the best of the catamarans. The outcome of this sees them gaining
a couple places to receive first place from other peoples mistakes. The
two other Fire Fly designs of Olaf Reese's Voodoo Child and Damien
Kimball's brand new X Ta Sea climb the ladder to 2nd and 3rd
place to make it a threesome of cats on the podium.
They
are off and running...
David
Lindahl's Swan 46 La Samudra won both races in IRC Class 1 but
had to contend with Pascal Leray's Hi Jinx hot on his heels that
ended up with two seconds. Despite taking line honours David Pollard's
Foreign Exchange II dropped down to third place in both races
after handicaps were applied.
The ten Platu's competing for the Coronation Cup looked more like dodgem
cars at the start line. Three were over the line early and one failed
to return, another one was disqualified after a racing incident. Marco
Belonje sailing The Ferret claimed Race 1 by 28 seconds from
Scott Duncanson's Lee Marine with Marty Kaye on Pom Rak Khun
(I love you) a mere seven seconds back in third place. Race 2 saw Scott
Duncanson's Lee Marine assume his usual position at the front
of the pack with Marty Kaye on Pom Rak Khun close behind in second
and Marco Belonje's The Ferret had to settle on third place this
time around.
The
hotly contested multihull fleet got off to fine start with Ocean Marina's
Kirati Asssakul's Sonic taking the honours in Race 1 over Olaf
Reese's more fancied Fire Fly design Voodoo Child. Redab Kanjanavanit's
Farrier trimaran Cedar Swan slotted into third as the others
were starting to find their legs. Olaf Reese's well sailed Voodoo
Child rebounded with a win in Race 2 over Kirati Asssakul's Sonic
and Roger Kingdon's Phuket King's Cup winner Moto Inzi regained
lost ground to finish up in third place.
The
stage is set and the sailors are ready...
Some
400-500 sailors on around 200-250 craft ranging from Optimist dinghy's
to keelboats and large multi's will face the starters gun off Jomtein
beach on the beautiful Gulf of Thailand. A special feature will be a big
fleet of wind-surfers racing on a separate course and a spectacular kite
surfing display over the weekend. Over 80 Optimists will be contesting
the Thai National Championships and the course set near the marina making
racing visible from the marina deck and special tents set on top of the
breakwater for anxious parents and spectators to easily follow the action
from the shore.
This
year makes it the Thai Navy's 11th Coronation Cup supported by Princess
Galyani in challenging Platu 7.5 metre keelboats designed by Kiwi Bruce
Farr, arguably the world's best naval architect. Eighteen to twenty boats
are contesting making it the biggest one design class to race in Asian
waters. The Platu itself is a native mackerel-type fish that are found
predominantly in the Western Gulf.