Sunny skies, a fresh breeze and a keen crew are all the ingredients for a fine Sunday West Harbour Winter Series race.
The afternoon started with a surprise cake courtesy of Frank which was washed down with tea or coffee. In fact so good was the cake and company that we were still hoisting the mainsail on the mooring when the five minute gun sounded for our start. Fortunately the start line was only metres from our mooing in Woolwich and at a pinch a tight work directly from the mooring would have taken us just below the start boat.
Having missed the sound signal I had to wait for the one minute gun to set the timer and we were not the first off the line for the short work to the Cockatoo Island rounding mark. There were some competitors we were keen to beat today. Fist there was GWhizz a fellow GFS sailor who also races against us at RANSA and then there was Macscap the Jeanneau Sun Fast 37 which is a hull sister ship to Passion but started life with all the manufacturers go fast gear that Passion has tried to acquire over the past five years. Both these yachts lead us up the course having made more precise starts.
By Manns Point we were close on GWhizz stern and on the tight leg to Goat Island we went higher than the fleet which left us more room for the big knock up near the mark so we rounded mid fleet pretty pleased with our progress. The broad reach back to the start area was less impressive. Macscap reached out from under us and Gwhizz reached over the top with fresh air from behind so that we were last onto the section of the course which is three laps around Cockatoo, Spectacle and Snapper islands. To windward we seemed to sail a little higher than most and for the main picked the shifts better. We tacked on the headers with Kath and Elaine ensuring that the low footed No 2 genoa came back over the rails. I think the smaller headsail which allowed us to tack more quickly was a big part of the better track to windward.
Mostly good tracks for the three laps of the West Harbour Islands
We found better angles close to Cockatoo Island and passed GWhizz. On the first circuit Macscap did as well and was ahead but on the first beat of the second circuit we found a big inside shift which brought us ahead and we tacked underneath her for a clear leeward position from which we were able to pinch up and giver her the full dirty air treatment.
On the last broad reach down the Hunters Hill shore it seemed like Macscap was going to run us down but at the Clarkes Point corner we had wind a bit by the lee which meant we had clear air and with the genoa hand held to windward we broke any overlap well before the mark. On the last work to the finish we kept a close eye on Macscap but as on every other windward leg we seemed to have their measure and crossed for a minute lead. On handicap we finished a credible fourth with Macscap fifth but importantly we still hold a series lead by two points.
It was a great afternoon on all counts and God willing we will do it again in two weeks time.