Farr 40 Nationals
Chicago, Illinois
September 26 - 29 |
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Race Update
-- Final -- Day 4 --
Day 1 --
Day 2 -- Day 3
It was a thrilling conclusion to a nail biting event as
Heartbreaker, co-skippered by Bob Hughes and Wally Tsuha, sailed to overall
victory. Going into day 4 all eyes were on the fight for second place
between Revolution (Brack Duker) and Voodoo (Richard Grunsten) with John
Kilroy’s Samba Pa Ti in forth and not out of contention for a podium finish.
The day started out clear with the northerly wind that has been blowing the
entire event slightly moderated and bright sunshine bathing the race course.
Only one race was scheduled, so it was up to the leading boats to make their
mark early and keep up the pace through the finish. The race committee set
another perfect line and the fleet got away with just two recalls. At the
windward end, going fast, was Voodoo with Samba Pa Ti at the pin end also at
full speed. Heartbreaker and Revolution were mid-pack. Voodoo immediately
tacked away to the starboard side of the course, hooked into a right-hand
shift and dominated the first windward leg. They rounded the weather mark
clear ahead of Gem in second with local boat Flash Gordon right behind.
Heartbreaker was forth, still in the hunt, but the real surprise was Samba
Pa Ti near the back of the pack. It looked as if Kilroy was going to have to
settle for a place off the podium, but their downwind speed was to once
again dazzle the fleet. By the end of the third leg Heartbreaker had moved
into third and Samba Pa Ti had moved up to seventh.
The wind oscillated between10 and 15 degrees as the fleet gybed downwind.
Voodoo keeping a clear head maintained their clear lead and by the bottom
mark had only to cover the competition to hold onto second overall. It
looked certain that Heartbreaker was not going to allow enough boats between
Voodoo and themselves to drop out of first place overall and Revolution
still looked secure in third place. That was until Samba Pa Ti turned on the
afterburners. Hitting each shift perfectly they sailed through the fleet and
into second place for the race. With Revolution dropping back into seventh,
Samba Pa Ti did indeed sail their way onto the podium, their DSQ for race 4
keeping them out of contention for the top two spots, but Kilroy must have
been pleased with their performance. Their crew work was flawless and
downwind speed dazzling, matched only by Heartbreaker’s upwind dominance and
equally good crew work. Only Revolution must have wished for just one more
race.
As the fleet sailed back to the Chicago Yacht Club, the clouds over the city
lifted and brilliant sunshine sparkled on Lake Michigan. It had been a
rough, competitive 4 days of racing, but probably some of the best sailing
done off the windy city for a long time.
Results
1st HEARTBREAKER 1,8,1,5,1,1,2,6,4 - 35 points
2nd VOODOO 7,5,2,2,5,4,3,7 - 36 points
3rd SAMBA PA TI 4,2,3,3,3,dsq,1,4,2 41 points
Race Update -- Day
3 --
Day 1 --
Day 2 -- Day 4 HEARTBREAKER STILL LEADS FARR
40 REGATTA
If the sailors racing the Farr 40 North American’s thought that the first
two days were cold, wet and bumpy, day 3 topped the lot. Despite a bright
forecast, the day broke gloomy and overcast and proceeded to get worse from
there. The persistent northerly wind brought low storm clouds to the race
course and managed to whip Lake Michigan up into an even bumpier playing
field. The conditions might have been cold, but the racing was as hot as
ever with much to gain and much to lose.
Fully clad in foul weather gear and over anxious to get going, the entire
race fleet was recalled after the start of the first race of the day, the
7th for the series. So many boats were over early the race committee did the
right thing by calling them back and starting again, however even the second
start saw a few boats over early. Timing it perfectly at the leeward end,
Revolution got off to an excellent start and proceeded to power away from
the fleet. Dark carbon sails outlined against an equally dark sky looked
like giant chess pieces as the yachts short tacked their way to the windward
mark. Revolution sailed a perfect first leg and cleared the windward mark
well in the lead. Gem, Heartbreaker and Samba Pa Ti followed close behind.
The first downwind leg provided some fast and exciting sailing with the
boats surfing speeds well into the teens. One thing quickly became obvious;
Samba Pa Ti had dazzling downwind speed. Whether or not their boat was
faster, or the wind gods simply smiled upon them, it was clear that Samba Pa
Ti was catching five waves for every four of the competition.
Revolution managed to hold onto their lead through the first leeward mark,
but then another thing became equally clear. Heartbreaker had terrific
upwind speed and by the end of the third leg they had sailed into the lead
while Gem dropped out of the picture. The last leg was the decider and Samba
Pa Ti eked a slim win over Heartbreaker after again dominating the downwind
leg..
The 8th race was to throw a curve ball to the fleet, not because of the
wind, but because the top boats were knocked way back in the fleet by a
bunch of newcomers to the top spots. At the first weather mark Helmut Jahn’s
Flash Gordon had a clear lead with Revolution second and Gem third. Flash
Gordon managed to hold their ground through the gybe mark, but a new leader
emerged at the top mark. Iskra skippered by local sailor Borys Jarymowycz,
with his son Bo at the helm, came from fifth to lead the fleet onto the
second downwind run. Right behind them Pendragon (Brian Jackman) and Bandit
(Charles Tomkins) were pushing hard, with Samba Pa Ti and Revolution also in
the hunt. That was the order at the finish although numbers on paper tell
nothing of the close tactical racing up the last leg and the split second,
nail-biting victory for Iskra.
The real racing of the day was between Revolution and Voodoo. Going into day
3 Voodoo held a slim 1-point lead over Revolution, however finishing ahead
of Revolution in race #7 gave them a 2 point lead. The tables were turned in
race 8 when Revolution beat Voodoo by two places so at the end of the day
their boats are evenly scored. Heartbreaker continues to lead overall and
with a single race scheduled for Saturday, the racing is sure to be
exciting.
Results
1st HEARTBREAKER 1,8,1,5,1,1,2,6 - 31 points
2nd VOODOO 7,5,2,2,5,4,3,7 - 35 points
3rd REVOLUTION 3,7,7,1,6,2,4,5 35 points
Race Update -- Day 2 --
Day 1 --
Day 3 -- Day 4 Day
two of the Farr 40 North American’s dawned bright and clear, in marked
contrast to the first days racing. The only similarity was a persistent
northerly wind that continued to whip up Lake Michigan into a choppy, bumpy
ride for the 15 boat fleet. If anyone had thought of lake sailing as dull
and boring, today’s racing should set that misconception aside. It was about
the hottest most exciting sailboat racing in the country made more
interesting by a large bank of clouds that rolled in just before the start
of the first race. The dark storm clouds lent an ominous atmosphere to the
racecourse while on land the city remained bathed in bright sunlight.
The offshore storm clouds made it difficult for the race committee to set a
fair course as the clouds first pulled the wind more into the east, and then
backed off letting the wind swing back into the north. Patience paid off and
the first race of the day, race 4 for the regatta got off to a clean start.
The whole fleet was fully powered up with lee rails buried and crews
straining to hike their weight as far to windward as possible. Once again
the fleet split with the boats that had started at the leeward end of the
start line heading for the beach, while the others headed out to sea. Midway
up the first windward leg both sides looked even, but the storm clouds
offshore exerted a small tug as the fleet approached the weather mark
pulling the wind more into the east favoring those boats that had remained
offshore. At the first mark Revolution, skippered by Brack Duker of
California with Peter Isler calling the shots, had a clear lead and with
steady winds and a steady hand they remained in the lead to the end of race
4. Day 1 leaders Samba Pa Ti (John Kilroy) and Heartbreaker (Bob Hughes and
Wally Tsuha) were slightly off the pace, but still remained in the front
pack finishing fifth and sixth respectively.
The second race of the day got underway immediately following race 4, the
brisk wind showing no signs of diminishing and the black sky casting dark
shadows on the water. Small wind shifts up the first beat made tactics
challenging, but by now the crew of Heartbreaker had found their stride and
sailed to clear lead by the first mark. The steep waves made the downwind
run interesting and challenging as the yachts yawed and surfed towards the
leeward mark with gains and losses made with each surge. Clean air was key
and Heartbreaker found their lane and stuck to their game plan opening up
their lead and winning race 5 handily. Their only threat came from Heidi
Benjamin on Gem who finished second with Kilroy on Samba Pa Ti also finding
their stride, finishing third.
By now a pattern was emerging with Heartbreak and Samba Pa Ti showing clear
dominance in the fleet. Other than Heartbreaker’s eighth place on race 2 and
Samba Pa Ti’s sixth on race 4, they had been at the front of the fleet for
the entire regatta. The same was true for race 6 with these two boats and
Revolution battling their way around the course at the head of the pack. To
illustrate just how competitive the racing was, the sixth race was only
decided at the very end of the last downwind leg when Samba Pa Ti surged
past Heartbreaker to win the race. Seconds later Heartbreaker crossed the
line with Revolution just behind them. A little over a minute later the
entire fleet had finished, places changing right up to the last moment as
boats passed each other on lucky surfs. As the fleet headed back to the
Chicago Yacht Club, the storm clouds dissipated and bright sunshine bathed
the race course.
Day two ended with a new overall leader. Bob Hughes and Wally Tsuha claiming
the top spot with an 8 point cushion over Voodoo. Samba Pi Ti (John Kilroy)
was disqualified in a protest in race 6 and drops back to forth overall.
Revolution is third. Two races are scheduled for Friday with the conditions
looking good and the racing sure to be hot and competitive.
Results
1st HEARTBREAKER 1,8,1,5,1,1 - 17 points
2nd VOODOO 7,5,2,2,5,4 - 25 points
3rd REVOLUTION 3,7,7,1,6,2 26 points
Race Update -- Day 1
-- Day 2 --
Day 3 --
Day 4
Grey skies, a few splatters of rain and an
unseasonably cold morning greeted the 15 Farr 40s assembled at the Chicago
Yacht Club for third running of the Farr 40 Nationals. Out on Lake Michigan
the water was dark, laced with an occasional whitecap, a steady 15-20 knot
northwesterly wind blowing. It was perfect sailing weather, and as the wind
gusted through the rigging of the cruising boats moored in the inner harbor,
the red hot racing fleet headed out to the race course. All non-essential
items were left on the dock, the bilges sponged out to keep the boats as
light as possible and box-lunches stashed below. Anything that might give a
boat a slight edge was accounted for as the fleet sailed towards the
committee boat for the 10:30 CDT start.
The lake was bumpy with a short steep chop leftover from a front that had
passed through the day before. The beautiful skyline of downtown Chicago
outlined against a heavy sky formed a perfect backdrop. On board local boat
Sorcerer, the bumpy seas were making it difficult when the boom suddenly
slammed into the head of crewmember Peter Grimm, knocking him unconscious.
The skin was not broken, but it was clear that medical assistance was needed
and Sorcerer did the right thing by heading to land to find an ambulance.
Meanwhile the rest of the boats jostled for position as the race committee
counted down the starting sequence.
The line for race 1 was fair, perhaps slightly pin-end favored, and as the
start gun fired Heartbreaker jumped into an early lead. Skippered by Bob
Hughes, Heartbreaker was on top form having recently won the 2001 Great
Lakes Championships. It immediately became clear that there were two
different schools of thought with half the fleet heading for the beach, and
the other half remaining offshore hoping for the wind to go right. Initially
buried by the fleet to windward Heartbreaker remained on starboard eking out
a small lead. Their tack paid dividends soon into the leg as the wind veered
a few degrees to the west favoring those boats that had taken a long hike
inshore. The fleet consolidated at the windward mark with not much between
them, the leading boats coming in on port having a slight edge over those
approaching on starboard. It made for a tense rounding, however Farr 40s are
nothing if not nimble, and there were many big boats snuck into small gaps
with inches between bow and stern. The organised chaos quickly turned into a
fast downwind leg with spinnakers flying and numerous gybes thrown in with
each slight wind shift. By the time the boats reached the leeward mark the
only noticeable change was that Heartbreaker had extended their lead and had
the race well in hand retaining the top spot through the finish. Their only
challenge came from Gem, skippered by Heidi Benjamin, with husband Steve
Benjamin whispering tactics in her ear.
Race 2 was held immediately after the last boat finished race 1, and this
time the entire fleet headed for the tall skyscrapers of downtown Chicago.
The inshore option had worked well for the leaders of the first race, and
the rest of the fleet were quick to pick up on it. Again there was a crush
at the first mark with the bulk of the boats approaching on port. At times
it seemed impossible that there could be room for another boat, but
invariably there was. The big change occurred on the first downwind leg as
the wind shifted to the west handing a big gain to Phil Dowd’s Inferno. By
the leeward mark they had a firm lead and remained there through the end of
race 2, feeling some pressure from John Kilroy on Samba Pa Ti, but not
giving an inch.
As the skies cleared, the wind continued to move to the east making it
difficult for the race committee to set a start line. At times the cloud
cover would return and the wind fluctuated back into the northwest, but it
was soon clear that the easterly component was there to stay and race 3 got
underway after a short delay. Four boats were over early, but the rest
sailed in clear wind with the fleet once again splitting between the inshore
and offshore option. Heartbreaker once again carried the starboard tack the
longest and approached the windward mark with a clear two boatlength lead.
They held onto first place as the skies cleared to a bright blue and a
lukewarm sun added a sparkle to the water.
On thing became abundantly clear after the first days racing. Consistency is
key and although John Kilroy did not win any of the races, Samba Pa Ti ended
the first day with a slim one point lead over Heartbreaker. An 8th place on
race 2 damaged Heartbreaker’s chances for the top spot, but with two wins
for the day, they hold onto a firm second. Voodoo, skippered by Richard
Grunsten is in third. |
