Fast Company Wins Spring Shakedown Series PHRF Race #1

The Nawiliwili Yacht Club (NYC) Spring Shakedown Series commenced on Thursday, the 18th with nine boats ready to compete at the start line. The trade winds were blowing strong with consistent 15 knots out of the NNE when the Race Committee threw down the challenge to sail one of the longer course selections at 5.8nm in length. Given the windy conditions some crews opted to race with reduced sail area by reefing their main sails. Other crews felt that they could carry a full main to the weather mark and gain a speed advantage on the long downwind courses.
Right away Fast Company took the lead by sailing from the east side of the start line while Ozone elected to begin at the middle of the start line on a port tack. Ozone didn’t quite have the boat speed to cross ahead of Fast Company and tacked to starboard to give way to the right-of-way boat.

A windy, rainy, squall passed over Nawiliwili as the first boats crossed the finish line. Minimal gear failure and sound tactical maneuvers found the top three boats in a tight pack at the finish line. Fast Company came in first with an elapsed time of 1:07:35 correcting to 1:07:41. Bonjolea II crossed the line next, but after the PHRF handicap correction, Papa a’u won second place with a corrected time of 1:08:12. Third place was taken by Ozone with a corrected time of 1:08:42. Under Club Class, Speedy was overall winner followed by Coyote and Trinity.

You can also enjoy watching the race virtually from the comfort of the internet without getting wet. A crewmember on each boat runs an app on their smart phone as they race. The app downloads the boats speed and other telemetry to the RaceQ’s server to be enjoyed and analyzed later. Click on the “Racing” Tab at the NYC website and scroll down to the “RaceQ’s Replay” to watch a race. Select a view using the icons in the lower left hand corner of the screen to zoom in on the action. Checkout the RaceQ’s website for information, tutorials, the app and more.

– Kevin Arndt – Rear Commodore

Click here for photos by Charlotte