OZone walks away with race #1 of the NYC Junior Invitational Series

Each year the Nawiliwili Yacht Club sponsors a race series when each boat offers a crew position to a junior, someone who is between the age of 8 and 18 years. This Thursday was race No. 1 of the NYC Junior Invitational, and the weather was perfect with a 6 knot easterly breeze and calm seas.
Right after the start, the eight boat fleet separated into two packs – one pack going to port, the other to stbd. It was soon evident that the stbd tack boats had made the right choice and were well ahead of the port tackers as they raced out to the Lighthouse buoy. The lead pack was OZone, an Olson 30, Fast Company, another Olson 30, and Bonjolea II, a Sydney 36. The downwind leg took them close to the spectators on Kalapaki Jetty as they sailed past flying their colorful spinnakers, and then the boats converged together at the leeward mark. The spinnakers of both Fast Company and Bonjolea II inadvertently touched the rigging of OZone, requiring them to do penalty turns – turning the boats through two complete 360 degree turns. This clinched the race for OZone as they finished first with an elapsed time of 1 hour, eleven minutes and 52 seconds. Even with the PHRF handicap correction of 1:11:59 they took first place PHRF. Fast Company placed second with 1:15:00 PHRF followed by Papa a’u, an Express 27, with 1:17:24 PHRF.

First place Club Class went to Weatherly, an Olson 30, whose crew consisted of mostly juniors with 1:18:38 PHRF, 1:11:23 Club followed by Speedy, another Olson 30, with 1:22:54 PHRF, 1:12:42 Club. Third place Club went to Bonjolea II with 1:19:08 PHRF, 1:16:30 Club.

The public is invited to see the second race of the NYC Junior Invitational Series on June 2, 2016 at the end of the Kalapaki Jetty parking area when the first flags fly at 5 p.m.

Kevin Arndt – Rear Commodore

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