Rolex Big Boat Series Day 3

September 19, 2010

The pea-soup fog that plagued Thursday and Friday at the Rolex Big Boat Series mostly lifted on Saturday, so that the drivers of the raceboats could at least see where they were going. The westerly was adequate for sailing, but never really increased to the windspeeds you might expect on the Cityfront. By the end of Saturday, with six out of seven races completed, it became possible to predict series winners. "We just need to beat two boats tomorrow," said the crew on Kame Richards' Express 37 Golden Moon. "Fingers crossed." (Golden Moon won their class last year.) Dayenu is in a similar position in the J/120 fleet. They are ahead by four points over Desdemona.

The fog on Saturday hovered around the Golden Gate Bridge. This is some of the Melges 32 fleet. ©2010 norcalsailing.com

Every race counts; there are no throw-outs in this series, so Bliksem's 19th place in the fifth race hurt them badly. B-lin sailing, an Italian boat, which placed 18th in the same race, is now leading the Melges 32s, with only one point separating them from Star, which won that race. The 27-boat Melges 32 class started their sixth race with two general recalls. Their eagerness is understandable, as this series serves as their Pre-Worlds.

Banshee had to duck fellow Melges 32 Rougarou as they traded tacks on their way up to the last windward mark. ©2010 norcalsailing.com

The second largest class, the 24 J/105s, is led by Bruce Stone's Arbitrage, which has been sailing very consistently, never finishing less than seventh. The only one design class that's already clinched is the 1D35s, with Jonathan Hunt sailing Dark and Stormy. That's it for the one design classes; the Cal 40s, which made a good showing last year, are absent.

Quick! Reload that shotgun! At the end of race 6, the first finishers in IRC A and B (Peligroso and Kokpelli2) crossed the line almost simultaneously. Kokopelli2 had to wait a few seconds for their gun. The crowd at the club cheered. ©2010 norcalsailing.com

In IRC A, the Mexican TP52 Patches would have a clear lead, but they were DSQ'd in race 2 for going through an 'obstructed area of the course' (Little Alcatraz) in the fog. “Because it’s a brand new boat, we had no instruments working, and we didn’t realize there was a navigational mark we had to honor,” said Patches’ tactician Peter Holmberg (St. Thomas, USVI). “We went and bought a handheld GPS." They won every race on Friday and Saturday, and are tied at 12 points with the Kiwi boat Vincitore, an RP52 sailed by James Mitchell of Zurich, which won IRC A last year. Vincitore won the two races on Thursday.

TNT, Brad Cooper's Tripp 43, is sailing in IRC B. They are in a battle for second place, tied with Flyer and Kokpelli2 at 21 points each. ©2010 norcalsailing.com

Dan Woolery's King 40 Soozal has clinched IRC B. Dale Williams' Kernan 44 Wasabi has so far sailed a perfect series and has clinched IRC C. Coincidentally, both Soozal and Wasabi are for sale locally. Gerard Sheridan's Elan 40 Tupelo Honey, another Bay Area boat, is leading IRC D with Electra and Hawkeye close behind in points.

A pair of beach-walkers and their Australian shepherd watch a duel between Soozal (left) and the Farr 40 Twisted. Crissy Field is a great location for spectating. ©2010 norcalsailing.com

On Sunday morning, the skies are lowering and visibility is lessening, with rain imminent, setting a damp and dismal stage for the final race, a Bay Tour. The postponement flag was dropped a couple of minutes earlier than on Saturday.

The Melges 32 Black Mamba. A black mamba is a venomous African snake, but Black Mamba is sailing for the Czech Republic. ©2010 norcalsailing.com

For more, see www.rolexbigboatseries.com.