International 14 Australian Championships at Black Rock Yacht Club - Day 1
by Aus i14 31 Dec 2022 02:32 NZDT
28 December 2022 - 6 January 2023
International 14 Australian Championships Heat 1 © i14vic.com.au
After a tough day on the water for the invitation race, with large swell and 18-22knots, Heat 1 took place in glamour conditions with 30 degree temperatures and 10- 15 knots of breeze.
In just over ten knots of southerly breeze the fleet got off to a clean start and soon split evenly on the two sides of the race track, Ben Strong and Daniel Farthing on Too Late to Stop Now, lead the charge on the left side with Mark Krstic and James Lanati on Sticky Fingers leading the pack on the right hand side, with the pair meeting at the top mark with Sticky Fingers rounding first.
It was a tightly grouped pack with the top ten boats all in close proximity, at the end of the first lap the top three were Sticky Fingers, Lindsay Irwin and Andrew Perry on Ronstan/Irwin Sails and Too Late to Stop Now.
The second upwind saw a large shift favouring those that ventured further right, the heavier crews relished the tight lines to the wing mark and Brad Devine and Ian Furlong on Del Boca Vista moved into third.
It was a tight race for 4th with 6 boats all trading places at times, any small mistake could be very costly.
As the fleet rounded the bottom mark and headed for the upwind finish, the three podium positions remained unchanged.
Race 1 was won comfortably by Black Rock locals, Mark Kristic/James Lanati on AUS679. In second place was Lindsay Irwin/Andrew Perry sailing AUS663 and the podium was completed by Brad Devine and Ian Furlong on AUS661 in third place.
The local boats clearly relished the great conditions put on by Black Rock waters.
Full results here...
Race two is scheduled for tomorrow and conditions are forecast to be similar to today. The event is generously supported by Sport and Recreation Victoria.