Bellerive Bonanza in near Windless Day

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Bellerive Yacht Club boats dominated results in the Combined Clubs Harbour Race Series racing on a near windless day on the River Derwent on Saturday February 18.

This was the second day of the post-Christmas series, with Derwent Sailing Squadron race officers forced to set short courses to get results.

The lack of wind forced the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania to abandon racing in the SB3 sports boat Australian championship, while yachts in Groups 4, 5 and 6 of the interclub racing at times just drifted around the course.

The breeze did not get above 5 knots all day in the main river area, but down river, off Taroona Groups 1 and 2 enjoyed an 8-10 knot nor’easterly breeze to complete the shortened 8.4 nautical mile course.

Line honours in Group 1 went to the Farr 40, Voodoo Chile (Andrew Hunn) which picked up a stronger breeze down one side of the course to overtake both Wired (Stephen Boyes) and War Games (Wayne Banks-Smith) on the final spinnaker run. From 2.5 nm astern at the weather mark, Voodoo Chile just over a minute in front of Wired.

PHS category honours in Group 1 went to Launceston to Hobart Race winner Masquerade, Tony Harman’s Morgan 35, from Harold Clark’s Farr 1104, Invincible, and Don Calvert’s Castro 40 Intrigue.

Invincible was the stand-out boat of the day, the Bellerive Yacht Club boat winning both the AMS and IRC rating divisions from Intrigue and Masquarade.

In Group 2, Half Hearted, Chad Grafton’s half tonner, scored an outright win from Silicone Ship (Clark Wyatt) and Hot August Night (Nat Morgan).

Groups 4, 5 and 6 sailed a short 4 nautical mile course from Castray Esplanade to a mark south of the John Garrow beacon and return. At one stage, the fleet was totally becalmed off Nutgrove Beach.

Bellerive Yacht Club boats continued their success in Group 4, with Commodore John Mills skippering his Huon 10, Total Locks and Alarms, to an outright win, with The Saint (John Lawrence) second on handicap and Silver Mist (Andrew Sutherland) third.

Derwent Sailing Squadron’s Grizzly Adams, an Adams 10 skippered by Joel Bulman, notched up a win in Group 5 from Alibi II (Rod Williams) and Trick Cyclist (Graham Hainngton).

New Quantum sails are clearly paying off for Ian Gannon’s Traditional 30, Take Five, which followed up her second in the PHS division of the Bruny Island Race with a comfortable five minute win in Group 6 from Spinner (Peter Linn) and Kauilani (Malcolm Cooper), which took line honours in the group.

• In Canberra, light winds also forced no racing in which Tasmanian Matt Bugg is defending his Australian championship in the International 2.4mR class on Lake Burley Griffin.

Peter Campbell \

18 February 2012