Sterling effort

Anne Hinman reports from the International Youth Match Racing in New Zealand

ITwo Grade 3 events for international youth match racers have just been completed in New Zealand. The RYA sent the UK’s youth match racing champions: Nick Cherry, Nick Houchin and James Roche. The dominant teams, throughout both events, were the two (Red and Blue) from the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, the British RYA team and the Australian representatives from the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club and the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia. Other NZ, Aussie, Japanese and American teams improved in skill level considerably by the end of racing. The Down Under teams were used to sailing Elliott 6s, in which racing was held at their own clubs, but these boats were new to all the northern hemisphere teams. All teams, except the British, brought a coach with them.

The inaugural Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club event in Wellington was late starting due to high winds and torrential rain. The inclement weather over the last two weeks which has resulted in the NZ capital Wellington being cut off by road on two occasions meant that not all the intended racing was able to be completed.

A sparkling day with perfect sailing conditions eventually materialised in Wellington for the initial round robin sailing. At the completion of this, following another day of high winds and no racing, the top four were clearly ahead of the rest: RPAYC, RNZYS (Red and Blue) and RYA.

The wind increased again as the semi-finals started. The RYA team was given a penalty for an early port entry against RPAYC. However, the RPAYC team as over the line at the start. The RYA team had a good lead at the top mark which was eaten into downwind by the RPAYC. On the final downwind leg there was no longer space for the RYA team to take their penalty and head home for victory. Consequently neither boat hoisted a spinnaker until well down the leg the RPAYC believed that they were sufficiently well clear of the RYA team to do so. The RYA sailors, however, immediately came back and luffed RPAYC. Both boats were penalised - the RYA (subject to rule 17, creating an overlap from clear astern) initially did not give the RPAYC room to keep clear and the RPAYC did not respond adequately on a subsequent luff to keep clear of the RYA boat.

This left the RYA team with an outstanding penalty. They were too close to the finish line by this stage to stop the RPAYC from running down to take the gun.

The second semi-final between the RYA and RPAYC started with the RYA team relishing the building wind conditions and crossing the starting line with the RPAYC firmly in their wake. At this point it appeared that the windward mark was beginning to drift and the committee boat started dragging its anchor. The match had to be abandoned, robbing the RYA of almost certain victory.

In the other semi-final race, an all in-house affair between the RNZYS teams, the Red team were able to hold onto their kite better than the Blue team, who broached out in their last race, as winds gusted up to 30 knots once more.

Abandonment of the semis due to the weather meant that the round robin results were used for the final results tally, giving first place to the RPAYC team and the next two to the RNZYS, with the RYA in fourth and the CYCA in fifth.

While Wellington, in the Roaring Forties, is renowned for its breeze, things are usually much quieter in Auckland. In February, however, the wind has blown strongly at the northern end of the North Island too, as recently tropical depressions have come south and led to explosive meetings with those coming up from the Antarctic. Scenes in parts of the North Island have been reminiscent of those after the October 1987 ‘hurricane’ in the UK with, in addition, swollen rivers rising many metres above their banks and causing millions of pounds worth of damage.

The first two days of racing in Auckland had to be called off. On the third, a lack of wind meant that the first round robin was still incomplete by the end of the day. This was just the calm before the next storm as more gales the next day saw racing abandoned yet again. With winds once more forecast to rise on finals day, the RNZYS grabbed a two hour time slot in which to hold a one race sail-off for the semi-finals and a best-of-three finals.

The RYA (top jointly with the two RNZYS teams from the 7/9ths complete round robin with a perfect score of 7 wins-0 losses) chose to sail RNZYS Blue. In the lead on the first round of the first race, but being caught up and blanketed downwind, they then had jib sheet problems after rounding the bottom mark (an unthreaded rope on one side and a riding turn on the other winch) which allowed the RNZYS team to get past them to go on to win. This meant that the RYA had to fight it out with the CYCA for 3rd/4th, who had lost to RNZYS Red, whilst there was a local derby for 1st/2nd placings.

In the petit final the CYCA won the first race and were ahead in the second when a misjudged dip on port tack meant that the RYA team holed the CYCA boat. The damage was such that the RYA team was black flagged from the race and lost their damage deposit to boot. “We should have stayed in bed today” said a disappointed Nick Houchin (RYA team mainsheet hand).

The RNZYS Red team overcame RNZYS Blue 2-0 to win the local derby and take the trophy as winds climbed to 25 knots once more.

Competitors stayed with local families at both events and, in Auckland, were given the use of Giltrap City Toyota cars for the duration of the regatta - and all went home with rucksacks, caps and other goodies.

It is not the purpose of this report to record who won the paintball or was best at (indoor) rock climbing in Wellington, or who won the go-karting or did the most spectacular bungy jump of the Harbour Bridge in Auckland, but I can report that the most used of the sailing videos at the RNZYS was that of the Awesome Aussie Skiffs!

CLUB	AYC	CYCA	JMRA	RNZYS B	RNZYS R	RPNYC	RPAYC	RSYS	RYA	SFYC	TOTAL
Annapolis YC							W			W	2
Cruising YC of Australia	W		W	W		W		W		W	6
Japan Match Racing Assoc	W				W					W	3
Royal New Zealand YS Blue	W		W			W	W	W	W	W	7
Royal New Zealand YS Red	W	W		W		W	W	W		W	7
Royal Port Nicholson YC	W		W								2
Royal Prince Alfred YC		W	W			W		W	W		5
Royal Sydney YS	W		W			W					3
RYA	W	W	W		W	W		W		W	7
San Francisco YC						W	W	W			3

Semi-finals
CLUB
Royal Yachting Association
Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron Red	W
Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron Blue	W
Cruising Yacht Club of Australia
Places 5 to 10
Japan Match Racing Association
Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club	W
Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron	W
San Francisco Yacht Club
Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club	W
Annapolis Yacht Club
Finals
CLUB
Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron Blue
Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron Red	W	W
Royal Yachting Association
Cruising Yacht Club of Australia	W	W