Tie at top in Audi Etchells Worlds
November 23, 2006 0 comments
Day 6 of the 2006 Audi Etchells Worlds and young New Zealand champion Alastair Gair snatched victory on the final beat of Race 6 from America's Cup sailing icon John Bertrand. Betrand was leading until the last 400 metres of the 13 mile windward leew
Day 6 of the 2006 Audi Etchells Worlds and young New Zealand champion Alastair Gair snatched victory on the final beat of Race 6 from America’s Cup sailing icon John Bertrand. Betrand was leading until the last 400 metres of the 13 mile windward leeward course. With series leader Jud Smith sixth over the line the series is now tied up.
John Bertrand was fast off the line in today’s race, a little too fast according to race officials. He cleared out and was at once stage 50 seconds ahead, but the fleet ran him down. It was blowing 25 knots and the seas were steepening as Bertrand led Gair by just 13 seconds round the bottom mark. Gair had surfed down the run, taking ten seconds out of the leader and up the beat Gair found a shift on the right, to sail into the lead.
Second across the line was Britain Ante Razmilovic, three boat lengths behind Gair. As Bertrand crossed five lengths later, the skipper swung round and saw the OCS notification on the 1983 America’s Cup tender Black Swan, with the dreaded message Race 6 OCS – 55. In non yachtie terms; ‘You broke the start and your score is not 3 but 73.’
But the veteran America’s Cup sailor has lodged a protest against the ruling which will be heard shortly.
Gair said dockside; ‘We managed to get off the line fast, rounded fourth and had pretty good downwind pace, we just managed to get close to John on the second run and found some shifts. But we’ve still got a bit of yachting to go yet, so we will just keep concentrating.’
Jud Smith still leads the regatta, on a count back after his sixth, a good recovery; he was eleventh at the final bottom mark. Smith today; ‘We fixed our up wind problem, but not our downwind problem. I picked the wrong kite. We just don’t sail in the heavy conditions. I looked at the long range forecast before the regatta started, we could see it would start light and get heavier, later so we knew we’d to go well early and then hang on in the heavier weather. The four up crews seem to have an advantage upwind and that is what is keeping us in the series.’
Ante Razmilovic. ‘It was a pretty standard day. We seemed to be going faster up the last beat. When the NZL went right, we thought we’d get through them, we’d get through them, but it turned out to be the other way. Overall though we are sailing fast, but minimizing risks.’Provisional Results for Etchells
Worlds Championship
after 6 races with 5 races to count
Pos’n Bow No Boat Details Skipper/Crew Total Nett 18/11/06
1 77 USA 1061 – Feng Shui Jud Smith/Dirk Kneulman/Andrew Wills/Thomas Saunders 37 16 1( 1) 2( 2) 1( 1) 6( 6) 21 6( 6)
2 29 NZL 950 – Velsheda Alastair Gair/David Ridley/Carl Peters/Derek Scott 39 16 2( 2) 23 4( 4) 3( 3) 6( 6) 1( 1)
3 41 GBR 1333 – Swedish Blue Ante Razmilovic/Jez Fanstone/Stuart Flinn 37 25 9( 9) 9( 9) 12 1( 1) 4( 4) 2( 2)
4 30 AUS 1317 – Una Mas (QLD) Mark Bradford/Graeme Taylor/Steve Jarvin 61 27 5( 5) 34 5( 5) 4( 4) 5( 5) 8( 8)
5 13 GBR 1187 – Anam Chara Andy Beadsworth/James McHugh/Simon Fry 47 28 3( 3) 4( 4) 2( 2) 10( 10) 19 9( 9)
6 73 USA 946 – I Love My Wife Craig Healy/Kieth Stahnke/David Gruver 109 39 8( 8) 70 23( 23) 2( 2) 3( 3) 3( 3)
7 20 AUS 117- Fast Harry (NSW) Cameron Miles/Phil Smidmore/Dave Samson 61 44 4( 4) 14( 14) 17( 17) 17 2( 2) 7( 7)
8 76 GBR 987 – Bedrock Stuart Childerley/Simon Russell/Roger Marino 72 45 27 11( 11) 8( 8) 5( 5) 8( 8) 13( 13)
9 55 AUS 1321 – Triad (VIC) John Bertrand/Ian Johnson/Tim Ede 119 49 10( 10) 17( 17) 9( 9) 12( 12) 1( 1) 70
10 22 AUS 1277 – Critical Balance (VIC) Mark Bulka/Stewart Nichols/Steve Young 82 53 18( 18) 13( 13) 6( 6) 29 11( 11) 5( 5)
