Pointscore winners

With a second place finish overall from Flinders Islet and a win from Bird Island, Ichi Ban is in good position after two of the four races in the Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore.

“We got a solid second place last week, so it’s nice to back that up with a win,” said Allen.

“It was a pretty wet and furious race, especially with that much wind. I think we got a gust of 38-39 knots at one stage, so it was pretty much about holding on and trying to keep the salt out of the eyes.

“Luckily it was a short race in terms of time. [The first two races of the Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore] have given the fleet upwind racing, downwind racing and quite a lot of furious reaches.

“It’s good for the whole fleet to have that experience and time on the water. It helps with the crew work.

“The Blue Water Pointscore is a really big thing for us. It’s one of the main focuses of the boat – that and the Rolex Sydney Hobart are intertwined.

“To have a second and a first sets us up well, because we know the Pointscore is going to be really tight at the top and it’s hard to get points on the others.”

Party continues for Disko Trooper

Jules Hall’s J/99 Disko Trooper_Contender Sailcloth made it back-to-back overall wins in the Two-Handed Division.

Jules and co-skipper Jan Scholten won Two-Handed IRC honours in the Flinders Islet Race a week ago and made another statement by winning Two-Handed Line Honours, IRC and ORCi honours.

“I think we’re feeling comfortable with where we’re at, though there is still quite a lot to do,” said Hall.

“We’ve only had the boat for a year, so we’re still learning, but the miles we put in over the winter are paying off now.

“We have a better idea of how she goes in different conditions and how to set her up for those conditions, which is helpful.”

Disko Trooper was pushed all the way in a thrilling Line Honours battle.

After more than 11 hours of racing, just two minutes separated the first three boats across the line in the Two-Handed Division, with Salt Shaker (Peter Franki/Drew Jones) finishing second and Rum Rebellion (Shane Connelly/Graeme Dunlop) third. Local Hero was a further two minutes back.

“We got a bonus second race yesterday,” laughs Hall. “We had the race to Narabeen, then it went from 25 knots to two knots in the space of about half an hour.

“We had a comfortable lead on the second boat, then the next thing we knew, we had Salt Shaker, Rum Rebellion and Local Hero all together behind us.

“The breeze picked up, dropped again, and then filled in, so we took off and it was on for young and old to the finish from there.

“When you’re in a comfortable lead and you’ve held it after bashing through 30-35 knots for nine hours, then it just stops and you’ve got no wind with everyone charging up behind you, it’s not ideal.

“You’ve got to stay calm and make considered decisions in these boats. It’s very easy to not do that, so I was very pleased we snuck out of that.”

Mark Ayto and Anto Sweetapple’s BH36 Local Hero won Two-Handed PHS honours, ahead of Speedwell (Campbell Geeves/Wendy Tuck) and Rum Rebellion.

URM sets new pace

New records were always going to be set for the 2021 race as the course had been shortened by two nautical miles with a change to the finish line. But URM’s time, at an average of 16 knots, also smashes the previous records for the 85nm course.

Comanche set an open record of 6:08:27 in 2018, and Loki set the conventionally ballasted record of 6:38:56 in 2011.

“Sometimes mother nature can be kind,” joked URM owner Anthony Johnston. “It was a competitive race the whole way. Conditions were great and the crew worked really hard.

“We couldn’t have asked for anything better, it was a straight line up and a straight line back.

“The boat is in good condition. She’s had a few new sails and we’re focused on getting her ready for Hobart now.

“We’re really happy with how it’s running. We’ve got a great bunch of people, a really good team and they work really well together.”

Annie Lawrence and John Whitfeld’s historic Halvorsen 36 Solveig was the final boat to cross the line, finishing at 0029hrs on Sunday.

2021/22 Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore schedule

• Race 1: Flinders Islet Race – FINISHED
• Race 2: Bird Island Race – FINISHED
• Race 3:Cabbage Tree Island Race – 1900hrs Friday 3 December
• Race 4:Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race – 1300hrs Sunday 26 December

Visit the Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore website for more information.

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