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Top honours were often shared across the divisions at the end of the 18th edition of New Zealand’s biggest multi-day keelboat regatta, the CRC Bay of Islands Sailing Week.
Mayhem, co-skippered by Harry Dodson and Tony Bosnyak, won Division A on line and general handicap but the coveted PHRF national championships trophy went to Jim Farmer's Georgia after a solid three days of racing.
The third and final day on Friday brought few surprises from the weather or the results, with sunshine, a stiff afternoon breeze, and strong performances from the majority of the fleet of 137 boats.
Principal race officer Ian Clouston described the regatta as a whole as “brilliant” and those thoughts were echoed by regatta chair Manela Gmuer-Hornell who said: “It’s been great, and people have been really positive.”
Photos: Lissa Photography
Elsewhere in the standings, Steve Purton’s Icebreaker won line honours in B Division, with a string of podium placings across all nine races in the regatta, but Matt Kerr on Satellite Spy took the win in B Division on general handicap and Clockwork won on PHRF.
E division saw a much bigger fleet than previous years, but it was first-time entrant Rob Clifton in a humble Pied Piper named Kiore who gave the locals a run for their money and walked away with the win on general handicap. He didn’t compete in the PHRF nationals, which was won by locals 4 Fox Sake, skippered by Peter Boyd.
The Tornado nationals saw a last-minute lead change on day three, with Bay of Islands local Dave Lineham’s C4 putting in a strong performance to take the overall win from Wayne Limbrick on VMG.
Another strong fleet this year was the Young 88 class, with nine boats competing, up from just three in the previous year.
Gavin Brady's Slipstream III took the gun in every race but a disqualification in one race and a handicap that reflected Slipstream’s performance put Brady well down in the fleet on general handicap.
Phil Rzepecky’s Medium Dry came out top of the pack, with Carl Webster’s Nona second and the youngsters from Lyttelton on Undercover taking a well-deserved trophy home with third.
Photos: Lissa Photography
In the Sport Boats, Aaron Reynolds on Snatch was streets ahead on general handicap, while it was a close-fought battle for line honours between the locals on Angry Dragon and the visitors on Ghost Rider, who eventually ended in a tie for first place.
Top placing in the Multihull division was comfortably claimed by Radix, while possibly the biggest upset of the event was in the Weta fleet, where Ian Sutherland on Suds swiped the series from Paralymian Chris Sharp with a win in the final race.
In the cruising divisions, Island Racing A was taken out by Brian Wheeler’s Omega8 on both general handicap and PHRF. In Island Racing B Frenzy, skippered by Morgan Brodie, took the win on general handicap, while on PHRF it was Kerikeri boat Tongue Twister, skippered by David Ferris and Brian Hutching, at the top of the podium.
Regatta founders Nina and Tony Kiff on Wetherley were pleased with their win on general handicap in Island Racing C, and on PHRF, Andrew Pardington on High Spirits claimed the top spot.
Island Racing D with no spinnakers was won by John Allemann's Glory Days, and the Island Racing E multihull division was taken out by Russell local Antonio Pasquale on Ave Gitana.
At the prizegiving ceremony, Manuela Gmuer-Hornell thanked regatta sponsors CRC, NZL Sailing Foundation, North Sails, Explore, Mount Gay Rum, KZ Leisurefurl, Luxury Real Estate, Bay of Islands Marina, Gurit, NZ Spars & Rigging and Bluefix Boatworks.
She also noted the invaluable support of the event’s volunteers, without whose time and energy the regatta wouldn’t exist. Prizes were presented to sailors and volunteers who had made a special contribution to the event, before the trophies were officially presented to winners.
Full results for CRC Bay of Islands Sailing Week 2020:
