Singapore Straits Regatta 2001

Race 6 and the final race of the 7th Singapore Straits Regatta the Boats and Mets Asia Challenge race got underway in a patchy 5 to 8 knot North Westerly. Although the overall winners in both the racing classes A & B had already been determined by yesterdays abandonment of race 5, all of the competitors were back out on the water after four solid days of racing and eager to put in their best performance on the last day. The close starts and the fine tuning conducted by eager crews in a bid to gain that extra inch of boat speed showed the seriousness in competition presently being experienced in this region.

To avoid disappointing the competitors again, overnight the committee had redrawn the course and made provision for a possible shortening during the race. A result will be made and this race could still determine the minor placings in the overall standings. Could defending champion Gotcha Lagi from Malaysia hold onto her slender one point margin to retain third spot from a fast finishing Australian Challenge and another Malaysian entry Hannes Waimer's DK42 who are tied for forth. Or would she finish first and overtake Neil Pryde's Hi-Fidelity for second spot or fall of the pace and be displaced herself.

The patchy wind conditions across the course saw the yachts positions rapidly changing as they tried to stay in the wind by changing angles to balance the effect of tidal currents and take advantage of the numerous windshifts. The two Singaporean yachts Pla Loma and organizing chairman Geoffrey Leow's Jenny 3 where the first to suffer from the vagaries of the wind and fall behind in their familiar local waters. Leaving all the visiting racers from Malaysia and Australia to go on and fill the places and Hong Kong's Stella take the cup home.

On the last long shy spinnaker leg out along the Changi airport land fill extension the wind died and the incoming current caused the yachts to gather up in the last half mile from the shortened finish. The back markers could run down the leaders and pick a better line to the finish around the entire racing class B fleet who had been earlier washed down stream and were struggling to make their way back. Warwick Downes new Sydney 38 Stella showed her superiority once again to take first place from a fast finishing Gotcha Lagi! and the ever consistent Hi-Fidelity taking third on the day. This result kept the earlier overall top place order intact with Hong Kong yachts Stella first and Hi-Fidelity second and last years winner from Malaysia Gotcha Lagi! maintaining third position overall.

The fleet rallied around the marks only to see their established positions and hopes dashed as the leaders became becalmed and the fleet bunched up again with only a mile to go to the finish. Six J 24's finished within one minute and forty seconds of one another. A new winner emerged in Graham Lind's J24 Tempest putting a end to Kopi-o's three race winning streak that won them the class B trophy. Lee Sea Yean's Jangan Main Main took second from Kurt Metzer's Sampan who moved up to take second place overall from David Low's KT2. Paul Khor's crew of Singaporean champions on Kopi-o finished 6th which had little affect on the overall standings as her 5, 1,1,1, 6 score sheet was already enough to take a firm grip of the trophy after race 5 was abandoned.

Kopi-o also took out the honours in the J 24 division within the racing class B racers from David Low's KT 2 and Lee Sea Yean's Jangan Main Main (Don't play play) after experiencing some very close and exciting racing amongst them all during the regatta.

The conclusion of the 7th Singapore Straits Regatta saw the race officers supporting clubs, sponsors and race secretariat carry out an extraordinary job in managing all of the behind the scene details and immigration for crews between Singapore, Indonesia and back again to be possibly voted the best run regatta on the 3-regatta South East Asian Circuit. The organizing committee must give a lot more emphasis on the tides and current flow when planning the next regatta and make provision in the sailing instructions for race officers to be able to shorten courses thereby ensuring a result can be made for all races started.

The Sir Thomas Lipton perpetual trophy was won again this year by Neil Pryde and his crew on Hi-Fidelity for having the best score of placings in individual races over the three S.E.A. Regatta's in the racing class A, despite not winning a regatta in two years. Perhaps by restructuring the present pointscoring system and basing it on overall placings at each regatta it may add some significance to this award and widen the scope to attract yachts competing in other classes that race at all 3 regattas to be included in the calculations that determine the best overall performing yacht in the region for that year.

The youth sailing program in Singapore took a new path by encouraging their former dinghy champions to try their hand at keel boat racing during the regatta. Kopi-o's success shows that when the crew have already mastered the fundamentals of sailing and adapted to the changes required to sail different racing yachts that their performance is usually commensurate with success. This trend will need to be developed further and the authorities should consider purchasing a new racing class yacht to train up a racing team of local sailors and seek funding to mount a Singapore yacht racing campaign that might be able in future years represent Singapore on the South East Asian (SEA) Yachting Circuit and possibly win their own Singapore Straits Regatta.

Race 5 the Changi Sailing Club race from Nongsa Marina in Batam Indonesia takes the fleet back to Singapore's east coast for the final races of the annual Singapore Straits Regatta. The entire fleet got away in 5 knots of wind only to become becalmed for up to 2 hours about a mile from the start line. A small crab swimming and clinging to the barnacled floatsome in the water was actually seen to overtake us on the glassy surface.

When the fleet did get underway again the yachts struggled against a strong 2 knot current in the East Johor Strait as the 5 hour time limit set for this race expired. As there was no provision to shorten the course in the sailing instructions the race was abandoned as there where no finishers. An oversight by the organizing committee and a disappointment for the sailors after spending all day on the water in often strenuous circumstances not to have a result at the end of the day. As there will not be any re-sail the missed race severly affects the final pointscore for the series. Boats that may have improved there position have been denied that chance and as the regatta winds to a close there are not enough races left to do so. The yachts that scored the early wins will go on to take the regatta.

The final race 6 will be sailed of Changi Sailing Club on Sunday and will not affect the final outcome as it is a forgone conclusion that Stella will take Racing class A with her 1,2,1,2 score sheet and Kopi-o will take racing class B with her 5,1,1,1 result.

Race Report 3 - Singapore Straits Regatta 2001

A fresh 8 to 10 Knot NW breeze greeted the sailors for the start of race 3 which unfortunately swung further to the west shortly after the yachts started turning the race into a soldiers course of fine upwind reaching and shy spinnaker returns. The good news is that the breeze strengthened for the second race up to 16 knots and the relayed course remained true for the entire race enabling the yachts to easily overcome the 2 to 3 knot outgoing current running roughly parallel with the course.

Warwick Downes new Sydney 38 Stella consolidated their position at the top of the leader board with another win in race 3 and 2nd in race 4 giving them a 1, 2,1,2 score sheet so far. Ray Roberts Admiral's Cup bound Corel 45 Australian Challenge showed a exceptional turn of power reaching to finish well in front of their rivals over the line to finish in 2nd place in race 2 after handicaps have been applied. Ever consistent Neil Pryde on Hi-Fidelity took 3rd in race three after a close tussle with Hannes Waimer's DK42 and pipped Stella to claim a victory in race 4. Keith Moore's Singapore based Pla Loma managed a third in race 4 his best result so far at this regatta to complete the major places.

Malaysian favorite Gotcha Lagi ended the day with a 4th and 6th place to claim third overall in the standings with 11 points from Hi-Fidelity with 7 points and a near invincible Stella with only 4 points (lowest points wins). Singapore's Jenny 3 stumbled a few steps down the leader board from being 2nd overnight with a 6th and 7th to end up 6th overall and dash the hopes riding on them on becoming the first Singaporean yacht to ever win the Straits Regatta.

In racing class B Paul Khor's crew of champions proved they are a champion crew to dominate proceedings capturing 2 firsts to add onto yesterdays win and taking a commanding lead in the overall points standing. Kurt Metzer on Sampan was the big mover today finishing with 2 seconds to lift them into third spot overall after a disappointing start to the regatta. David Low and his crew on the J 24 KT2 remained consistent with 2 thirds to hold onto second place overall. The jumbling of finishing places has spiraled the overall points scored by the remaining yachts so much that they will have to pull something out of the magicians hat if they are to close the gap with the present leaders.

Tomorrows race 5 sees the yachts returning to Singapore via the East Johor Strait to the Changi Sailing Club. As the weather has been different each day the local experts have given up trying to predict it. One can only pray that the wind gods produce sufficient puff to propel the yachts up the strait against the strong outgoing current.
Ends

Race Report 2 - Singapore Straits Regatta 2001

Race 2 the 30 nautical mile RSYC Race from Singapore to Batam Is in Indonesia turned into a lottery where all yachts had a chance of winning at some stage during the race. A light NWesterly got the yachts away but faded about five miles from the start allowing the strong out going current to carry the yachts around St Johns Is and down the main shipping channel. Last years winner Gotcha Lagi the smallest yacht in class A and race 1 winner Stella stayed in the wind to sail around the becalmed big yachts to take the lead.

The afternoon thunderstorm building over Singapore saw the wind kick in from the SEast helping the backmarkers and yachts that had been earlier displaced to catch up with the leaders. The storm finally hit the fleet with 20 knots of wind and a thorough bucketing of tropical rain.

As the time limit for the race was exceeded before the racing class A yachts could finish the times taken at a earlier rounding where used to calculate the results. This left Amir Zohri's Gotcha Lagi to take a narrow victory by 42 seconds From Warwick Downes Hong Kong based Stella. Third was Geoffrey Leow's Jenny 3 who has stayed in the points to hold second overall from Stella's 1, 2 placings. Gotcha Lagi who was last in race 1 (8th place) has turned the tables with a first in race 2 and are tied for third overall at present with Neil Pryde's Hi - Fidelity who finished sixth today.

In racing class B the J 24's snatched victory in front of the storm across the Singapore Strait to Batam and take the first six places from the 10 bigger yachts in their division. Paul Khor's team of S.E.A . Games champions sailing on Kopi-o took the honours from Lee Sea Yean's - Jangan Main Main (translated means Don't play the fool) and Graham Lind's Tempest. The best placed yacht after the J 24's was Kurt Metzer's Sampan taking 7th place. This puts Kopi-o in front on the overall standings at this stage in proceedings.

The scheduled race 3 and 4 are 2 back to back windward/leeward courses held of Nongsa Marina at Batam and the results of these two races will play a big part in determining the final overall placings.
Ends

Race Report 1 - Singapore Straits Regatta 2001

The dawning of the first day of racing at the 7th Singapore Straits Regatta saw a fresh 12 to 14 knot nor north easterly fanning the yachts down the strait and out to the start line. By request of the PSA the publicised Raffles Marina 34 km passage race was changed to a 16 nm windward/leeward course to be laid south of the entrance to the West Johor Strait. By the mid-day start and for the first 2 1/2 sausage legs (or spring rolls as they are known in Asia) the breeze seemed consistent although had moderated to about 8 to 10 knots true.

Up to this stage most yachts had been tweaked up to maximize boat speed and enjoyed the sail by making comparisons with the other yachts performance and placing. Neil Pryde on Hi - Fidelity had established a healthy lead over Ray Roberts Australian Challenge in the racing class A and to everybody's surprise the Indonesian navy entrant a J 35 - Arsa ll led racing class B.

The present full moon cycle brings with it the highest tides of the year so as the afternoon wore on the current across the course and at the top mark progressively increased to between 2.5 and 3 knots causing many sailors to misjudge or underestimate their approaches.

On the 4th windward beat the failing breeze decided to take a total breather for a while before lightly filling in again from the same northerly direction. The patchy breeze and strong current saw many quick gear changes and placings. After many attempts Australian Challenge overtook Hi-Fidelity to round the mark clearly in first. The yachts in the middle of the fleet closed up and the ones out to the right luckily picked up the returning breeze first to run down the leaders on the downwind leg. Warwick Downes on the Hong Kong based Sydney 38 Stella got to within only 16 seconds from taking line honours as well as handicap honours from Hannes Waimer's DK42 leaving Hi-Fidelity and Australian Challenge trailing by a further 3 minutes, although only one second separated them over the line. Jenny 3 managed to split these two on corrected time to take 4th place in racing class A.

In racing class B the big gainers where Lex Barker on X-el and Gordon Maxted on Shoon Fung Too who toppled the Indonesian J 35 Arsa ll back into third place after having a commanding lead coming into the final lap.

PS As the second race of this regatta takes us across the Singapore Strait to Batam Is in Indonesia where the communication system is unreliable there may be a delay of a few days between Race Reports 2 and 3. I hope to be able to catch up upon returning to Singapore on Saturday followed by RR 4 and 5 plus summary on the days there after.

10 Jan 2001 12:49am MYT
7th Singapore Straits Regatta - Pre Race Roundup

The forever changing Singapore Straits Regatta gets underway tomorrow in its new January time slot with race 1 from Raffles Marina around Tuas and the Jurong Islands to the new Republic of Singapore Yacht Club and marina complex. The six race program for competing yachts is to be held on the busy waterways between the islands that make up Singapore, bordered by southern Malaysia and the neighboring Indonesian Riau archipeligo Island of Batam. These courses will take competitors through some very crowded ship anchorage's and across one of the worlds busiest shipping lanes in their quest to become this years Singapore Straits 2001 yachting champion.

Which of the 24 competing crews will be able to read and harness all mother natures elements correctly on the race course? Will it be the 1994 and 1998 winner Neil Pryde on Hi-Fidelity from Hong Kong or the 1995 and 1997 champion Ray Roberts on his revamped Coral 45 Australian Challenge. Or will Singapore's Pla Loma or Jeffry Leow's Jenny 3 get up after seriously undergoing lengthy preparations in order to produce a winning Singaporean combination. Amir Zohri's Farr 36 Gotcha has returned in ernest to defend last years title and has been renamed Gotcha Lagi! (again) with Manpower as the sponsor for this outing. Check them out on the new website http://AsianYachting.com/Gotcha

Sixteen yachts are competing in racing class B that include six J 24's, two J 35's and a number of locally owned X-yachts. Kopi-O will be one to watch as a young crew of dinghy champions are out to show off their sailing skills on a borrowed J24. Singapore's new national coach Gordon Maxted will be at the helm of Shoon Fung Too and Kurt Metzer's Sampan having the lowest handicap of the bigger boats in this class are expected to amongst the top placings.

The Sing Straits is the third and final regatta that officially make up the South East Asian Regatta Circuit for 2000/2001. Where the Sir Thomas Lipton Perpetual Cup will also be presented to the best performer at all three regattas including the Raja Muda International in Malaysia and Thailands King's Cup. Detailed Race Reports of these past regatta's can be viewed at http://AsianYachting.com