Source: @www.sovereignscup.com
Day 3 of the Covestone Asset Management Sovereign’s Cup dawned bright with a light zephyr from the West which lured competitors out of the comfort of the Yacht Club Marina. As the morning progressed, it became clear day 3 was to be a test of skill and nerve for all competitors.
The breeze settled into 240 degrees from early on and offered everything from 14 to 28 kts over the course of the day. Perhaps the fleet which experienced the brunt of this breeze was the Quarter Ton and 1720 class on their windward leeward course just East of Black Head. As the breeze built it became clear todays winners would be the ones who made the least boat handling mistakes.
As the boats approached the first windward mark of race one, the breeze whistled over the Old Head to drive both fleets flat out towards their leeward mark. This was to be the order of the day with this mark rounding proving that sailing can be an impressive spectator sport. As the respective chutes popped, in a ball of spray the boats took off under varying degrees of control towards the leeward mark.
The conditions provided the ideal testament to the tenants of successful racing, good boat handling and good boat preparation. In this regard it was no surprise to see the boats who had been doing equally doing well in the light, also shining in the big breeze. The one exception being 1720 class leader T-Bone, who had the misfortune of dropping her rig shortly after round the weather mark in race 8. Undeterred this determined crew is sinking their teeth into getting a new rig stood for tomorrow’s final two races.
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