B division got away on a flat run down to Kent Passage Buoy and Coyote Blue found the conditions really to her liking and she pulled out a good lead from That Girl and Bedouin before tackling the beat all the way up Te Puna Inlet.

Holding to the centre of the inlet seemed to pay off and Golden Delicious passed Bedouin only to be passed on the run back to The Brothers while Coyote Blue carried on her merry way out in front. After rounding Kent Buoy there was another beat back towards the Kerikeri River and the finish.

Coyote Blue took line honours by a minute from That Girl with Golden Delicious crossing in third. The bottle of rum for the handicap was won by Golden Delicious from Manuia and Coyote Blue.

In the A division Black Pearl and Razzel went head to head until Razzel damaged her mainsail and was forced to retire. Since it was the same course for both divisions the A division which started second was forced to work their way through the B fleet with all the dirty air that entails. Physical Favours sailed very well to cross the finish line only two and a half minutes behind Black Pearl with the Farr 1020 Petty Cash another five minutes further back.

Petty Cash was well sailed to win the handicap section from Physical Favours and Sunday Sun.

Click here to see race results  

A cold day with squalls to 35 knots and heavy rain fronts did not deter the 19 starters in Sundays Willis Sails Winter race 10 which included Rev’s the gun boat from Opua come to do battle with M1 and Deep Throttle.

As the B division approached the start line a heavy squall came through and persuaded most of the fleet to quickly put in reefs in their Mainsails for the beat up to the SW buoy. The conditions suited Golden Delicious who led the way out of the river on the kite run out to Motuterekihi Island followed closely by That Girl and Bedouin who dropped back after a wild broach. However, when a snap shackle let go on Golden Delicious the resulting chaos saw them drop back to third as they rounded Black Rocks and headed towards Brampton Buoy on a tight reach. A sharp increase in wind up to 30 knots and very heavy rain on the beat to Kent Passage suited Golden Delicious who closed up on That Girl to follow her all the way to the finish with Bedouin crossing 4 minutes further back.  Golden Delicious won the handicap section from Bedouin and That Girl.

The A division course went out to Ninepin and back and saw several wipe-outs the most spectacular belonging to Deep Throttle which lay down showing all her underwear including the keel. M1 showed the way out to Ninepin where they were greeted by a one to two meter chop.  On the beat back they met the same squall and heavy rain as the B division which made life wet and uncomfortable for the crews. M1 crossed the line first followed four minutes later by the Opua boat Rev’s with Deep Throttle another 2 minutes further back.

However, despite a big broach at the finish line Tongue Twister took first a minute ahead of Wasted Away with Vim in third place.

With one race left to run Physical Favours is running first in the A division on 340 with Wasted Away and Tongue Twister equal second on 333.5. Deep Throttle is only one point back on 332.5.

It’s even closer in the B division with That Girl on 296 and then Golden Delicious, Bedouin and Coyote Blue equal second on 290. So, it’s all going to be on in two weeks time.

Twenty two yachts fronted up to the start line on Sunday the 22^nd at the Kerikeri Cruising Clubs Goodyear Auto and Appleton Rum race 9 in a 15 knot SW breeze on a bright sunny winter’s day.

The B division got away well on a beat to the SW buoy with the Marauder 28 Manuia skippered by 80 year old Wynn Judd leading the way. A long run down to The Brothers saw the normal order settle with That Girl in front followed closely by Manuia and Wavelength. The 100 year old Scout also showed her metal to challenge for the lead. After the beat back up the river That Girl crossed the line 30 seconds ahead of Scout with Manuia only 20 seconds back. The handicap prize went to Manuia with the H28 La Pajara second and Scout third.

Black Pearl the big Young designed yacht led the A division around the course followed by Simon Willis in his Spencer designed Sagitta and the catamaran Razzel.  Black Pearl crossed the line five minutes ahead of Sagitta with Razzel another two minutes further back. However the Warwick designed Sunday Sun won the bottle of rum for first on handicap with Sagitta second and Black Pearl third.

A lovely sunny afternoon, a steady brisk breeze and close racing.  What more could you ask for.

Once again the Kerikeri Cruising club fleet approached the start of the Willis Sails Winter race with a forecast of 25 knots gusting 35 knots only to find that the wind barely rose to 15 knots from the SW. On this occasion however the skippers looked at the sky and made their own judgment and put up number one jibs and full mains.

The heavily modified M1 with Craig Partridge at the helm was at the start line looking very formidable indeed. With a 23 meter high mast and a 13foot 6 inch keel and carbon fibre sails she did indeed look breathtaking.

Deep Throttle took an early lead during the Gennaker ride down towards the Black Rocks but eventually M1 gained a small lead which she built on to cross the line 12 minutes ahead with Wild Card third over the line.

The big Spencer 40 Nice One took out the handicap prize from Wild Card and Wasted Away.

In the B division That Girl made a great start and her big blue Gennaker proved to be the right choice out to the Black Rocks with Bedouin and Golden Delicious snapping at her heels. At Brampton Buoy That Girl was well in the lead from Bedouin and Aalitta but a couple of kite twists saw Golden Delicious make up ground to come in third across the line behind That Girl and Bedouin.

Bedouin turned the tables on That Girl to win the handicap section by 3 minutes with Golden Delicious third.

A lovely sunny day with fairly light winds made for pleasant sailing.

The forecast for the Appleton rum and Goodyear Auto rum race at Kerikeri spoke of 25 knots gusting 35 but the reality was far less and caught out a lot of the fleet with number 2 jib’s and reefs in their mains.

There was great interest in the heavily modified boat of Craig Partridge which was due to make its first appearance but a small technical hitch forced them to abandon their start.

B division made a good start with Golden Delicious leading the way to the first mark but as the course developed into a reach Jagged Edge and Bedouin pulled away as expected. The beat back from The Brothers did not alter the established order and Jagged Edge crossed the line 3 minutes ahead with Wavelength third over the line.  However the H28 La Pajara, which came in 38 minutes behind Jagged Edge, had done enough to make their time and take the handicap prize. Bedouin was close enough to take third position.

The breeze was sufficient for Razzel the big catamaran to pull away from the fleet and finish almost 8 minutes ahead of Physical Favours with the Farr 1020 Petty Cash another 5 minutes further back.  Razzel also won the handicap prize by 20 seconds from Sunday Sun with Physical Favours 16 seconds back in third place.

It was a very sad day when a popular member of the Kerikeri Cruising Club, Barry Gunn, died suddenly while crewing on That Girl during the Willis Sails Winter series on Sunday.

Despite the forecast of 25 knots gusting 35 knots a good fleet turned out to contest the business end of the series.

The A division raced away towards the channel markers at Paihia with the big catamaran Razzel leading the way from Deep Throttle and Wild Card. Despite the best efforts of Deep Throttle, Razzel led all the way to cross the line 14 minutes ahead with Wild Card third across the line.  Razzel also won the handicap honours from Deep Throttle with the Ross 930 Wasted Away in third place.

In the B division Jagged Edge was an early leader until she wrapped her Gennaker around the keel and That Girl took her usual spot at the head of the fleet. She held this position for the large portion of the race until her retirement when Golden Delicious took over to cross the line nine minutes ahead of Coyote Blue and Bedouin. The fresh airs did not suit the lighter displacement yachts on the long beats.

Golden Delicious won the handicap prize from Bedouin and Coyote Blue.

There were no celebrations at the club house as the returning yachties learned the sad news.

They say that sailing in very light airs is character forming and Sundays Goodyear Auto and Appleton’s Rum race 7 was certainly that with 0 to 5 knots and forty degree wind shifts to contend with. At the start line outside the Kerikeri Cruising Club it proved difficult for some of the twenty boats to even cross the line. Large areas of no wind created a minefield for the yachts to negotiate and it was common for boats to go from the front of the fleet to the back in the space of 100 meters.

It took some of the B division nearly half an hour to go the short distance to the Cocked Hat marker but That Girl and Coyote Blue worked out to the front closely followed by Bedouin. Manuia hit the spur at The Brothers quite hard but the only damage was to a bottle of rum which broke in a locker much to Wynn Judd’s chagrin.

That Girl crossed the line just 5 seconds ahead of Coyote Blue with Bedouin 40 seconds further back.  Bedouin took out the handicap prize from Coyote Blue and Scout.

In the A division Deep Throttle worked her way into the lead from Tongue Twister who was only 2 handed which on a canting keel boat is tough work. This was the position at the line with Physical Favours crossing in third.

Tongue Twister also took out the handicap section and the bottle of rum from Hicky Burr and Sagitta.

The sun was out but the 15 knot SW breeze made it cool for the start of the Willis Sails Winter race 7 at the Kerikeri Cruising club on Sunday the 18th.

There were 18 yachts at the start line and the B division got away cleanly on a kite start towards the Black Rocks on a tight reach.

That Girl assumed her usual possey at the head of the fleet followed by Coyote Blue and Golden Delicious sporting a new mast and rigging after losing hers in an earlier race.  Wavelength took over third position on the beat to Brampton Buoy but lost a lot of yards due to misjudging the tide at the buoy which by now was racing out.  That Girl crossed the line three and a half minutes ahead of Coyote Blue with Golden Delicious a further minute and a half further back. When the handicap results came out it was Coyote Blue by one second from That Girl with Golden Delicious a minute and a quarter back. However, these results are provisional due to an unresolved protest.

In the A division The battle between Deep Throttle and Tongue Twister the two canting keel boats continued with the Shaw sport boat Animal Biscuits in the mix as well. The course suited Deep Throttle who rattled around the bigger course to finish six minutes ahead of Animal Biscuits with the big catamaran Razzel a further 3 minutes back.

The Ross 30 Physical Favours skippered by Pete Woods took out the handicap prize by a whopping six minutes from Tongue Twister and Deep Throttle.

It was a glorious winter’s day to be out sailing and showed that winter sailing is best.

Despite the cold 15 knot SE breeze and overcast conditions twenty yachts turned out for the start of the Goodyear Auto and Appleton’s Rum race 6 at the Kerikeri Cruising Club.

The forecast was for the breeze to build to 25 gusting 30 knots but this did not happen and full mains and big jibs were the order of the day.

In the B division Aalitta made a perfect start right on the button and led the fleet away on the beat out to the Brothers where it became a reach for the rest of the track.  That Girl took up her usual position at the head of the fleet chased by Wavelength and Coyote Blue and this was the order when they crossed the line with That Girl holding a three minute lead which was not enough to make her time for handicap honours.  Aalitta won the handicap prize from Wavelength and That Girl.

A division got away cleanly with Deep Throttle assuming her usual spot at the head of the fleet but this time chased closely by Black Pearl and Vim. Deep Throttle who has the nickname “Linda” held her lead all the way round to take line honours from the big 13 meter Young design Black Pearl by 3 minutes with Physical Favours another three minutes further back.  The handicap prize of a bottle of rum was taken out by the Farr 1020 Petty Cash from Physical Favours and Black Pearl.

It is interesting to note that in the A division only 27 seconds covered the first four boats on corrected time and three minutes covered the entire division.  In the B division just over three minutes covered the whole division. That’s very good handicapping for such a diverse fleet.

A glorious winter’s day with a 15 knot breeze greeted the 26 starters at the Goodyear Auto and Appleton’s Rum race five in the series organized by the Kerikeri Cruising Club on the 27^th of June.  Towards the end the wind did die away to 7 or 8 knots which allowed some of the leaders to pull away but the judges at the finish had an unenviable task as up to eight boats would cross the line in a tight bunch.

Black Pearl

In the B division That Girl made her usual good start but this time was chased closely by Coyote Blue and Windsong throughout the entire course. As the race progressed Bedouin joined that group with Jagged Edge hard on her heels. A shift in the wind direction in the latter stages allowed That Girl to stretch away but not enough to take handicap honours which fell to Bedouin from Windsong and Coyote Blue. 

Black Pearl joined the A division for the first time and this big twin ruddered Young 13 meter yacht promised to give all the fleet a fright and so it proved with her taking line honours from Razzel and Physical Favours.

However, the Warwick designed Sunday Sun won the handicap section from the Young 88 Wise Guy and the Farr 1020 Petty Cash.

On such a lovely day this large fleet makes a great sight coming up the Kerikeri River in a tight bunch and was appreciated by the spectators at the club house.