Plimmerton Hosts round Mana Island Regatta

The annual round Mana Island Trailer yacht series was held from Plimmerton Boating Club (PlBC) on Sunday 14 April. The series is traditionally an interclub feature but with the general demise of interclub trailer yacht racing in the Wellington region has not recently attracted outside entries. Nevertheless a fleet of 10 yachts turned up on the starting line, reflecting the strength of the division at PBC and the way it has developed over the last few years.

Mana Island is 22 km north of central Wellington, 5 km offshore from the coast at Porirua and, at North Bluffs, 11 km west of the clubhouse providing, in real terms, a course of just over 9 nm. The club's position on the northern side of the entrance to Porirua Harbour, the Porirua Roadstead, explains the popularity of trailer yachting there as courses can be laid to provide coastal sailing when the wind gets up but which allow racing without the full wave height experienced in the open sea around Rewarewa Point 2 km to the northwest, though this is not always the case.

The fleet was dominated in number by Noelex 22s with eight boats, and in speed by two Elliot 5.9s. The Elliots, Bruce Bradey’s Elliot Ness and Alby Playford’s Erotic provide a useful deviation from the solid fleet of 22s and are hard to crack on the national ratings handicap system. The 22s include present national title holder Cougar usually sailed by Alf Saunders but helmed by Ross Barcham on the day, Grant Ransom’s Double Dark, second at the nationals, and Tom Haskell’s Phoebe. It was Phoebe who with Gavin Smith in his Aquarius Enchantress, but was in the Rescue Boat Keith Stokes on the day, kept trailer yachting alive 8 or 10 years ago when the TY fleet got down to two boats, until Kevin Beach in Cool Change arrived shortly after. Alf, Alby, Bruce, and John Bullyment now in Nemo were Zeddy guns at the time and again always up there at the nationals with Bruce and John holding national titles. Club Secretary/Manager Sandra McGill was in Shamu, Vice Commodore of Sailing Neil Gibbons in Ceto and Club Chef, TJ, in Desperate Dan were also in the hunt on the day.

The course series was originally set up as a morning and afternoon affair with a break for lunch and a row of yachts would anchor up off the beach south of the clubhouse, or hang off the launching piers so the trophies are the Am Cup and  Pm Cup with the Combined Cup for overall. Now we run the races back to back alternately clockwise and anticlockwise depending a bit on wind and tide. The “morning” race this time was port rounding of the only mark on the course - the island. The wind was a 10 kt northerly at the start which meant a cracked sails reach to North Bluffs and a dead run down the back of the island. By then the wind was, on schedule, 20 kt and made for some exciting sailing through a confused southwesterly sea that was reflecting off the island. From my platform on Phoebe the Elliots were still in range with Elliot Ness having the advantage and Double Dark then Cougar not far ahead of us. Rounding the south end was its usual bother - stay in close and you might lose the wind, go out, keep the wind and you might travel too far. Nemo took the inside track and got left behind but otherwise as the wind increased away from the lee of the island it was back to a tight two sail reach and some fast sailing, though Shamu hit a patch of kelp and stopped. The above order was maintained (Table 1), and our GPS showed we sailed 9.1 mn at an average speed of 6.38 kts.

The second race started in at least 20 kts again providing fast sailing with cracked sheets into the lee zone then hard on around South Point. The Elliots were virtually out of sight in the haze and spray and looked to be in close contact with each other with Erotic in front. Double Dark tacked on the lay line, Cougar went in, I stayed out hoping for a tidal advantage. Grant (Double Dark) disappeared after the Elliots, Cougar picked up a few lengths but when I tacked halfway up the back, there was Nemo; John had taken the inside track and lucked out with Cool Change and Paul Brisk not far behind. The sea was like a washing machine even 3-500 m out, with half to one metre waves, a northerly component and the reflections which threw the boat onto the lee side every few waves. Rongoa Richmond was sailing Shamu when the tiller extension broke throwing him over the side. Sandra eased sails and picked him up with Ceto and Cool Change in support. Likewise Dave Clark came off Eliot Ness but he held onto the jib sheet and was hauled back on board. The ride back from North Bluffs was a feature of the day with an easy two sail reach, forward speed kept it too tight for kite work. The wind on the top-side of 20-25 kts and the boats started to take off on the southwest swell component. Shamu, back in the action, hit 15 kts going down the flank of one of the waves. On Phoebe our GPS course was 9.7 nm and we averaged, including the 1.6 nm slog against the tide up the back of the island where SOG got down to 1.9 kts, 6.1 kts.

Table 1  Places are based on National Trailer Yacht Handicaps

 PBC will continue to run this series and promote it, as we did this time, with a view of making it a true interclub event again.