DAY 3 – TWO ROUND ROBINS NOW COMPLETE
Depsite predictions of Perth’s typical pattern of midday glassout and influx of South-Western seabreeze, the Easterly held throughout the day, gradually clocking into the South East. The persistent right shifts were long and large, placing the race committee under the pump throughout the day.
6 flights were completed, with only 2 required to complete the second round robin. Nick Egnot-Johnson continued his dominant form, not without fierce challenges. Local stalwart Ethan Prieto-Low confirmed his place in the semi’s, and despite a harder day today that saw two losses to Torre and Paul, Tom Grimes also looks pretty safe. There’s a tight competition forming for the final place in the semi’s with 3 teams: Torre, Read, and Paul, all a mathematic chance. First flight TODAY, Thursday, 2nd February 2023, includes a Torre vs Read showdown which will surely be a must-watch!
Hot off beating Colin Mullins Youth Regatta Winner Tom Grimes over the line, in perhaps one of the day’s most exciting moments, Marcello Torre ruffled Nick Egnot-Johnson’s feathers with a downwind luff that saw both competitors kite down, a hundred meters from the bottom mark, which Torre exited ahead and with speed, a dramatic lead change that surely led to excitement onboard, but no penalty effected. After the boats split the gate with perhaps a boatlength between them, again the importance of sailing a strong ‘fleet race’ with a focus on shiftplay, pressure, and speed, was highlighted as Nick Egnot-Johnson worked to build leverage and regain his position at the midway cross. A boatlength lead at the top mark was difficult to challenge, and Torre had to settle for second in what proved to be an exciting match.
Nick’s last-minute replacement main trimmer, Vass Katsaitis, will make way for typical crew Alastair Gifford, who arrived from the flooded Auckland airport this afternoon. Vass says he learnt a lot onboard, and observed Nick’s incredibly calm, organised approach to leading the boat.
Lucy Alderson had a great success against Alistair Read, smoking off the start and holding control over the rest of the race to put another win in her team’s belt. However; Alistair Read has a bit of a reputation for slipping into the semi’s, with supporters over East showing strong support and belief for the Sydney boy in his final youth event. Watch this space, the full Torre-Read matchup will be posted on the Warren Jones Regatta Facebook as soon as possible from midday today, Thursday 2nd February!
Despite struggling for wins, local 17-year-old RPYC skipper
Antun Janekovic has undoubtedly improved over the course of the racing, putting a few teams under pressure at various stages. Every boat out there has been able to make great match racing moves, but the winners are the ones who have been able to string those moves together consistently throughout the race.
To cap a great day of racing off, members of the local RFBYC invited competitors to an informal dinner. It was a great social catchup for many of the teams offwater, and teams look forward to tonight’s BBQ as part of the Twilight Racing back at host club, RPYC.
Regatta website link is here
