ABW Dec 2017

Eighty eight boats turned out for the first day of
the Autumn Regatta with much speculation on
whether the breeze would also join the fleet due to two
typhoons in the region doing
their best to suck the breeze out
of Hong Kong.
It was a day of challenging
conditions for racing with nine
starts to get away. Racing was
initially delayed as the wind had
swung 180 degrees requiring
the marks to be reset and new
course selections made.
Racing kicked off at 1411hrs
with easterly courses chosen
starting from Hung Hom. The
The track turned into
a huge drifter with
racers battling it out
in no breeze and the
tide against them.
first fleets to set off were the J/80s and Sports Boats,
the Etchells (after a general recall) and Impalas. The
Flying Fifteen sequence was postponed as the wind
dropped, and then restarted
in the new westerly breeze.
The westerly breeze resulted in
downwind starts for following
fleets, the Dragons set out next
with all other starts thereafter
setting off in six minute intervals.
The later starters got the benefit
of the breeze and caught up to
the rest of the fleet but when
they approached the huge hole
off of Tai Koo Shing the track
turned into a huge drifter with
racers battling it out in no breeze
Words by
RHKYC
Photographs by
RHKYC/ Guy
Nowell
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