Epic Cape to St Helena race gets under way
The faster cruisers take off like a rocket
A light westerly wind of 8 knots kept the boats moving but a lumpy swell caused the heavier vessels to struggle
FAMILIES and friends of the crew of the 15 yachts participating in this year’s Cape to St Helena race gathered at the Royal Cape Yacht Club on Wednesday to send off the sailors, all of whom were cheerful and relaxed before boarding their vessels.
Last on-board preparations were carried out before the vessels departed, heading for Granger Bay, where the start line was laid in the shadow of the Cape Town Stadium.
About 20 spectator boats accompanied the Cape to St Helena competitors at the start to wave them goodbye. One crew was reported to have requested an explanation of the starting sequence via radio, just minutes before the start.
After all the competing yachts mustered in a line at Granger Bay behind the start marks, a gunshot at exactly 2pm signalled the race start.
The one single-handed entry, Dale Kushner aboard Yolo, made good use of the sailing rules by forcing the fast trimaran Banjo away from the start, resulting in shouting from Banjo crew.
Other than that, the start proceeded smoothly.
A light westerly wind of about eight knots was sufficient to keep the boats moving but a lumpy swell caused the heavier monohulls and catamarans to struggle with speed.
The faster cruisers could be seen coping better with the bumpy conditions, with the light 9.5m trimaran Banjo and the racer cruisers Rocket, Naledi and Yolo taking off very well.
Whereas some boats chose to head north-west inside Robben Island, others took a more westerly route, and a few could even be seen heading southwest, hoping for better wind.
Heading up the West Coast, conditions were expected to remain bumpy with a light westerly breeze for the rest of Wednesday. With the wind predicted to build and move south over the next days, the fleet should be cruising more comfortably.
The fleet can be tracked via http:// www.xtra-track.com/cape2sthelena2018 and daily updates will be posted on www.capetosthelena.co.za