Boats ‘go like the wind’ in Vasco
LAST weekend’s 46th edition of the 400 nautical mile Vasco da Gama Ocean Yacht Race from Durban to Port Elizabeth hosted by Point Yacht Club may have been shy on numbers. But it certainly did not lack in the exhilaration felt by all crew members at the consistent downwind conditions provided by the weather gods.
Senior crew member Gregg Dobson aboard PYC Dusky summed it all up in one word at the finish saying the experience was “Awesome, simply awesome!”
Skipper Jon Marshall concurred, reflecting the unanimous feelings of all skippers in the small fleet of seven boats that had safely traversed some of the most treacherous coastline to be found anywhere, before docking in Algoa Bay.
PYC Dusky was among the front runners which smashed the previous record of 54hr 1min 22sec set only last year by Rob van Rooyen at the helm of Al Mount Gay Rum.
But it was the Cape Town trimaran, SmartTri40, jointly skippered by Durban’s Sean Jones and Theunis Potgieter, which took the line honours in a dazzling new multihull record time of 42:58:53.
Johannesburg’s Herbert Karolius and his crew, made up of fellow yachtsmen from the Vaal Dam and Cape Town, steered Rocket, the only IRC boat in the fleet, across the line into second place just over an hour later in a new monohull record of 44:01:53.
All the boats in the fleet eclipsed Van Rooyen’s time with PYC Dusky, the oldest boat in the fleet, third in 49:43:29 followed by Ocean Spirit (Neville Bransby) fourth in 51:13:54, Mafuta (Robin Hulley) fifth in 52:01:02 and Wallbanger (John Tudehope) sixth in 53:04:17.
Jones was over the moon, saying: “The downwind sail was beautiful, absolutely beautiful! Never in my forty years of competing in the Vasco race have I experienced a race like this with such consistent weather. It was downwind all the way, a completely unique phenomenon for sailing in these parts.”
Dobson said he had not expected to be so close to the front against such formidable opposition. “We were stoked to beat the bigger boats. During the nights we sailed hard, and upped the tempo and I think that is what we did well.
“We stuck to our course and we had the correct sails and both helped to make a difference. Also, we never reefed when the breeze got up.
“While the others reduced their sail size, we bravely stood by our original selection which worked well for us. We were also not afraid to fly the kite and did so whenever it was possible. All these bold steps got us up on the podium.”
Dusky raked in the awards at the prize-giving, claiming both line and handicap honours in the PHRF class for which it was awarded the Dave Cox Memorial Trophy (first in line honours), the Paper Pack Trophy (first on corrected time) and the De Beyer Memorial Trophy (first Point Yacht Club boat to finish).
PYC sailors can look forward to celebrating the club’s 125th anniversary on May 13 from 4pm when the featured band, the quirky South Jersey Pom Poms, will perform from a boat moored in the marina. Burgers, bunnies and beer on sale. For more info or to book tickets, visit www.pyc.co.za.