HOT on the heels of the Carey Olsen Jersey Regatta, the Royal Channel Islands Yacht Club’s annual Jackson Yacht Services Bay Races ran very successfully the following weekend.
The weather was not dissimilar to that for the Regatta but with an extra few knots of south-westerly winds that gave excellent racing throughout the morning.
Fairly gloomy conditions prevailed as boats came to the line for an early start in St Aubin’s Bay but things improved as the morning wore on to give sunshine from mid-morning onwards.
With the race committee ensconced on the committee boat in the middle of the bay and the club’s mark-layers having laid the course, racing started with the cruiser class’s first race off the line at 8.30am.
The standard course configuration of both triangular and windward-leeward legs provided boats with opportunities to exploit their finer sailing points.
As it was, just one boat, Team Fahrenheit’s Farr 727, Fahrenheit, helmed by Justin Horton, flew a spinnaker during both of the cruiser races.
Fahrenheit sailed well to win both races, the first by a clear margin over Jason Baker and partners’ Golden Shamrock’s Arc-en-Ciel, the second by two minutes over Arc.
Don Thompson’s gaff cutter Foxhound was third on both occasions.
Starting just ten minutes after the cruisers, the Dayboat class was sent off on the first of three races over a triangular course.
Mike Harrison’s La Rocque OD, Jigsaw, took the first race, narrowly beating Ben Jones’ Cornish Coble, Baloo, with Malcolm Annan’s Oysterman, Jamesina, a close third.
Winning both of the following races, Baloo took the series clear ahead of Jigsaw and Jamesina both with seven points, their positions being decided on count-back.
The first of three races for the F18 sport catamaran class, all Hobie Wildcats, started at high water, shortly after 10am.
This was to be a battle between two of the fleet’s top boats, Andy Hart and Michael Kinross’ Hobie 517 and Adrian Jesson and Paul Martin’s Hobie 618.
Winning races one and three, Hart and Kinross took the series just one point ahead of Jesson and Martin with a win and two second places.
Peter Washington and Antoine Bacquet were a creditable third sailing Hobie 243.
Twelve boats turned out to race in the open sport catamaran class, all Hobie 16s.
Starting straight after the F18s the fleet made a truly colourful sight in the newly arrived sunshine.
Luke Paxton-Garnier and Steph Egan, sailing Time 2 Spare, fought off strong competition from the leading pack to win all three races.
Oliver Hunt and Jamie Washington, sailing Nauti Cat, with two seconds and a third, were runners-up overall, one point ahead of Aaron Le Cornu and Rachael Smith’s Top Kat in third.
Morgan Surcouf and Liv Sherrington’s iCat led the second tranche to take fourth.
Fresh from his success with sailing his Optimist in the Jersey Regatta, Henry Edwards, now accompanied by Nat Winchester on Hobie Dragoon 1369, sailed well to take races one and three in the open (Dragoon) sport catamaran class to take the series.
Sailing Dragoon 1170, Lottie Ohlsson and Caps Bacquet were second overall having won race two and taken second place in races one and three.
Luke Haydon and Cameron Castle’s Dragoon 1034 was third.
Representing Jackson Yacht Services, Mike Jackson congratulated the winners and thanked all who had taken part, competitors and volunteers alike.
Meanwhile, honorary sailing secretary Bill Harris closed the event by extending his thanks to Jackson Yacht Services for their long-standing support and and much-valued sponsorship.
