NAWILIWILI — The rain could not dampen the spirit of the boaters, Thursday.
Despite a sputtering vehicle dying just short of the start line, the Nawiliwili Yacht Club Wahine Series, Race No. 3, the final race of the series, started on time under light air.
“The car was sputtering from the NYC Clubhouse, and it finally just quit,” said Sharon Gibson, the NYC scorekeeper.
But through the help of Ken Dorland, the necessary supplies made it to the start line and the buzzer sounded on the race that saw Malihini and Lelele tied for the lead in the overall series.
“Malihini needs to win to take the series,” Gibson said. “It’s going to be interesting.”
At the start, Fast Company, relegated to a fourth finish last week following a second finish in the first race, jumped into the lead of a three-boat race.
OZone, an Olson 30 absent in the first two races, joined her along with Papa‘au, an Express 27 piloted by Marcie Millett.
Malihini and Lelele, the two series leaders were victims of poor starts, being relegated to the back of the pack.
All of that changed following the first leg as Lelele, piloted by Susan LeHoven, battled for the lead spot with Fast Company and OZone.
Right behind the front runners, Malihini kept up with the pack challenged closely by Papa‘au.
Fast Company relinquished her lead to Lelele and OZone heading into the second and final leg by taking the mountain tack while the other two boats opted for the high tack, closer to the berthed Norwegian Cruise Lines.
Mother Nature stepped in and stopped the boats dead in their tracks heading to the first turnaround on the second leg.
Boats were dead in the water, literally bobbing in a pocket of dead air, each trying to tack out of the dead zone.
That pulled the front runners even closer together.
Results of the finish and overall standings in the series will appear in a future issue due to the calculation of the various PHRF corrections.
The NYC announces the start of the Kaua‘i Channel Race that will feature a host of boats racing from the Ko‘Olina Marina and Resort to Kaua‘i in a 78-mile cross channel race next Friday.
The public is invited to view the finish from the Nawiliwili jetty wall area, or the Ninini Point Lighthouse. Gibson said the first boats are expected to arrive around 3 p.m., depending on the weather.
For more information, visit the NYC Web site at www.nawiliwiliyachtclub.org.
