NAWILIWILI — Kevin Millet was masterful in skippering Kato to the top of a tight nine-boat fleet as the Nawiliwili Yacht Club opened its Horse and Pony shoreline series.
There were good sailing conditions Thursday with winds blowing in the 7- to 10-knot range out of the northeast, generating ocean swells of more than a meter at the Nawiliwili Harbor.
After eking out a lead over OZone in the third leg of the 6.03-mile course, Kato took advantage of an OZone stall just short of the finish line to capture the win in the Horse, or big boat, segment of the hotly contested race.
“This is so exciting,” said Polly Mullen of New Mexico who had just arrived at Lihue Airport and made her way to the Nawiliwili Harbor jetty point where the NYC Race Committee had gathered to marshal the contest. “My camera battery’s gone since I got here via Memphis, Tennessee, but that means I’ll be back next week.”
From the onset, excitement ruled the race as Fast Company with Jim Saylor at the stick broke the pack on a port tack that saw the Olson 30 charge the pack at the clean start, but had to duck Bonjolea II, a Sydney 36 with Bonnie Tiffany at the wheel, and thread other boats in the lead.
The maneuver, however, did not give her the momentum she needed, and by the return of the first leg, Fast Company had slipped to third place to Kato, taking a wide port tack, Bonjolea and OZone.
The wind switched from its opening blow to a more northeasterly course to create course adjustments on the fleet. By this time, OZone had clearly established its lead with Fast Company and Kato battling for the No. 2 spot and Bonjolea II dropping to fourth place entering the inland stretch.
A tactical change pulled Bonjolea II to third place over Fast Company for the remainder of the race while Kato and OZone grappled for the coveted top spot.
“A few moments of chaos ensued as OZone stalled just 10 to 20 meters short of the finish line,” said Doug Tiffany, the acting NYC vice commodore. “Bonjolea II was closing fast. OZone’s Dr. Chris Jordan got the Olson 30 going again, and with just enough momentum to cross the line in second place — just eight seconds ahead of the charging Bonjolea II.”
Kato claimed the Horse Race with a solid 1 hour, 13 minutes, and 4 seconds elapsed sail, correcting to 1:13.52 PHRF for top honors. She was followed by OZone (1:13:49 elapsed, 1:14:16 PHRF), Fast Company (1:15:32 elapsed, 1:15:32 PHRF), and Bonjolea II (1:13:57 elapsed, 1:18:48 PHRF) rounding out the leaderboard.
Other boats followed, including Speedy (1:18:56 elapsed, 1:19:25 PHRF), Weatherly (1:21:43 elapsed, 1:22:13 PHRF), Lelele (1:26:33 elapsed, 1:26:41 PHRF), Papa Au (1:31:52 elapsed, 1:28:45 PHRF), and Iwa (1:36:20 elapsed, 1:33.53 PHRF).
Speedy additionally corrected to 1:09:03 Club for top honors in the class followed by Bonjolea II (1:14:04 Club), and Weatherly (1:14:24 Club) with its “all kids” crew.
The second race of the NYC Horse and Pony series will take off Thursday with the first flags flying at 5 p.m., and the NYC Race Committee invites people to view the competition at no charge from the jetty wall area.
