NAWILIWILI — OZone did not have line honors during the Nawiliwili Yacht Club Gene Wells Memorial Series, Race No. 2 that unfolded in winds of 8 to 10 knots out of the northeast.
Line honors belonged to Bonjolea II, skippered by Bonnie Tiffany, who won the Wells Series Race No. 1 on Sept. 1. Bonjolea II peeled off the 5.92-mile course on an elapsed sail of 1 hour, 7 minutes, 31 seconds, but its handicap based on size of the ship was not enough to claim the PHRF class honor, giving the win to OZone (1:11:04 elapsed time), which nailed the honor by just four seconds with its 1:11:11 PHRF correction.
Bonjolea II settled for runner-up with its 1:11:15 PHRF correction, and tying the series lead with OZone on one win apiece.
Fast Company, the normal pin setter for the starting line, was absent from action on this race, moving the boats to start from the G-5 buoy, where OZone squeaked out an early lead.
“Bonjolea II was the first boat to tack back towards the breakwater, but they had to duck OZone,” said Chris Jordan, the OZone skipper. “Speedy tacked next, as did Weatherly. OZone kept going, and when they tacked back they had to duck the very-fast Bonjolea II. But OZone was able to now clear the end of the breakwater, saving two tacks. The distance of those two tacks would have been costly to the Olson 30.”
Following rounding first at the Ninini Lighthouse buoy, Bonjolea II took off, Jordan said.
“OZone rounded next, and then, it was the youngest Kaua‘i Sailing Association kids on Double Espresso with 12-year-old Stella Fornari steering,” Jordan said. “Speedy was next, followed by Weatherly and Papa A‘u.”
“At the finish line, it was Bonjolea II taking line honors once again, with OZone finishing 3:33 behind them,” Jordan said. “OZone wondered if on corrected handicap time they had beaten the usually unbeatable Bonjolea II. And, they had, by a mere four seconds.”
Double Espresso (1:17:56 elapsed time) finished third (1:18:03 PHRF) in the PHRF class with Fornari having steered the entire race.
In the Club class, Speedy (1:19:40 elapsed) took first on its 1:10:45 Club correction, followed by Weatherly with Zoey Huntley on the helm (1:18:57 elapsed) in second place at 1:14:16 Club. Papa A‘u (1:26:29 elapsed) took third in the class on its 1:19:24 Club correction.
The third race in the Wells Memorial Series is on Thursday when the first flags fly starting at 5 p.m. from the NYC Race Committee vantage point at the Nawiliwili Harbor jetty wall parking area.
