NAWILIWILI — Following three line honors, or first to finish honors, in the Nawiliwili Yacht Club Gene Wells Memorial shoreline Series, Bonnie Tiffany and the Bonjolea II crew captured its fourth straight line honor, Thursday during the fourth race of the seven-race series.
“This breaks Fast Company’s winning streak of three-in-a-row (and many more before that),” said Chris Jordan, the stickman aboard OZone who worked Race No. 4 challenging Fast Company. “Go, Bonjolea II!”
Coming off a late start, Bonjolea II’s cloth milked the 10 to 12-knot winds blowing out of the north-northeast to fill the lead spot halfway out to the Ninini Point Lighthouse buoy during the first leg of the three-leg race spanning 5.91 miles.
Fast Company, with Jim Saylor on the stick, was engaged in a battle between OZone and Papa A‘u at the start where Keiki Mano, a new unofficial boat captained by Dr. Daniel Judd, jumped into the lead.
“It appeared to me like Keiki Mano was first across the starting line, although they started far down towards the NYC Race Committee, undoubtedly to avoid the crowded pin end,” Jordan said. “You don’t want a collision with that heavy sea anchor on the bow!”
OZone started up by the pin with Papa a‘u a little further down, and Fast Company below them.
“But Fast Company, being a faster boat, got into a lee bow position giving Tim Perry, the skipper aboard Papa A‘u, bad air,” Jordan said. “Papa A‘u tacked away towards the breakwater to get clear air, ducking OZone in the process. OZone tried to keep their position on Fast Company, hoping to drive them down into the flukey light air region of Kalapaki Bay. Saylor was to have none of that and tacked Fast Company towards the breakwater, ducking OZone in the process.”
After grabbing the lead, Bonjolea II kept building on its margin in the winds that were welcomed by everyone, sounding the finish horn on an elapsed sail of 1 hour, 4 minutes, 14 seconds, and correcting to 1:09:08 PHRF for its first victory in the series — a full minute and 31 ticks ahead of Fast Company who glided past the finish mark at 1:10:13 elapsed and corrected to 1:10:39 PHRF.
“OZone, with its No. 2 sail, was trying to catch Fast Company, flying a No. 3 sail,” Jordan said. “But she fell farther and farther behind. The teenage crew on Weatherly — they switched from a No. 1 to a No. 3 sail at the start — capitalized on a couple of spinnaker wraps on OZone and they sailed on by gleefully.”
Skippered by Carl Andersson, Weatherly slipped into the No. 3 position on a 1:11:23 elapsed sail, correcting to 1:11:50 PHRF followed by OZone (1:12:31 elapsed, 1:12:58 PHRF).
OZone corrected to 1:05:10 Club for top honors in that class followed by Speedy (1:21:29 elapsed) correcting to 1:11:39 Club, just 33 ticks ahead of Papa A‘u (1:20:15 elapsed) who corrected to 1:11:39 Club.
A new DLNR Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation ruling further complicates the standings process.
“The new DOBOR rule of five people on a boat makes it more difficult and challenging for the racing crews,” Jordan said. “NYC will undoubtedly have an addendum to the sailing instructions to let everyone know about this new rule. (This rule also moved OZone’s usual nine-person crew to where Judd, normally doing foredeck duty on OZone, and four of its crew to Keiki Mano).”
The fifth race of the NYC Gene Wells Memorial Series will take place on Oct. 8. This week, the NYC will start its Wahine Series, Thursday, Sept. 3, when the first flags fly at 5 p.m.
The NYC offshore series race to Hanalei will take place, Saturday, Sept. 5, with a self start at the Nawiliwili mole parking area.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
