Day 2 07/01/03

Race 2 of the Sail Melbourne B14 World Championship got underway this morning at 930am in a 5-10 knot NE breeze. The right side of the course was favoured in the runout tide with Parkes/Hunt (AUS350) getting hard right and rounding first at the top mark. 2nd was Jolliffe/Branch (GBR728) followed by Race 1 winners Bancroft/Bancroft (AUS357). The leaders split downwind but most stayed left of the rhumbline and at the bottom mark the top 6 boats remained close together. Parkes/Hunt again went to the right hand layline in an effort to replicate their 1st beat success. Sophie Hunt noted that they had good speed but seemed to lack height coming into shore on port tack and allowed the leading group to ease up inside them as they approached the layline. Ex World Champion, Tim Fells, took a dig into the left side of the course and subsequently dropped from 3rd back to 6th after gaining on the leaders downwind. Jolliffe/Branch came out in front by playing the shifts up the right side of the work. Downwind, Reynolds/McMillan (AUS368) caught the pack to be in a position to challenge the GBR teams of Fells/Cunningham (GBR758) and Nelson/Ramus (GBR764) and Parkes/Hunt who again headed for the right side up the next work. At the top mark the last time the Bancroft team lead Jolliffe/Branch and Reynolds/McMillan who were just ahead of Fells/Cunningham and Parkes/Hunt. The Bancrofts held starboard tack briefly downwind before gybing to keep tabs on the following boats. Jolliffe/Branch gybed straight away to try and get some of the pressure that had been coming off the shore intermittently throughout the race. This strategy paid off with them threatening the Bancrofts at the bottom mark. Jolliffe/Branch rounded the starboard side of the gate & headed left while Bancroft/Bancroft rounded the other end and went right up the short beat to the finish. The Bancroft boat got the better of this dual to cross the line for two first places in as many races. With eight races yet to be sailed the Bancroft, father/son team, have had an ideal start to the regatta but acknowledge that there is still a long way to go. Further racing has been postponed due to lack of wind and the race committee has indicated that they will review the situation at 1600.

Placings for race 2 were;

1. Buggar the Bone, Guy & Rhys Bancroft (AUS) 2. Raymarine, Nils Jolliffe & Jon Branch (GBR) 3. The Nude, Richie Reynolds & Lissa McMillan (AUS) 4. AT&T, Tim Fells & Dave Cunningham (GBR) 5. Glashaus, Simon & Andy Ramus (GBR) 6. Hunt Leather, Abby Parkes & Sophie Hunt (AUS)

Provisional overall results after 2 heats are;

1. Buggar the Bone, Guy & Rhys Bancroft (AUS), 2pts 2. AT&T, Tim Fells & Dave Cunningham (GBR), 8pts 3. The Nude, Richie Reynolds & Lissa McMillan (AUS), 9pts 4. Glashaus, Simon & Andy Ramus (GBR), 10pts 5. Snatch, Jono Pank & Shaun Barber (GBR), 11pts