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ePaper created 2014-06-11, 13:05:34 | version 1.30.01
56 opponents and he made few tactical errors but Peter Walker of Silverdale appeared to be at all times the ablest tactician of all. If behind, he continually worked away at the boat in front and then at the critical moment he attacked and broke clear. It was pretty to watch. Ray Haslar, sailing Princess very fast, had three wins but critical tactical errors against Brentnall and Walker cost him the Series.” “With four wins each,Stu Brentnall and Peter Walker led the Series but as Walker had won against Brentnall,he won the contest on count back. It was unfortunate that time did not permit a sail-off between these two World Champions. It would have been a beauty of a race.” And there was no shortage of enthusiasm on the part of the skippers. Here are some of their comments: Ray Haslar: ‘The recent Match Racing conducted by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron – using the Stewart 34’s, was the mostexcitingracingIhaveevercompetedin. Theshortcourses,theevennessof theboatsandthestrongemphasisontacticsmakes this Series an annual Must. If we bring in more outside skippers and crews from within New Zealand and perhaps the odd one from overseas, we have the boats and facilities to make this the most sought after trophy to win in New ZealandYachting. Stu Brentnall: ‘This Match Racing Series was just what we needed. With the other guy exerting pressure every second of the race, we had to completely rethink our starts and our upwind and downwind tactics. We should have been doing it years ago. Peter Walker covered immaculately and deserved to win but it was surprising how some skippers got conned into major errors. More than any yachting contest I have been involved in,it became like a tough game of chess. Next year someone will come out with the new tactical variation to make us all think again. The Stewart 34’s are ideal for this type of racing,being quick to accelerate,easy to handle and they turn beautifully in tight corners. Furthermore,they handle in quite a similar manner to The Red Lion and Export Lion and,in fact,I feel they are the best keel boats in New Zealand to use for training our hopeful national offshore crews. I’ll be back next year as long as they invite me.” Ralph Roberts: ‘The weather was a little light and flukey but where else in the world do you get two beautiful sunny days in mid winter. The Series was excellent but next year a kind sponsor would be appreciated so that each boat could be provided with an identical headsail. OurracewithPeterWalkersailingPrecedentwastheraceof theSeries. Weweresocloseallthewayroundthetrackthatwelooked like a catamaran with two spinnakers. The verbal discussions were somewhat interesting!! We regret that the races were held a bit too far away and promise spectators that next year they will be able to see it all from North Head. To sum up,it was a most enjoyable event for all of us and,although not in the top placings,we at least had the best starts. The crew work on all the boats was top shelf stuff and congratulations to Bob Stewart for designing a boat 20 years ago that still goes like the devil and is ideal for this sort of racing.” Peter Walker: ‘This style of racing is obviously a completely different game from normal multiple boat fleet events and I think that one of its best aspects is the enjoyment it gives the whole crew.Each crew member becomes an intimate and important part of the whole race and as a result the rewards for the day’s effort are high. There is an ever present challenge in the fact that you are either first or last in each race - that bring out the best in a good crew. In this series I found more personal enjoyment in the downwind legs where the chess game aspects were more prevalent. The upwind legs tended to be compromised by the fact that everyone seemed to be discouraged from tacking too often and too quickly in the light breeze.This,in turn,produced (in at least two races) some interesting sightseeing out in the‘wings’of the course as lead boats waited for losers to tack for the weather mark. I feel that the more of this type of racing we do, the greater the enjoyment and enthusiasm that will result and if ten boats can be brought in for future events it would be further improved. This contest proved that we have the necessary enthusiasm and skill on the organisational side to make it a great event, particularly if Haslar continues to threaten to use the Rum bottle as a