NAWILIWILI — Kato, with skipper Kevin Millet at the stick of the Olson 30, pulled out for an early lead and never looked back to claim the top spot for the Nawiliwili Yacht Club Horse and Pony Series, Race No. 2.
Sailing Thursday under winds blowing in the 10- to 15-knot range out of the northeast, Kato plowed through the 5.91-mile course from its starboard tack at the clean start to cross the three-leg race on an elapsed sail of 1 hour, 3 minutes, 38 seconds, correcting to 1:04:20 PHRF for her second straight win in the series.
Bonnie Tiffany turned the wheel of Bonjolea II, a Sydney 36, to a port tack following its starboard start. The maneuver to avoid the “foul air” of the fleet, and a challenging Fast Company was able to keep Bonjolea II ahead of the pack and in position to challenge Kato.
Unfortunately, despite her second overall finish at 1:06:07 elapsed sail, Bonjolea II could not maintain sufficient distance ahead of Fast Company (1:08:58 elapsed sail) and corrected to 1:10:27 PHRF for third place below Fast Company who corrected to 1:09:24 PHRF for second-place honors.
“Some of the notable features of this race saw OZone, crossing the line in fourth, providing a bit of amusement for the crowd on the mole as they raised their spinnaker upside down on the final leg,” said Doug Tiffany, NYC interim vice commodore. “A sign of surrender to the top three boats?”
OZone posted a 1:11:03 elapsed sail and corrected to 1:11:29 PHRF for fourth-place honors over Weatherly (1:13:10 elapsed, 1:13:37 PHRF) whose all-girl crew sailed her very well, said Tiffany.
Other boats in the race included Speedy (1:13:57 elapsed, 1:04:42 PHRF), Lelele (1:15:50 elapsed, 1:15:57 PHRF), Papa Au (1:32:46 elapsed, 1:29:36 PHRF), and Iwa (1:32:20 elapsed, 1:29:59 PHRF).
Speedy corrected to 1:04:42 Club for top honors in that class followed by Weatherly (1:06:36 Club) and Lelele (1:06:37 Club).
The next Horse and Pony race takes place Thursday with the first flags flying at 5 p.m.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
