The 27th annual Malaspina Regatta, hosted by the Garden Bay Sailing Club, took place in perfect conditions on July 2.
This year was a gala year when a number of records were broken: the most boats entered, fastest completion of the 10 nautical mile course, closest finish, and the total fleet completed the course faster than in any previous year.
The forecast for Saturday, two days before the regatta, was calling for very light winds (five knots) from the southeast. But on race day the 29 competitors arrived at the start, between Martin and Pearson Islands, to find SE winds between 10 and 15 knots. The forecast had also changed for later in the day with winds expected to increase to 20 to 25 knots. There was a slack tide, but the wind had created a very sloppy condition with rolling two-foot-high waves.
All 29 boats got off to a good start, however, and were soon out in the straits where the wind conditions were a little more consistent. The first mark the fleet had to round was at Hospital Reef, which is located halfway to Texada Island. The race to be first around the mark was tight between Elua Makani, skippered by Sean McAllister, and David Pritchard in his new J-70 Deviant, but Sean just managed to keep the lead.
The second leg of the course took the fleet directly downwind to a mark situated northwest of Ackland Rock. Traditionally it is on this leg that we see colourful spinnakers being hoisted on most of the boats, but due to the increase in the wind and a rougher sea state, only four boats decided to take the chance. A couple of the boats did have problems with their spinnakers, but once they were flying they were able to gain on the boats ahead. It was Deviant that managed to reach the mark first, some 50 yards ahead of Elua Makani. Conditions were beginning to get windier and rougher, and one boat suffered a tear in its genoa on this leg.
The final leg to the finish always requires skippers to decide if it is better to stay close to Nelson Island or to tack back out into the straits. The wind by this time had increased to between 15 and 20 knots with four-foot waves, which made it hard on the smaller boats. Another competitor, Infidel, skippered by Dale Kerfoot, suffered a severely torn genoa early in this leg. It was at this point that the bigger boats were really able to show their form as they sliced through the waves. The finish was the tightest that we have ever seen with only 20 seconds separating the first two boats, and 10 minutes between the first 10 boats. The whole fleet crossed the line in two hours and 42 minutes.
A celebratory barbecue was held after the race, attended by 124 people, at which all the trophies and many door prizes were handed out. A good time was had by all.
Honours for first across the line went to Sean McAllister in Elua Makani; first on corrected time was Andy Paulus, Wings II; and the four divisional winners were: AA to Sean McAllister, Elua Makani; A to Andy Paulus, Wings II; B to Munson McKinney, About Time; and C to Diana Valiela, Yippee-Ki-Yae.
