Through Race Passage

All race starts got away cleanly and on time. Conditions, though light, showed consistent winds and the starts for the Four Long Courses were gently swept toward Race Passage. There were some spinnakers at the start line, but most chose to begin on whites and shift to assymetricals as they approached Race Passage. ‘Absolute’ was the first through the Race, soon followed by Crossfire, Dragonfly, Neptune’s Car and Westerly. The Swiftsure Inshore Classic also had a fine start.

This is a tactical race that will likely test the very limits of knowledge, endurance and correct interpretation of the conditions. The race yachts will have settled into their watches; typical is 6, 6, 4, 4, 4 hour watch rotations, ensuring that all watches will take up the late night ‘dog watch’. But it’s clear, dry and warm today. And there is wind, albeit.

Cheer the racers on, follow them on Swiftsure’s Race Tracker. This will be a long day into a long night.

At this writing, 25 Swiftsure Inshore Classic race boats have finished and are heading for their celebration and barbecue at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club.