Hot Rum Race January 1, 2010

Who would'a thunk it?

New Year's day dawned rainy, gray and calm. I know for a fact that at least 2 people who had contemplated racing that day decided to be smart, roll over and sleep in. However, 8 hardy crews made the start of what was to be a memorable race.

There was a modest breeze at the clubhouse, but it was clear to see that there was stronger wind past the Sisters. However, in the interest of being in the clubhouse for the 1230 Hot Rum Lunch, the course was set for Ganges Shoal, Grace Point, and home.

Half way up the beat to the first mark, the SSE breeze increased to over 10 knots, so that several boats were overpowered. Impossible, with just Philippe and novice crew Fred along, had a hard time reefing. Jeremy Milsom in an 18' sweetheart of a boat had to pack it in. Martin Herbert in Kay D almost decided to follow suit when his mast was noodling into some unusual shapes.

Coming down late for the start was 3 time Canadian Olympian (Finn dinghy) Richard Clarke, a recent immigrant to Salt Spring Island. He was crewing on a friend's J-80, a sprit boat with an enormous asymetrical spinnaker. He started behind the whole pack and was unable to pass the leaders by the end.

The run to Grace Point saw Electra and Soul Thyme vying for first place, with a rebuilt Imp hot on their heels. We estimated the breeze was up at about 20 knots in the puffs on this leg. Imp saw continuous GPS speeds of 7 to 8 knots, but could not catch the leaders who were flying only white sails!

Tony and Alex were caught in a big gust and were knocked over, thus they ended up trolling with their kite. Minke would have been in contention if not for that event. Tony mentioned that he was going to invest in taller rubber boots for the next race.

Both Roger Kibble and Eric van Soeren were single handing, and did very well in challenging conditions. In the end, Roger won the coveted bottle of Rum, and we just hope he doesn't consume the entire bottle himself.

Greg Slakov on Imp.

(Jeremy Milsom in an unknown boat was DNF)