AT THE SIGN OF THE PENNANT

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 592, 19 February 1929, Page 14

AT THE SIGN OF THE PENNANT

SANDERS CUP CONTEST CLYDE’S SECOND WIN REVIEW OF THE RACING (Special to THE SV A ) AKAROA, To-day. | As the Sanders Cup contest con- ! tinues the racing has improved and ; the third and fourth races sailed here ; yesterday have provided two of the j best events so far seen. The visiting yachtsmen are getting , used to the vagaries of Akaroa Har- j hour and every one has improved a ; hundred per cent. The Wellington boat, Clyde, gained her second win in the fourth race yesterday afternoon and is now equal with the Auckland crack, Avalon, which gained her second win after a hard fight with Eileen yesterday morning. So far the defender of the cup, Colleen, has never looked like winning j and with Murihiku 111. as her partner j has chased the rest of the fleet home j in both races yesterday. Colleen got ; last, although in the second race her pal, Murihiku 111., did not see the j distance and retired after completing | two laps of the course. It is through sheer bad luck that the Otago representative, Eileen, has not won a race, for in both events yesterday she gave the winner a dingdong tussle for the honours. Eileen is a first-class boat and her skipper, George Kellett, makes few mistakes. Just before the start of . the second race yesterday afternoon a stiff southerly pitied up the harbour, bringing with it a fair sea. It was certainly not a day for frail 14-footers and, although the wind increased in velocity as the race progressed, all weathered it fairly well. The skippers certainly had to keep their wits about them and their weather eyes open for unexpected squalls which periodically tore down between the hills. However, the race was a good one and N. Rowntree, the young Wellington skipper, certainly deserved liis win. His judgment was never at fault and from the time the startinggun went he had all the others thinking. The race was sailed over a triangular course and all five boats carried the heaviest men available. At the start it looked as if Colleen would be in the picture for once for on lead across the harbour she did very well. However, ou the beat she lost a great deal and allowed Eileen to get a good lead. On the run Colleen was as fast as any boat and planed along in great style. The first time round Colleen was lying second, only a few seconds astern of Eileen, but on the beat she again lost ground and allowed Clyde to get to weather of her. It was on the run down the second time that Eileen lost the race. Her spinnaker hand lost his lead and all the way down harbour he was unable to recover it, with the result that the spinnaker did not draw at all. This gave Rountree his chance and he overhauled and passed Eileen.

Clyde held the lead all the way on the beat up harbour for the last time, but on the turn for home she had trouble with her spinnaker and this enabled Eileen to catch her. However, over the last quarter' of a mile Clyde gained her lead and crossed the finishing line only eight seconds ahead of Eileen. Willettes, skipper of Avalon, was very disappointing in this race and was near the tail all the way. Colleen was very good on run, but on the wind she is.no good at all. In every race Fred Morrison has tried his hardest, but is Severely handicapped by the bad beating qualities of his boat and it will be very surprising if Colleen wins a race. Murihiku is not good enough and her crew has a lot to learn about racing. IMPROVING THE WHAU During the week-end a working-bee of over forty was busily engaged in improving the “grandstand” overlooking the Whau speed and rowing course near Avondale. Most of the workers were members of the Auckland Rowing Association, and a fair sprinkling came from the New Zealand Power Boat Association. Efforts were concentrated on Robertson’s Point, which commands a fine view of the river for a good distance both ways. About an acre of furze was grubbed, a motor roads formed to the water’s edge and a start made on a slipway to enable boats and skiffs to be taken conveniently to the water. Mr. W. Stevenson, the well-known oarsman, who is a coutractoi', is in charge of the excavation work and is giving valued services. The work is expected to occupy two more week-ends, and it is hoped power-boat men will l-ally round and not leave all hai-d work to the rowing men. SATURDAY’S PROGRAMME On Saturday the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron will hold its second annual race for the T. M. Alexander Memorial Gold Cup. The event takes the form of a cruising race for keelers to Te Kume, Coromandel, about thirty miles. The race starts at 2.30. On the same afternoon the squadron will hold a cruising race for launches, starting at 2.15, for Mr. J. B. Johnston’s prize. A harbour race for M’s for Mr. R. Griffiths’s prize, is also on the bill.

The first meeting of the Richmond Cruising Club —its annual regatta—will take place on the upper harbour on Saturday, the first event starting at 2.45. Races have been arranged for all classes of yachts from H clas3 mullet boats downward. Starting will be on the three-flag system. Individual events are arranged for each section and boats will not be sailed in combined classes. The club had a very successful fixture last season and a worthy array of boats turned out. MODEL YACHTING “Felix” writes: It is pleasing to see that the Ponsonby Cruising Club has taken a step in the right direction by placing events on its forthcoming regatta programme’ for model yachts. The decision of the above club will meet with hearty approval by all model yacht enthusiasts. On the "West Coast model yachting is well conducted by xhe Manukau Cruising Club.

- By KEELSON. ANNIVERSARY REGATTA : OVER 1,000 COMPETITORS Prizes won at the Anniversary Re- j gatta were distributed last evening at j the Navy League rooms iu the pres- j ence of a lai-ge assembly of aquatic j men. In welcoming the Mayor, who later j presided, the regatta chairman, Mr. E. j B. AVebster, i-efei-red to Mr. Baildon j as a yachtsman and a sportsman to whom aquatic men owed much. Mr. Webster expressed the opinion that in future it would be a wise plan to move the flagship from its usual site near Devonport across the harbourr to | Hobson Bay. The advantages would ] be that the starting and finishing j would be out of the way of vehicular j ferries, and that the public could ob- ] tain a more satisfactory view of the j racing. The -regatta of 1929 had been an I outstanding success. Over £3OO ! would be paid out in prize money a-ud ; £SOO had beeu received from all j quarters. One hundred and fifty | yachts, 77 launches and speed craft — j a record —and 26 models had com- j peted, and altogether 1,061 persons | had formed the crews. The Mayor congratulated Mr. Webster, the committee and competitors on the success of the regatta. The fact that £3OO would be paid away in prize money was very creditable. The sport of yachting was one of the most manly and health-giving recreations in the world. Refei-ring to the Sanders Cup contest now in progress, his Worship said he was pleased to see that the ington boat had carried off the fourth race. He would like to see that port secure the cup on the merits of its boat, as the capital city had not yet captured the trophy. In extending a welcome to the chairman of the Hai’bour Board, Mr. H. R. Mackenzie, who had receixtly returned from a woi-ld trip, the Mayor said Mi Mackenzie had seen a great deal of yachting in other parts and had interesting reminiscences to tell. “He is going to give us a new hoard and a new harbour,” said the Mayor, amid laughter. An entei'taining account of his meeting with overseas yachtsmen and some notable boats was given by Mr. Mackenzie. He offered suggestions for adding interest to the regatta, and expressed the wish that side-models of regatta winners among the larger keel boats should be presented annually to the committee by successful yacht owners. His tour had convinced him that Auckland possessed the finest cruising ground in the world. He congratulated Mi'. Baildon on securing Motuihl for the city and for yachtsmen—there was no lovelier island in the world. The full list of prize-winners has already been published.

MANUKAU CHAMPIONSHIPS SATURDAY’S SAILING REVIEWED Championship yachting and launching on the Manukau on Saturday attracted from 800 to 1,000 spectators — probably a record for the harbour. Mr. W. Hudson, who annexed the cup with Elsie on five occasions, x-epeated his successes with Waitere IX. this year. Saturday was the first time he had a real breeze for i-acing, and with jib and staysail balanced against a double tucked mainsail, the boat was pushed against the wind too hard to allow of pace on the first round. The second round was handled much better and Waitere won by 4min from the flattie Champagne, which sailed a fine race; but on her Waltemata performance, Waitere ought to have been able to give her about 30min. Waitere lost smin at the start, and this required some making up. On the first round the three boats, Waitere, Champagne and Valdora (there were no other entries) were separated by minute intervals. The course was 10 sea miles, and Champagne’s time for an 18ft flattie was good. The Cruising Club will hold its championship event on March 2, on which date the Yacht Club will suspend its programme in return for the Cruising Club's similar courtesy last Saturday. The two clubs hold launch and yacht cruises to Cornwallis next Saturday. LOST BY 50 SECONDS Mr. Burns Young, vice-commodore of the Manukau Yacht Club, was a surprised man on Saturday when the results of the handicap yacht race were conveyed to him, and he found that the prize was lost by 50sec on time allowances. The order of starting was (from a flying start); Mist Maid, Florence, Nyria, Sea Lion, Waiapu, Sea Toller and Gold Light (smm late). Florence soon worked into the lead and maintained it all the way. The course was once round the usual marks and, turning at the outward buoy, Florence broke her top rudder gudgeon. Not risking gybing, Mr. Young went about and lost a minute or two. Nyria was then close up, and the Florence hoisted a spinnaker;; Nyria followed suit, and for some time there was a neck-and-neck race, until Nyria “skied” her sail. In the meantime Mist Maid, which had 10 i 1 " 1 " from Florence, got round the buoy, and with a spinnaker ran up the home sector of the course. Florence was home well ahead of the rest, which came in as follow:—Gold AUiEwUea AVaiapu, Mist Maid and Sea Toiler, Sea Lion did not finish, and the finishing times put Mist Maid Florence second, 50sec away, and Nyria -°sec later than Florence —a remarkably good result for the handicapper. THE SPEED BOATS i The speed boat race on the proI gramme of the Manukau Yacht Club

i regatta was a solo for Miss Clevedon. | I owned by Mr. T. Roberts. Felix, j i which has spun around the course in j - llmin, was unable to keep an even, keel in the seaway. For the first 100 . i yards Felix and Miss Clevedon looked j as if they would have a great fight, j but as soon as Felix touched broken water she had to be throttled down. Miss Cleveland finished three laps as Felix finished two, and the latter I again opened up in au effort to make j

.Miss Clevedon “gallop”: but the water was too much for a boat with the engines well forward. Rosita had magneto trouble and her absence from the race was a disappointment. Surprise and Dione were awarded fiist and second place. The handicap race for cruising launches, started on the Foy system, was won by Dione: separated her from Norma in third place: Senorita was second. ! Sea Toller, which won the 14-footer I race from a “field” of 13 a couple of j weeks ago on the Manukau, 1S TO a ?" ; pear in a new suit of sails for the 11- ; footer championship next month, i There was a great gathering of yachtsmen in the Manukau lacht Club's pavilion on Saturday when the club tendered a dance to friends and supporters.