PENULTIMATE DAY OF RACING , STANDFORD ANTIGUA SAILING WEEK

Back to Business: After Lay Day Celebrations, the Fleet Returns to Action on Penultimate Day of Racing at Stanford Antigua Sailing Week Jolly Harbour, Antigua (May 3) – After a day of rest, relaxation and partying – including the big birthday bash on Shirley Heights to celebrate the 40th edition of Stanford Antigua Sailing Week – the fleet returned to action today for a series of races off the island’s southern shores. The Division A racing fleet enjoyed a pair of contests – a point-to-point distance race of 14.3 nautical miles followed by an afternoon windward/leeward joust – while the Division B cruising classes clashed in the 21.6 nautical mile Jolly Harbour Race, which started off Falmouth Harbour and concluded near the resorts, casino and marina at Jolly Harbour.

On the Morris 48 Firefly, boatbuilder Cuyler Morris and his family, including wife Cindy and kids Sam, Sofia and Thomas, are enjoying a week of racing sandwiched between a winter-long Caribbean cruise. And they’re doing it in style. Today, in easterly winds that ranged between 12- to 16-knots, Firefly recorded their fourth consecutive victory in four races to consolidate their lead in the Cruising I division. “We had some trouble at the opposite ends of the race – our first beat wasn’t great and we some issues getting around the last windward mark – but we sailed well in the middle,” said Morris. Tomorrow, Firefly will try to put the finishing touches on a perfect week.

In Racing I, order was returned to the universe today after the Volvo 70 ABN AMRO ONE, skippered by Mike “Moose” Sanderson, scored a pair of bullets to maintain the grasp on the division’s top spot. But the battle for second remains tight, with Gerard O’Rourke’s Chieftain – which pulled an upset in Tuesday’s action by correcting out ahead of ABN – just a single point ahead of Tom Hill’s striking red Titan 12, the 75-foot ILC Maxi, with a final race to go.

The Racing II class is topped by Universal Marina, Avia Willment’s Rodgers 46, which scored a fourth and a first in today’s action. While Universal Marina is in solid position in her division, things are very much up for grabs in Racing III, where Chippewa, Clay Deutsch’s Swan 68, and Clive Robert Llewelyn’s Mad IV, a Grand Soleil 50, each took a first and a second today. Chippewa holds a slim two-point lead over Mad IV going into the regatta’s last day.

Barring catastrophe, in Racing IV it’s all over but the shouting for Sergio Sagramoso’s Beneteau 40.7 Lazy Dog, which took the gun two more times today to remain perfect for the week. But the second spot in the one-design Beneteau 40.7 fleet is very much in play, with Calvin Reed’s Elandra just two points ahead of Neville Devonport’s Spirit of Venus with one more race ahead.

Scott Chalmers and Sunrise, his Sigma 400, were also undefeated today and now hold a comfortable lead in Racing V. So, too, does Bruce Slayden’s Gunboat 62 Looking for Elvis, which matched Sunrise’s feat and is in good shape to nail down the victory in the Multihull Racing class.

In Performance Cruising I, Andrea Recordati’s powerful Wally 80, Indio, remains the class leader even though she took a second today on corrected time behind Duke Steinemann’s big Swan 80, Selene. Three Harkoms, the Oceanis Custom 445 skippered by James Hudleston, was today’s winner in Performance Cruising II, though the class leader is Hugo B, Hugh Bailey’s Beneteau 456. And in the Performance Cruising III division, Sven Harder’s Ice Boat scored today’s bullet, but by virtue of his second in today’s contest, Antiguan sailor Bernie Evans-Wong and his Cal 40, Huey Too, still hold a slim two-point lead over Pavlova II, Richard Burbridge’s Swan 43.

The Cruising II class will be up for grabs tomorrow. Elmo, Jake Jeffris’s Grand Soleil 43, won the race today but still trails Sunshine, Hans Lammer’s Rhodes Bounty, by two points, as does Rick Gormlev’s First 38, Elthea. Matters are basically taken care of, however, in the Multihull Cruising class, where Robert and Darlene Hill’s Switch 51, Following Tides, took today’s race, her fourth in a row.

In Bareboat I, the leader is Heliodore, a Dufour 50 skippered by Georg Ondrei. Bareboat II is topped by Christophe Nielsen’s Rossi, which finished second today behind a sistership to his Oceanis 473, Justin Barton’s Justice. In Bareboat III, Lynn Griffith’s Premier Grand Cru, a Beneteau Cyclade, earned today’s victory, but it’s Fury, a Dufour 40 captained by Martin Sager, that rests atop the leader board. Finally, in Bareboat IV, Jan Soderberg’s Moorings 445, Chess, remained focused and in first with a fourth consecutive win.

Tomorrow, Division A will face a stern test with the 28.7 Ocean Race beginning off Curtain Bluff and finishing near Falmouth Harbour. Meanwhile, Division B will conclude the week’s competition with the 22.1 Jolly to Falmouth Race.

For more information, updated standings, photographs and more, visit the Stanford Antigua Sailing Week website at www.sailingweek.com.

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