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Shimmer

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Posts posted by Shimmer

    Northern Triangle race

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    SSANZ Northern Triangle Race Report Shimmer II

     

    The prequel was always going to be a hard one for us on Shimmer our 5 tonne Kauri log camper doesn't really excel in light airs.

    We did ok on the beat and stayed in touch with the fast div 3 boats to the top of Motutapu but as it turned into more of a reaching course we watched them all slowly walk away.

    Managed to get a 6th which wasn't as bad as it could have been but we were really hoping for some good breeze in race 2 to even out race 1.

    Not to be.

    Again a very light start to the main event, we managed a good start right at the boat and right next to Rocky,

    it continues to amaze me how often we have really good boat on boat racing with Rocky a SR26 as about as opposite a yacht to Shimmer as you can get.

    We worked hard through the very light shifty breeze as the fleet slowly spread out and decided to take a lift out to sea above the Rangitoto shore line.

    This paid for us and Open Country and eventually we were pointing right at Little Barrier, leading our division

    then the breeze caved and when it eventually arrived it was from aft and all our gains on the fleet were wasted.

    The rest of leg up to Piercy Island I got really grumpy as we slowly (like 3 knots slow) got passed by more and more boats.

    By the rounding at Piercy I was starting to write the Trade Me listing in my head " For sail lovely cruising boat, many race sails " then Reuben goes, I think all these guys putting in a long board out to sea after Piercy are mad, we can put in a board at any time in the next 12 hours

    So we tacked at the Island and immediately my mood improved, I was watching my favourite bit of the coast line in late afternoon light and we were back to up wind sailing in building pressure.

    Managed to just lay above the Poor Knights which we passed on sunset, which is pretty magic.

    Our little short cut and the chance to crack sheets for the lay down to Barrier got us right back in the main bunch of Division 3 and then for the next 20 hours or so 6 of us had the most incredible tight race,

    2 Y11s a Y88 an Sr (Rocky of course) and little Real Deal the smallest boat in the race

    we all took turns making gains and then loosing them but with all the corners we were going around from the Mercs right back up to Coromandel the over all race stayed very close.

    Personal high light of the whole race was Tuesday sunset getting rides down waves off Coromandel in the last of a dying breeze kite up and making big gains on the guys in front who had once again got a bit ahead of us.

    Just after dark thought we had seen a genuine UFO until some internet research found out it was the new Space X satellite.

    It was a long slow night working back into the gulf in a very light and fickle breeze, then maybe 2 am it closed right down.

    We edged up the Waiheke side off the course to try and be the first to catch the new breeze in the morning and it paid off.

    We rolled down to re join our same gang of 6 and had especially close race with Rocky and Real Deal all the way to the finish. It's interesting that we 3 were the podium boats.

    Couldnt' believe we won, had thought maybe a 3rd if we were lucky.

    Im really stoked with our result as it was in anything but our conditions and we managed to stay in there with some fast boats and really good sailors.

    Big ups to Rocky and Real Deal, 66 hours of continuous racing and we were all within a few minutes at the finish!

    Thanks to my co skipper Reuben who is totally unflappable and made some great calls and put up with me.

    Thanks to Bryony Joe and Oscar for letting me go off and have adventures and to Emma and Kiera for same

    Most importantly thank you so Much to Jon, Scott, Neil and Sarah at SSANZ

    I am very aware how much easier it would have been to cancel this event and can't thank you enough for your commitment to make the race possible and safe in a very difficult time.

    From the clear communications, to the safety culture, to the pies and beers at the finish you really do run the best long distance yacht races in New Zealand.

    Bring on The RNI 2023

     

    • Like 3
    • Upvote 4

    Townson 36 in Sydney Hobart?

    in RaceTalk

    Posted

    Akarana gave us 6th on corrected time, thats why I love race tracker so much we always do a bit better under his handicap. Was a good race though and managed to fight it out with ZT and the new sun fast which was pleasing in an old kauri family caravan.

    last to finish, first on corrected what’s not to like?

    • Upvote 1

    Townson 36 in Sydney Hobart?

    in RaceTalk

    Posted

    Hi yep that’s a pity we didn’t catch up at Barrier we were stern to the trees just inside the Man O War passage with a bunch of mates including another 3 Townson’s you would have been a welcome addition to the New Years party.

    Figure 8 around the country sounds very cool and also something on my bucket list. Got Shimmer through Cat 3 this year so we can do the Northern Triangle race. Plan is this winter to get cat 2 then do the 2NI in 2023 if we can get an entry in (and still want to after the NTR). My Mrs is always keen for me to race the boat or do a boys trip somewhere new before we do family cruise. Yep we definitely need to raft up and swap stories

    will you be doing the SSANZ racing again this winter?

    Northern Triangle race

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    Yes I bet we are all a bit sad that it won’t be the full course, I was really looking forward to the arrivals in Mounganui and Tauranga, however I recon SSANZ has done a really good job of following a complex situation and coming up with a compromise that should still allow us all to do a decent week of coastal racing. (And potentially qualify for RNI 2023.)

    In the past two years almost all the really good events I have been interested in have either been reduced in size, postponed or cancelled.

    thanks heaps SSANZ for working so hard to make this one still happen

    Shimmer will be there on the start line.

    out of interest what was the thinking behind having the day race for the first leg?

    Northern Triangle race

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    Looks like a Lot of new boats have made the starting line up for the SSANZ Northern Triangle Race.

    Shimmer has cat 3 inspection next week amazing how many little things I needed to do to comply. Starting to get excited about racing!

    What timber is my interior joinery?

    in TechTalk

    Posted

    Looks like mahogany to me

    although fresh machined timer has a very red colour to it over the years U V bleaching tends to take it into that oak or teak like coloring. Sadly any new work will be a much more red colour for a period. We often use yellow stains to help blend new timber with existing 

    • Like 1

    Northern Triangle race

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    Shimmer has a mint new boom thanks to Dwain at Yachtspars,

    fresh new paint from my team at Nautique and a SSANZ sticker,

    sure would look good with another SSANZ sticker on the other side...

    any chance you have a spare one Jon?

    image.png

    SSANZ Race D

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    Not at all unexpected but I was still gutted that The delta race can’t be sailed. Beginning to look like the northern triangle might go the same way. When Paul posted “the worst thing about a 3 day lockdown is the first 6 weeks” I had a good laugh. Not so funny anymore 

    Three Kings sight seeing cruise

    in RaceTalk

    Posted

    If we did “open up” early next year it could be a very full summer coastal racing program with the Northern Triangle, a delayed 3 Kings race and the fully crewed RNI all looking to be run between February and April 

    something to look forward to anyway 

    Three Kings sight seeing cruise

    in RaceTalk

    Posted

    Yeah that’s the big one I keep hoping we are able to do. On Shimmer it’s a tough slog getting through all the prep for safety inspections, slowly getting through the work I can do myself but things like getting an LPG certification are taking forever. I realize a lot of the other competitors will be in a similar situation. And almost 3 months after folding the kite pole in the SSANZ 100 I’m still trying to buy a new length of T 6 alli tube to build a new one!

    Three Kings sight seeing cruise

    in RaceTalk

    Posted

    So the Coastal had to cancel, looks very likely that the SSANZ delta race will have to cancel, what’s the story with the 3 kings race? Are that looking to postpone or will this also end up in the list of “would have been awesome” races that we said good by to?

    I see the PCC has decided to hold the round rangi as a pirate event, I wonder if they will get any official reprimand for that?

    SSANZ Triple 2021

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    Ok so if these crazy rules say only one bubble on your boat if it has a cabin but 2 bubbles and up to 10 people if no cabin.  .  . If I keep hatches closed and wash boards in can I be classed as a large day boat with a huge buoyancy tank? Not dissimilar to my old Idle Along. Or what about an Elliot 5.9?

    SSANZ Triple 2021

    in ShortTalk

    Posted

    Hey with the new level 3 rules does that mean the Delta race can go ahead? It’s all inside our geographic zone and 2 up is probably the only keel boat racing that is social distanced. So stoked with SSANZ for coming through with this one’

    • Upvote 1
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