Gray prevails over region's yachties

Waikawa Boating Club member Peter Gray won the Tasman Bay Cruising Club's inaugural regatta last week with his Young 99 Nonstop.

Top boats from Nelson, Wellington and Waikawa competed in eight races over three days, several having raced from Wellington the previous weekend in tough conditions to join the event.

Nonstop, with crew including Mark Gibbs, Ellen Bailey, Andrew MacFarlane and Matt Woolley, sat third after four races in light conditions on the first day.

Day two was a 26-nautical-mile race around Tasman Bay, with Nonstop holding on to third place in flat water and light breezes.

The final day produced 15 knots of wind and tight racing in which Nonstop took first prize overall by one point from Nelson sailor Charlie Gallagher's Elliott 11, Mrs Jones. Wellington yacht Bootlegger was third.

"It was great fun," said Nonstop's Gibbs.

"It's so good to see the region's yachties supporting each other's regattas.

"Waikawa's Lawson's Dry Hills regatta last month was the best yet and this very successful Tasman Bay event will be followed by the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club competition next week. We even enjoyed the challenge of getting here in a 40-knot southerly."

It was a challenge well met, with Nonstop taking the performance rated handicap prize for the Wellington-Nelson race, the lead-in to the Tasman Regatta.

"It's the only time I've ever started a race using a storm jib as a headsail," said Gibbs. "The wind was on the nose down the harbour, abeam when we rounded Moaning Minnie at the heads and we could only carry our spinnaker after Karori Rock."

Several boats retired when the wind later died and visibility deteriorated off Stephens Island.

Line honours and club handicap winner was Wellington boat Ran Tan II, an Elliott owned by John Meade, which revelled in the conditions to complete the race in less than 19 hours.

- The Marlborough Express