| Success for J-Dream in the Vice Admiral's Cup |
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The weekend of 29-31 May saw Royal Corinthian Yacht Club host the Vice Admiral's Cup and for the first time the J/109 fleet raced as the invited Class 3. Article Kirsty Apthorp J/109 Class Association - Photos Eddie Mays The first day saw J-Dream (David & Kirsty Apthorp) fresh from winning the J/109 Western Solent Championships win the three windward/leeward races, with Jouster (Adam Wright) take 2nd in the first two before getting caught in traffic at the windward mark in the 3rd race to finish 6th. Exceptionally close racing between Aria (Luca Rubinelli) and Outrajeous (Richard & Valerie Griffith) saw a photo finish and the PRO was unable to determine.
The second day saw more sunshine and the J/109 fleet were thoroughly enjoying racing in t-shirts and shorts! The first two races on Saturday were round Solent racing marks and the fleet was too keen to get going, resulting in a general recall. Order was resumed when the restart was run under Flag Z. Jouster convincingly won the first race from J-Dream with Aria in third. The second race saw J-Dream regain her winning form, with Jouster taking 2nd from Red Arrow (RAFSA) and Beth of Five Star (Guy Knight) in 3rd and 4th respectively. The final race of the day was another windward/leeward which was convincingly won by J-Dream. Meanwhile there was a battle between Aria, Shiva (Matthew Boyle) and Red Arrow for 2nd place which eventually saw Aria victorious. The J/109 fleet then retired to the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club for daily prizegiving and a well-organised social on the balcony. Sunday saw the PRO run a further 2 races. The first start saw a wind shift which resulted in the PRO hoisting the AP. The fleet was over zealous on the restart, resulting in a general recall and a restart under Flag Z. The restart saw three boats fall foul of the Z Flag with only Zelda (Ben Richards/Michael Ewart-Smith) returning. Meanwhile Red Arrow raced perfectly and demonstrated excellent layline calls in what was shifty wind, only to find that they together with Jouster were OCS. This gave victory to Shiva and saw J-Dream finish 2nd to win the regatta. The final race of the day saw Zelda find their winning form in the challenging northerly breeze on the Hillhead plateau, with Jambahla (Richard Sainsbury/Gill Ross) tussling with Beth of Five Star for 2nd. Three days of racing in the Central Solent in glorious sunshine, 10-16knots and excellent courses - champagne sailing. Results:
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