Month: July 2020

The Multihull Solutions 2020 Regatta got underway today with PRO Matt McGrath starting the three competing classes, Racing Multis, Fireflies, and Cruising Multis, in sequence just past midday.

Light winds and grey skies greeted the start of the regatta but by mid-afternoon, the sun pierced through and the wind gusted to twelve knots.
It was the first time that any of the sailors had seen any competition since the club’s Sailor’s Regatta in mid-March and everyone was delighted to get back on the water and push the worries of the pandemic aside for a few hours.

OMR was a battle royale between Dan Fidock’s Fugazi and Dan’s old boat Bonza, helmed by Warwick Downes. Bonza did beat Fugazi across the line in race one but lost on corrected time and then Fugazi roared home to win both the second and third races, so the day belonged to Fugazi.

The five-boat Firefly-class saw Mick Coleman’s Mamba fly off the start line and the boat maintained the momentum throughout capturing the first race, followed by Peter Taylor’s Ballerina in second and John Newnham’s Twin Sharks in third.

The second Firefly race saw Hans Rahmann’s Voodoo and Twin Sharks battle it out it the way we have been so accustomed to seeing in the last few years with Voodoo beating Twin Sharks by 21 seconds and Ballerina coming in third a couple minutes later.

Voodoo and Twin Sharks repeated those placings in race three with Mamba grabbing the third spot, so after day one Voodoo was atop the class with six points, Twin Sharks was in second with seven and Mamba stood third with eight points.

The seven-boat Cruising Class only got in one race today, but it was super to see The Sting helmed by Bill Kane take line honors and win the race. Regatta regulars had to think back to the days of the late great Henry Kaye to remember a similar performance by the trimaran. Zam Bevan’s Sho,vel, and Peter Dyer’s DaVinci placed second and third followed by Andre Lee’s Klook Star Trek and title sponsor Andrew DeBruin’s MHS Neel 51.

A mix-up in communication saw Paul “Flatty” Baker’s Pulse Blue and Rendezvous continue on around Koh Lan after rounding Koh Bon relegating the boats to sixth and seventh spot, respectively. The rest of the class turned into Ao Chalong after making the turn at Koh Bon.

While the regatta was going on the Club’s youth sailing program was also on the water with eight boats being filled for both the morning and afternoon sessions.

It’s only been four months since the Phuket Yacht Club staged the Sailor’s Regatta, one of Thailand’s last regattas before strict COVID-19 restrictions were implemented. Yet it seems like years ago since yachts raced around Phuket’s scenic shores and the sailors who have been biding their time waiting to unfurl their jibs and let out their mains are rarin’ to go.

Entries for the 2020 Multihull Solutions Regatta (MSR) are surprisingly high given the pandemic says Phuket Yacht Club Commodore, Scott Duncanson, “This is the eleventh running of the event and on the back of a surge in multihull popularity globally, the MSR has grown to become Asia’s largest multihull-only regatta,” Held from the 10th to the 13th of July in Chalong Bay on Phuket’s protected east coast, this regatta has become many a sailor’s “green season” favourite due to the more consistent southwesterly monsoon winds and rain, which make for cooler racing temperatures.

Three classes will compete in the regatta, Multihull Racing, Multihull Cruising and the Firefly 850 Sports One Design Class. Rivalries of note include John Newnham’s Twin Sharks and Hans Rahmann’s Voodoo in the Firefly class, while Warwick Downes’ Bonza and Dan Fidock’s Fugazi will battle it out in the Multihull Racing class. A very pleasant surprise in 2020 is the increase of entrants in the cruising fleet, at the time of writing six entries have been received with the potential for another in the coming days. Title sponsor Multihull Solutions will be entering a Neel 51 trimaran in that cruising division. Alternative courses are planned for the cruisers enabling them to soak up the tropical serenity of the many local East Coast Islands.

Phuket’s best sailors are known to participate in this regatta and it’s their skill and tactical sense that makes a difference in navigating the short windward-leeward courses that tend to make up most of the regatta’s races.

Matt McGrath will be the regatta’s Principal Race Officer (PRO) having served in that capacity for the Club’s Jai-Dee and Sailor’s Regattas.
Kudos go out to Andrew DeBruin and Multihull Solutions for remaining the regatta’s anchor sponsor and standing beside the PYC in these troubled times ensuring the regatta thrives and runs smoothly.

The club will maintain strict social distancing rules while the sailors are on shore as it has done throughout the coronavirus crisis.

The increasing popularity of multihull sailing is evident by the many local and offshore supporters including race day one sponsor Phuket Boat Lagoon; race day two sponsor East Marine Asia; and race day three sponsor Octopus Electrical. SEA Yachting magazine returns as the regatta’s media partner.