Montreal Sailing Awards First Bones for Top Dawgs of Spring in the GNS A
It is always interesting to see who is starting strong out of the gate. As we know in sailboat racing a good start is crucial. In a series of races, a top ranking can establish the pecking order early. Will the current leaders be knocked off the podium? GNS Series A ain't over till the bows cross the line 3 more times. At Montreal Sailing, there is always a lot of interest as to who will be the "Top Dawgs", and we like to look beyond the series stats at the individual efforts and classes. Lets give some "Bones" to those who could end up being the Montreal Sailing's Top Dawgs of 2008.
Here are the results from BYC's hilltop lookout over the race course. We are looking at race 1 & 3 of the GNS Series A. Race 2 was canceled due to no wind. Hopefully, I'll be able to leave harbour and chase the pack some time too! With a little spare time, or your views, we hope to give more bones for other racing series too. All the racing is as exciting, send me your thoughts!
Etchells
Dick Steffen's Uhu took the first race, and Pierre Jasmin's Vivace was first Etchells in the second race to give us a tie for first in class. Both were beaten in the PHRF corrected time of the second race, by Moonraker, a Niagara 26! Since Vivace took a higher placing overall after the two races, Montreal Sailing gives a bone to Jasmin's team. However, it is too close to predict who will come out on top here!
Shark
In the Shark class VO2 Max, owned by Megalo Don and the Nickster won the first race, Ketchup was absent, but notched one up with a victory in Race 3. VO2 Max took 2nd in race 3. The Rahn family took Eclipse to 2nd place in race 1 and missed race 2. This is also a tough early call, and we will give the bone, to VO2 Max for consistent high performance. There are 5 Shark teams amongst many more, all able to be the class' Top Dawg for 2008. It will be interesting to see how it develops.
Tanzer 22
"Goin' Strait" gets the bone for its victory as first Tanzer in race 1. All the Tanzers were sporting large genoas in race 3 and bailed when the wind blew up something fierce. Congrats to skipper, Shelly Dorman, currently the Top Dawg!
Mirage 24
Ariel, Richard and Erica's Mirage 24 beat all the Tanzer 22s in race 1. With the course heavily skewed and a lot of wind, there was some discussion about boats sailing the correct course, including Ariel. Still amid the confusion, there were no calls or protests against any of those boats. Ariel bested the Tanzers and earns a bone.
Fireball
Not many sporting Balls typically come out to swim in cold waters, so it isn't a representative competition yet. Irregardless, Joe Jospe, who was out for both races, is an obvious Top Dawg contender. Jospe's team gets the bone for being out in extreme conditions, of not just water temperature, but high wind. He and Rob Levy's teams surfed past all the big keelboats. It is just so obvious that as the season develops, Joe Jospe will be a Top Dawg contender.
White Sail
In this class, it is currently a standings tie. Sawiki, the able Grampian 26 dominated the first race. In Race 3, Le Must, Jon Austen's Tanzer 22 won. I must say, Jon Austen made a brilliant call in his victory. All the Tanzers in PHRF 3 had big #1 genoas hanked on, and had to retire, way overpowered. Jon saw the weather coming and flew the smaller working jib. That can be risky, as it wasn't strong wind at the start, and even when big wind comes, it often lightens up considerably by the end of the evening. It is even riskier for white sail Tanzers who enjoy the big genoa downwind. Jon knew otherwise, foresaw the weather, and for that reason, gets the bone!
There you have it. Let's summarize. Bones tossed high to the best of spring in GNS:
- Etchells: Vivace
- Fireball: Joe Jospe
- Mirage 24: Ariel
- Shark: VO2 Max
- Tanzer 22: Goin Strait
- White Sail: Le Must
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