Bellerive Yacht Club member Jeff Cordell, one of southern Tasmania’s great supporters of yacht racing as a strong competitor and honorary administrators for the past 30 years, yesterday scored a well-deserved double victory in his club’s Winter Series with his ageless Mumm 36, B&G Advantage.

Although beaten on AMS corrected time in the final of the five-race BYC/Hobart Jaguar Land Rover Winter Series, B&G Advantage won both the AMS and PHS scoring categories of Division 1.

Cordell has raced the Mumm 36 extensively in combined club harbour races and also offshore with success, also becoming the inaugural Tasmanian champion yacht under AMS scoring and also holds the unofficial title of Mumm 36 ‘world champion.’ 

Yesterday’s final BYC winter race, sailed in perfect conditions on the Derwent, saw B&G Advantage narrowly beaten on corrected time by the MBD 36 Whistler, the first win for its new owner, former Sharpie Australian champion Drew Latham.

Michael Denney celebrated his birthday by taking third place in Wild West, ensuring the Z39 third place in AMS overall, B&G Advantage finishing with a net 4 points, Whistler 7 points and Wild West 11 points.

In Division 1, PHS final results, B&G Advantage finished with a net 11 points, Wild West 12  points and Mike Pritchard’s Cookson 50, Oskana third overall on 14 points.

BYC Vice-Commodore Ian Marshall scored his second consecutive win by taking out Division 1 PHS yesterday from Whistler and Wild West, B&G Advantage placing fifth on corrected time.

Yesterday’s race saw the River Derwent debut of the Sayer 40, Runaway, which sailing partners Jo Breen and David Aplin recently bought and have entered the Rolex 75^th Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.  Runaway finished last in the Division 1 fleet.

Another regular supporter of summer and winter river racing and most Tasmanian offshore races, Stewart Geeves, also took out the AMS and PHS overall double in Division 2 with his Young 88, Footloose.

Footloose won its fourth race of the Winter Series yesterday to win the AMS series overall with a net 4 points from Ian Stewart’s Southern Swordfish (11 points)and Anthony Ellis’ Moonshadow (12 points).  Trouble (Dave Willans) won the Division 2  race on PHS, but it was not good enough to beat Footloose overall.  Footloose net score was 10 points, Trouble 12 and Southern Swordfish 15.

Only four boats contested Division 3 (PHS) and only two points separated the top three boats at the end of five races, Sundance (Don Bailey) finishing on a net 7 points, Innovator (Ian Smith and Dean Aberle) 8  points and Southern Cross (Wayne Pitt) 9 points.

Words:  Peter Campbell

Photo: Peter Watson, Peter Campbell

8 August 2019