The Sunday Philosophy School

Was it Proust, or was it Dennis Connor, who said, once we renounce the truths, we
will never understand sailing? It has been similarly expressed by many. A pessimist
scrawled on a changing room’s wall, “The wages of sin is death with a curse, but
with sailing, of course, it can always get worse.”, written perhaps by a sailor feeling
the inequities of an unfavourable wind shift. Of course in sailing if you’re an optimist,
your truth is “Luck is a Fortune”.
While a blow homes describes a situation where the trailing boats benefit from a
change in wind conditions to charge home and take overall honours, the opposite
effect was in play in last Sunday’s Port Macquarie Yacht Club river B race run
between the Settlement Point and Hibbard ferries, when yachts at the front of the
fleet benefitted from a changing breeze that saw the race become effectively two
races, with the race leaders duelling and sailing away from parked mid fleet yachts
who could only watch the leaders, and their hopes, sail into the distance.
Six yachts faced started the race in 5 – 7 knot west north westerly breeze on a
moderate flood tide. All yachts started well with Cool Change crossing the startline
less than a boat length clear of a cluster of yachts, but being passed soon after the
start by Enticer, Solar Coaster and Ninja, with the smaller Ninja finding remarkable
speed to be up with the leaders in the early stages of the race.
A short way down the course the breeze became somewhat fluky, but the incoming tide
assisted all yachts progress down the course. The longer waterline boats, Enticer
and Solar Coaster soon established a gap between themselves and the remainder of
the fleet. Both those yachts reached and safely negotiated the difficult top mark
rounding well clear of the mid fleet yachts that were grouped together in a cluster
with Cool Change at the head.
Notwithstanding that when the mid fleet arrived at the top mark the breeze had fallen
away to between 1 - 3 knots all yachts managed to make the turn without fouling,
and faced a daunting task running downwind in light airs and an adverse tide.
Spinnakers were raised and collapsed as mid fleet sailors watched the two leading
yachts accelerate into the distance on a new wind that appeared to be taking an age
to reach them.
At the front of the fleet, Solar Coaster in an inspired piece of sailing with the new
wind initially clawed back some of Enticer’s lead, but was unable to catch that yacht,
which although short handed, remained well clear at the finish.
With the benefit of first use of the new breeze, both Enticer and Solar Coaster were a
full half hour clear of the next yacht to cross the finish. It was no surprise therefore,
that those yachts took out overall honours with Solar Coaster flipping the line result
to take first, while Enticer took second place. Ninja, which had maintained it’s mid
fleet position throughout three quarters of the race fell away towards the finish, but
still managed third place overall.
In conditions that tested crews, and with handicaps applied the remaining order was,
Cool Change, Third Man and Galene. Last Sunday it may have been fortunate no
clubhouse wall was available to record the various truths or philosophical ventings
that some skippers and crew may have had, but that, of course, is sailing.