Campbell River
Today was a tough day. Skipper got his usual great start and we lead our nearest competitors away from the line. The wind was light and we tacked a number of times as we worked our way out past a point and submerged reef. Meanwhile our nemesis Tryst went inshore. The bigger Div 1 boat all stood out on a long port tack; in fact they stood out so far they disappeared into the mist. We meanwhile rounded the point and worked our way short tacking up the Van Isle shore. For a long time we looked really good, but as often happens in yacht racing, fortunes change. The wind that had been out of the NE gradually lightened. Our closest point competitors, Tryst, Dilligaf and Merlin were almost out of sight behind us. When the new wind settled in out of the SE, the yachts that had gone offshore, got a change of fortunes and came in on a reach ahead of us. We were able to run up our shoreline in diminishing wind and increasingly adverse current. As we approached the finish we ran into a “river” of strong current coming out of Seymour Narrows. We were able to hold boat speed and pick our way up-current and around the kelp. Our biggest fear now was that, due to a rule saying that 50% of our boats needed to finish for our race to count, and it appeared that only 4-5 out of 14 would do it. Skipper was heard to wish (maybe for the first time ever) for more wind for his opponents behind, so that enough would finish for the race to count. We finally inched across the finish line after over nine hours.
Back at the dock we were delighted to learn that the 50% rule was for all 27 of the boats and enough of Div 1 boats finished for the race to count.
Result for the day: Myrrh finished 4th but importantly opened up a big points lead over our nearest rivals, most of who did not finish.
Onward to Hardwicke Island
Dave and Rudy
