It is over ten years since Imlast sailed in Sydney Harbour. That time Elinor and I got a the sail race as a surprice gift. The weather was sunny and no wind at times. This time everything was different.
Thanks John and Peter for the show. We left around 13:30 from RSYS (Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron) and went by motor to Potts Point. We knew that the weather would change and the wind would turn 180 degrees. When the race started for us in the third group the wind had started to turn and we were prepared. The first leg was back towards Kirribilli and then after rounding a second boy we sailed towards Taronga. Before rounding this mark we reefed the mainsail. It was a wise idea as the wind gusts became up to 35 knots. The heaven opened and thunder and lightning was a fact. We were still in the lead when we got closer to the last buoy. Now it got even more interesting as the wind changed and we did not react fast enough. The boat leaned over to the other side so much that we suddenly had a man over board. The skilled Peter held on to the jib sheet and was soon back on the boat. We rounded first and sailed back towards Potts Point and we were the first boat over the goal line. We could not tell that Peter had fallen in as we were all soaked by the heavy rain.
The fourth sailor was Ocean and she had her best race ever. I may agree with her. We had a little bit of everything in this race and all survived.
When we moored back in Kirribilli we went for coffee and beer and to wait for the results. We ended up as number 4 of 12 boats. Not too bad considering our stop to take a swim.
The RSYS Club house is impressive. It has two bars and a wine cellar. I think this is what is lacking back home. It was a great day and a great race.