Thursday morning saw more classic North Sound conditions at the 2007 BEYC Pro-Am with 14-18 knots blowing straight down the Sound...gorgeous flat turquoise water and sunshine.
Race Officer Bob Phillips wasted no time serving up four two-lap races. Ken Read, who is sporting a bit more hair than last year, went into the proceedings with a handy six point lead over Peter Holmberg. Further down the field by quite a good margin we have Ed Baird, Keith Musto and Ben Ainslie et al.
It was Ed Baird and his crew who really owned the morning with a masterclass of smart sailing. They posted 2,1,1 and 1 sailing IC24 Racinginparadise beautifully around the course. They still have a mountain to climb after counting two high scoring races on Tuesday...and there's no discard.
Having dominated the racing on Tuesday morning with four bullets it seems that other skippers have now worked out how Ken Read does it. Hard sheeted main sailing very flat and very high with the magic but tricky 'lee helm'. The 6-times J/24 world champion was not going to have it all his own way. Sailing Black Pearl he posted a fourth and three thirds which was just enough for him to hold on to the overall lead by three points.
Peter Holmberg and his crew had an excellent chance to take the overall lead going into the last race. With a first and two seconds they were only one point adrift. Unfortunately, at the windward gate Peter's mainsheet didn't get eased quickly enough and they drove sideways into the mark with an impressive heel on. Chatting to Peter later on he remarked, "Yes, that was a shame but that's part of the Pro-Am and there's no point getting upset, I have a great crew." The resulting penalty turn dropped them to fifth place.
The final round of fleet racing takes place on Friday morning. Keith Musto is leading the seniors and is only just behind Ed Baird overall. The guests this year have opted for more fleet racing than match racing which, at RIP, we like to think it is because the IC24s are simple, comfortable and a lot of fun to sail.
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