A belated update for Leg 3.
The fleet sail into Sydney and then take a break over Christmas and New Year before beginning the next leg to cape Town
Pool A
Ardley Athletic started the week at the front of the pool and while made to work to stay there doesn’t give that position away finishing the leg on tack 4. That’s 2 leg wins in a row for last years overall winner - and 2 sets of 15 points that are sure to help him in his quest to retain the title. Congratulations to skipper squealy and his crew.
Second place was decided a couple of tacks later when LUFC 1963 and hodol kutkut crossed the line - with LUFC 1963 having the edge by using 14% of the tack compared to 60% by hodol kutkut.
Tack 7 and 3-way race between Bullys Special Prize, Kazma United and Donkeys Ride Again for 4th - with the boats finishing in that order (10%/22%/50%).
Ajax Hamster Jam completed the leg in 7th on tack 8 - with Kelly’s Heroes following him in on the next tack.
Another 3-way race for 9th saw Time for Trumpton claim the 7 points having only just been short the previous tack and requiring only 1% of his final one. Chester Draws and then Y’all be bad were the other 2 boats completing the leg on tack 10.
The final boat to make it to port in the allowed time was No-Eye Deer on tack 11. The Cooler King was just 24Nm short when the claxon sounded , with Smoke City a short distance back and finally Mid Table Struggler who was some 350Nm behind the fleet.
Pool B
Starting the week at the head of the pool Lukes Giants wasn’t going to make any mistakes and made it into Sydney on the 2nd tack of the week to claim the 15 points available. Well done to the crew and skipper LukedeLuke for bringing them home for a leg win.
At it again was 2nd on tack 3 and Robots in Disguise picked up the 13 point spot on tack 5.
Tack 3 also saw Terry fall over the side of atx1303 with ……………….. and Darlo Queens responding to the SOS. Darlo Queens had the distance and saved atx1303 the extra tack.
With large points still available the bulk of the fleet were keen to grab as many as possible and on tack 7 a spirited attempt to do just that saw crewman Taylor onboard atx1303 put in a 260Nm lunge for the line. Unfortunately he was let down by his navigator Lampard and found himself on the rocks north of Nelson Bay.
The following tack and it was Darlo Queens who ran aground just south of the same point and it would have been a similar fate for ……………….. had Adebayor not sailed backwards and then fallen overboard at the end of tack 9. Both Green Peace and Darlo Queens, having just completed repairs, answered the call for assistance and both made in time to help fish Adebayor out of the water.
………………..’s troubles didn’t stop there however as once he was back racing he resumed his previous course which eventually took him onto the rocks of Norah Head on tack 11.
Meanwhile tack 9 saw both LANESRA and Eenog koning complete the course with LANESRA in 4th and Eenog koning in 5th. Family Bereavements was then next to finish on tack 10 and that was followed by a 4-way race on tack 11 for 7th.
Green Peace and Darlo Queens had some distance between them but for Halfway Up Virginia and luckysevens it was much closer with Halfway Up Virginia just having the edge (85%/86%).
Cow Tipping Frogs was the last boat in this pool to finish - on tack 12 and for 5 points. This left ……………….., Galatasarky, atx1303 and Zuluwarriors to motor in.
Pool C
No incidents in Pool C and there was a steady procession of boats into port throughout the week.
The Bare Bones was first home on tack 2. Congratulations to skipper Five long bones and his crew.
Tack 4 and Lythgoe’s Disciples picks up 2nd, tack 5 The Drogs, tack 6 Atlético Tcf and Förbrytarbeteende IK, tack 7 Vellus Arsefield and Its Just Not Cricket.
The procession continued on tack 8 with The Drog’s Ballacks, tack 9 Hoops!, tack 10 Sultan of Barnet FC, tack 11 Apathetic Thistle and finally tack 12 Isaiah Forty:31.
This left 3 boats still at sea - Nutstars was just 69Nm short but Naked Pirates and A Smoked Cheese Pig were ~500Nm from Sydney having never really got going on this leg.
Pool D
No mistakes from A Team of Johnsons as he takes advantage of the lead he built up the previous week to cross the finish on the first tack. Well done to skipper tedbull and his crew.
He was followed in on tack 2 by Roman Villa and Honeyballs claimed 3rd on tack 3.
Also on tack 2, but at the back of the fleet, Getafe King Life loses crewman Ricketts over the side. Doomsday and Special Riders are closest and answer the call for assistance with Doomsday arriving in time and saving Getafe King Life the extra tack.
Back at the front and Presti Spudgunners finishes in 4th on tack 4, Diminutive Midgets follows him in on tack 5 and FC Boscoppa on tack 7.
2 boats complete the course on tack 8 with Equipe Chat’s Noir ahead of Tramp Attack. They are followed by Crazy Canucks on tack 9 in 9th.
Tack 10 and SuperSlaves loses Adebayor overboard. Self Cleaning Ovens tries to help but doesn’t have the distance but grob’s grasshoppers, doing a 180, does and SuperSlaves is soon back racing.
Special Riders and grob’s grasshoppers are last to make it into port on tack 12 leaving Doomsday, Self Cleaning Ovens, Getafe King Life and SuperSlaves to motor home.
A 2 gameweek break then started in which all the crews enjoyed the hospitality of Sydney - getting themselves ready for Leg 4 which begins this weekend which eventually takes them out of the Southern Oceans and into Cape Town. The draw for this Leg will be made in a couple of days.