Sailing: Hawke's Bay crew exceeds skipper's expectations

Karl Banks and his crew on Fine Entry will be tough to beat in the Ross 780 class today. Photo / Warren Buckland

A Hawke's Bay crew which is racing together for the first time has got tongues wagging after day two of the national Ross 780 sailing regatta off Napier.

Skipper Karl Banks, who has got Napier Sailing Club clubmates Gavin Earle, Gareth Howard, Mike Fenwick and Mark Sheldrake with him on Fine Entry, couldn't believe they had established a four-point lead over their nearest rivals in the seven-boat class yesterday.

"Three wins today was the icing on the cake," Banks said last night as he checked the official result sheets.

"But it's not over. We've still got three more races ... and while one more win would probably be enough we'll aim for another three," Banks said.

"Everyone is right with what they have been saying. It has been a magic regatta for us."

"It has taken us five years to set the boat up and it is set up well ... we know what makes it go."

The fact one of the club's most successful and experienced sailors, David Zorn, had to withdraw from the team two days before the regatta with an eye injury adds to the significance of their feat.

"David and I have done a lot of two-handed racing together and he has helped me a lot with the set-up on the boat.

"At the same time I couldn't have asked for me from the crew we have and I'm sure we will again together some time in the future," Banks added.

Although Banks' work in the tug and dredging industry is Auckland-based he races at his Napier club every second weekend during the summer. Napier club commodore Paul Redman said it will be a surprise if the Fine Entry crew relinquish the lead today.

Another host club crew skippered by Adrian Mannering and racing Bush Singlet is four points behind Fine Entry. A further seven points back in third place is Wellington skipper Mike Dunlop and his Evans Bay crew on Ghost Train.

Another host club skipper who will be on top of the leaderboard when racing begins today is David Tucker in the 15-boat Europe class. With five of eight races completed Tucker has a six point-lead over Horowhenua's Antje Muller.

Tucker had two wins and a second placing yesterday. Three points behind Muller in third place is her partner and Horowhenua Sailing Club clubmate David Brown.

While there has been no change to the top three placings in this class during the first two days there was a lead change in the 23-boat Hartley 16 class. Manukau's Robin Williams and his crew on Shaking Laundry, who were second after Thursday's races, yesterday established a two-point lead over their clubmates on the Gareth Insley-skippered boat Bizarre.

Seven points behind Insley in third place is New Plymouth Sailing Club's Simon Holdt and his crew on Stratos.

Holdt's brother, Jason, and his crew on Simply Red are four points behind Holdt while the Holdt's father, Wayne, and his crew on Panache are a further nine points back in fifth place. Skipper Paul de Munk and crew Paul Dunford, who retained their seventh placing from day one on Tramp, are still the best of the host club crews in this class.

All crews in all three classes yesterday were able to drop the points from their worst race. Three races are scheduled for all three classes today.

Redman said while competitors got a bit chilly by the end of the day racing conditions were ideal with a light 8-knot breeze from a steady direction. Redman was also full of praise for the number of volunteers who assisted with the race management side of the regatta.

"When you have three classes going at once it can get busy and with the new Health and Safety regulations you need more boats than we used to have. It's been a tremendous effort from everyone involved and we've got one more day tomorrow."