YACHTING

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 100, 22 January 1938, Page 15

YACHTING

Anniversary Day Regatta TO-DAY’S PROGRAMME Sanders Cup Crew To Leave To-night (By Spinnaker.) This year the Anniversary Day Regatta has been entrusted by the Wellington Provincial Yacht nnd Motor-Boat Association to the Heretaunga Boating Club, and from the businesslike way in which the club is going about arrangements the experiment of ' holding the regatta on the farther shores of Port Nicholson will be amply justified. The Programme. A particularly comprehensive and interesting programme hag been arranged, providing for a full day's racing and giving scope for all classes. The keelers will be sent away commendably early, and are to race on an original course — Pctone Wharf, Koro Koro buoy. Point Jerningham, and back to the starting line. There will be ■ launch handicaps and a speedboat handicap for the power craft, the former both in the morning and in the afternoon, the latter, which to the landlubbers anyway will be the spectacular event of the afternoon, starting at two o’clock and consisting of four laps of a course up and down the waterfront, where all on shore will have the best possible view. For the centroboarders, the following handicap races have been arranged: — Morning. 10.35, T class; 10.45, H and N classes; 10.55, X class; 11.5, Z and Q classes; 11.15, I class. Afternoon. 2.30 Z and Q classes; 2.40, I class; 3.0, Hi N and X classes; 3.15, T class. The launch handicaps will be at 10.20 a.m. and 2.45 p.m.; the keel yacht race at 1 p.m. Unusual Entries.

Unusually numerous entries are expected this year, reflecting the great stride the sport has made in a couple of seasons of prosperity. The list of prospective starters in the events is a long one, and, while probably only a comparatively small proportion will actually start, all classes will probably be larger than ever in the past. It is worthy of remark that the racing Idle Along fleet on the harbour now totals 55 boats; and even if half that number are out to-day it will be a remarkably fine display. Little behind in numbers, and always favourites with the crowd, are the baby centreboarders of the T class, now 42 in number. It is hoped in both these classes that the starters will total within three or four boats of the full fleet. Handicaps will be announced before each event, giving the handicapper a busy time, no doubt, but enabling any errors in the morning handicapping, or any unusual form on the part of contestants, to be rectified in the afternoon.

Th 0 Officials. The official launch will be Wairangi. The association officials, representing the principal harbour clubs, will be:— Chairman nnd handicapper, Mr. A. G. Harvey; secretary and treasurer, Mr. A. Holmes; starter, judge and timekeeper, Mr. G. H. Tanner; racing secretary, Mr. H. Stutter; sailing committee, Messrs. Tanner, Harvey, C. D. A. Highet and C. Highet; course steward, Mr. A. Buckland.

Mr. Harvey’s New Job. A. Harvey, chairman of the provincial association and designer of the I class, has abandoned the city to make yachting his profession in future. He has been kept so busy cutting sails.in the past few months that he has decided to po into the thing professionally—a step that he is not likely to regret.

Astral’s Win. Astral, W. Mellor’s tall Burmudian cutter, looks like stealing the laurels that have so long remained in the keeping of the scratch keelers of Port Nicholson. It is pleasant to see a cruising boat teaching the out-and-out racers to sail, without having to rely on her handicap—but there' is still a good deal of controversy as to whether Astral's rig is really 100 per cent, for cruising in these seas.

Coming Events. Next Saturday the Inter-Club Cup (14footers), Vernon Grove Memorial Cup (Takapunas), and Holmes Cup (Idle Alongs) and Taurnnga Cup will be raced for at Port Nicholson. The following day the Idle Along teams race will take place at Evans Bay. The Saturday events are, of course, harbour championships, and should draw large entries. The in|er-cliib contest is always a source of keen rivalry.

Sanders Cup Crew. To-night, the Sanders Cup <rew is to leave Wellington for the south; their first race will be next Thursday at Dunedin. “Spinnaker” joins with all local yachtsmen in wishing Nigel Blair and his crew the best of luck.