International Dragons - Prince Philip Cup decided today

by John Curnow on 7 Jan 2011 Dragon Australasian Championship for the Prince Philip Cup.

Today is meant to be the last day of racing on Melbourne’s Port Phillip for the International Dragons. They have been involved in the Australasian Championship for the Prince Philip Cup, which is the lead up event for their World Championships next week, which will also be held at Royal Brighton Yacht Club.

The reason we say meant to be the last day, is that the strong Northerly winds currently blowing through Melbourne are at the threshold of the upper limit for the class, which are governed by strict rules. If it blows 28 knots for over five minutes or reaches 30 whilst they are out the course, the race is abandoned.

Today’s course is to be run directly in front of the Royal Brighton, from Green Point in the South, to just North of the breakwater in front of the marina. Kevin Wilson, Principal Race Officer, had just finished the briefing for all the many volunteers an event like this requires and was heading out on the water to assess, first hand, the conditions. The series requires seven races to be completed and there is no provision fro a re-sail tomorrow, as it is the first day of registration and measurement for next week’s World Championships. 'The aim is to get a fair race underway, in accordance with the International Dragon Class rules', said Kevin.

Presently on Port Phillip, the wind is from due North at around 20 knots with gusts going on to reach 29 knots. A warm 34 degrees Celsius is predicted, with the Bureau of Meteorology indicating that the winds will be ‘Northerly 15 to 20 knots, reaching 20 to 30 knots at times during the morning and early afternoon. Seas: 0.5 to 1.5 metres.’ In Melbourne, when the breeze blows from the North, the wind does not have enough distance to build a sea at the top of Port Phillip, where racing is being conducted. This is unlike the last few days, where the predominant Southerly has built larger seas of around two metres.

Former Dragon World Champion, Tommy Müller, still leads the event, but any of a further six crews could make an impact on the final podium positions. Joergen Schoenherr’s Danish crew, lie in second with Russia’s Anatoly Loginov and Australia’s Richard Lynn both on 26 points, just one behind Schoenherr and six astern of Müller. The Ukraine’s Lars Hendriksen, Denmark’s Jens Christensen and Britain’s Lawrie Smith can all make ground, especially given the predicted conditions. There may be a bit of waiting involved today, in order to let the bluster go out of the breeze, which is anticipated in the early afternoon.

Royal Brighton Yacht Club website