Opportunity tops Group C corrected standings by 12 seconds at BOISW

Racing Group C is one of the more eclectic corners of the fleet, drawing together a genuine range of designs and sizes under what was originally Division 3. Ten boats competed, and the variety on the water made for compelling racing once the corrected times were worked out.

At the lighter, more reactive end of the group sits Paul Smith's The Racoon, a Shaw 550. Alongside it are two Young 88s: Heartlight, sailed by Roger Sims and Rhys Cole, and Giovanni Belgrano's Young Magic. A step up in size brings Spencer Poborsa Cox's The Bondi Tram, a Ross 930, and Ian Templeman's Farr South, a Farr 920, into the picture.

The upper-middle portion of the fleet features Doug France's Cotton Bud, a Farr 10.20, Ian Moore's Fifth Dimension, a Beneteau First 36.7, and Paul King's Nautilass, a Beneteau First 36. Rounding out the top end are Dave Campbell's Opportunity, a Beneteau Oceanis 40.5, and Sefton Powrie's Ilex, a Brin Wilson 44. That spread of designs, from a nimble 550 to a 44-foot cruiser-racer, made the corrected-time results all the more interesting.

Line honours went to Nautilass, with Paul King bringing the Beneteau First 36 home in 44 minutes 14 seconds. It was a clear win on elapsed time, though far from a runaway result. The Racoon crossed just 1 minute 15 seconds later, with Young Magic and Ilex close enough to keep things honest. The leading four boats were covered by fewer than four minutes in total, and the midfield told an even tighter story. From fifth to ninth place, boats finished in a steady procession with rarely more than half a minute between them, pointing to just how evenly matched this fleet proved to be on the water.

From first to last, the finishing spread came to less than ten minutes, a notable result given the range of designs involved.

Elapsed time, though, was only the beginning of the story. Once EHC handicaps were applied, the results shifted. Opportunity, Dave Campbell's Beneteau Oceanis 40.5, moved from eighth on the water all the way to the top of the corrected standings, edging The Racoon by just 12 seconds.

The top six boats on corrected time were separated by a little over two minutes in total, and fifth and sixth place were split by a single second. Racing does not get much closer than that across a fleet of this diversity.

PHRF scoring produced a different outcome again. Young Magic, Giovanni Belgrano's Young 88, came out on top under that system, though the gaps were somewhat wider. Nearly a minute separated first from second, and by the time fifth place was reached the spread had grown to more than four minutes.

No single boat dominated Racing Group C. Results shifted markedly depending on which handicap system was applied, and the margins throughout were too fine to point to any clear frontrunner. With one more race still to come today, there is every reason to expect the gaps between these boats will continue to be tested.