Yo! 2 leads Phuket Raceweek

AO CHALONG: Peter Ahern and his crew on Yo! 2 are in first place overall in the IRC 1 class in the fourth annual Phuket Raceweek regatta, being held in and around Chalong Bay until Sunday.

Phuket-built Somtam Express drew first blood, winning Race 1 after a midday start in light conditions that teased crews with breezes of two to five knots but stiffening up to eight to 10 knots this afternoon.

Peter Ahern on Yo! 2 finished second and Jim Poulsen’s Vino, another Phuket yacht, finished third in the opening race.

Yo! 2 rallied and won IRC 1 Race 2, with Somtam Express finishing second and Vino finishing third in the race and third overall in the class.

Phuket’s Mike Downard on Tua Lek won the IRC 2 class race, ahead of fellow Phuket sailor Niels Dgenkolf on Phoenix. Peter Dyer on Madam Butterfly finished third.

The Multihull class saw local sailors claim the top three places, with Tim Milner on Seekronghuk finishing first, ahead of Bob Brindley’s X Cat Riot in second place and Bob Mott’s Chameleon third.

Roger Kingdon’s Moto Inzi leads the Raimon Land Firefly 850 class after winning both races in the class today. Bill Phelps Twin Sharks is in second place overall, followed by Andrew Marshall’s Pink Lady.

The Classic class had a downwind start to their race, giving onlookers the opportunity to see the impressive yachts cross the start line with full rigging out to the wind.

Tom Howard’s century-old, Danish-built schooner Seraph won the race, followed by Gunther Nutt’s Kerida in second place and Greaeme Chuck’s Anjuna third.

NOTE: The results posted here are the provisional results available at the time of posting to net. Click here for the latest results.