The Cape 31 fleet descended on Royal Southern Yacht Club over the weekend for Round Three of the 31 Race Circuit. Eighteen Cape 31s lined up for another epic weekend of close one-design racing!
Round 2 winners Khumbu Red took the overall win again for their second event in a row - an impressive feat for a team that is new to the fleet in 2024. The Corinthian/1 Pro Division winners were another new team to the fleet, Duncan McCarthy’s Tonto.
Over the course of the weekend, Race Officer Paul Jackson and his race team managed eight great races. The conditions varied across the three days, from light winds to 20 knots, presenting the perfect challenge for the teams.
Friday brought a great breeze with Khumbu Red showing they could perform in the breeze as well as in the light with a perfect scoreline of three bullets. Flying Jenny was back on the podium on day 1, as well as La Pericolosa, Chaotic, and Jiraffe.
Saturday proved a difficult day for the race officers with shifty conditions resulting from the split breeze on the Solent. The first two races that were started were abandoned due to large wind shifts on the first leg. Paul Jackson and his team managed to get two races away in the afternoon, which saw Corinthian/1 Pro team Tonto picking up their first bullet in their new boat, as well as Flying Jenny taking the win in the second race of the day.
The final day started off relatively light before a classic Solent westerly built for the final races of the day. Chaotic was back on form with two race wins, and Julian Metherell’s Bullit took race 7.
"We got our first bullet of the season on Saturday in a photo finish with Flying Jenny, we were really pleased with that." said Tonto owner Duncan McCarthy, "Racing these boats is awesome fun and the competitors are a great bunch."
It was Christian and Jacintha Hamilton Love’s Khumbu Red who took the win overall, with Nick Phillips’ Chaotic taking second place for their third regatta in a row. Sandy Askew’s Flying Jenny took third place.
In addition to racing, competitors enjoyed the hospitality of the Royal Southern Yacht Club, including drinks, food, music, and opportunities to mingle with fellow competitors.
After three rounds, Khumbu Red is leading the season, with Nick Phillips’ Chaotic one point behind them and Simon Perry’s Jiraffe sitting in third.
In the Corinthian/1 Pro Division, The Bodfather is leading the charge, with Tonto in second and Antix in third.
The next event will be the Hamble Yacht Services Cape 31 UK National Championship hosted by the Royal Lymington Yacht Club at the end of the month. With many teams showing they can win races, who will we see at the top of the podium when it counts for a National Championship?
Full results - https://cms.cape31class.com/racing/results/regatta/38
Race Circuit Leaderboard - https://cms.cape31class.com/racing/series/6
Photo gallery - https://gallery.cape31class.com
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