THE SHELTERED WATERS OF Phuket’s Phang Nga Bay proved an ideal place for a fun charter campaign as a group from Beijing experienced in the IRC I class at this year’s Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek.
Jun Chen and eight friends chartered a famous one-design class, a Farr 40, which was skippered by the very experienced Steve McConaghy, a regular racer in the region.
“We had a lot to learn and for some of us it was too difficult, but we still had fun,” Chen told me as we sailed back to port on the last day.
I had come aboard Ramrod to be the bowman for the day as a crewmember had dropped out. Helping me on the foredeck was one of the two female Chinese crew, Viola, who worked at the mast under the guidance of experienced Australian sailor Richard Cunningham.
Chen’s job was the second most important role on the boat – trimming the mainsail – and the light winds that averaged eight knots were ideal for this enthusiastic crew to enjoy the four-day regatta.
We had a very successful final day’s racing, recording our best result of the event when we came in third, so making it onto the podium at the daily prize giving. This made Chen very happy. “In our division of six boats, we were competitive with boats four, five and six, so we had a good final day.”
Chen is also a boat owner, with a fast Mills 1180 race yacht. “Sailing is difficult to do because we are not allowed to sail on the lakes around Beijing, so my yacht is 2,000km from the coast and we don’t sail very much.”
The crew had various levels of sailing experience. Zhao Qing was one of the most experienced, having competed in one China Cup and seven Hong Kong to Hainan Races. The Hainan race is a biennial Offshore Category One race for 390nm downwind to Sanya on the island of Hainan in southern China.
Among other competitors in the Raceweek was a young Japanese crew aboard a Firefly 850. Natsuki Motoyoshi’s Mil Grace catamaran finished third overall for a spot on the podium during the gala dinner and prize giving at the Cape Panwa Hotel. Firefly 850s are a fast and exciting class that can reach speeds of nearly 30 knots, so not for the inexperienced.
However, less experienced sailors could consider chartering the smaller, newer Corsair Pulse trimaran built in Vietnam, an inexpensive option that requires only two crew.
