Back Regatta RLIR 2006-02-13/17 20-02-2006 Royal Langkawi International Regatta 13-17 February 2006 Slowly we were growing into the regatta mood! How? At almost every lamppost in Langkawi was a notice attached from the regatta with an action-picture of Boléro taken at the BMWRLIR 2005. The same picture was used for the official invitations, on the participation-cards and the big banners. Please, look at our website and click on the photo page-rlir 2006.. Day by day we became more proud that you will understand because everybody to whom we spoke to- Yeah, that’s your boat! The only thing we have to do is to improve our result of last year or at least to match it. The week before the start, every day there had been a nice breeze, real Boléro weather and we crossed our fingers that the wind should stay like this. Sponsored by Simpson Marine by way of giving t-shirts, caps and by borrowing their manager as crew. Plus three young Malaysian sailors from Langkawi and a muscle Englishman added to our team, we started to get ready for the regatta. On Monday, the 13th of February at 13.00 the start procedure started. The race was marked in the bay, in view of Kuah town. For the spectators ashore, this really was very attractive because in the racing-class, a 60ft Volvo ocean racer - Ericson from Sweden partipated. The yacht sailed like a well maintained machine, the crew was very experienced and that was clearly visible. They had to sail very fast because they had quite a high rating with regard to the other yachts in their class, they had to stay one hour in front of their competitors. We got an excellent rating from David, an Australian sail measurer so our changes looked well. The cruising class, our class, started as 4th. Just before the start, we hoisted our nr.2 genoa, we crossed the line as first Unfortunately, during the first tacking , the genoa caught on one of the spreaders, a long tear was the result. Drop? No, we keep it like this because the buoy is visible and after that we have to hoist the spinnaker, that should be a spinnaker leg. Cross our fingers that the tear should not get larger. Yet the nr.3 hoisted in front of the nr.2 because the tear got bigger and the concentration smaller. Our competitors sailed largely along us but the wind was in our advantage and the hot breath of Boléro’s crew was clearly sensed by our competitors. We arrived first at the first buoy, we kept sailing first the rest of the race what was difficult because……where is the next buoy? There, no over there and at last we left everybody far behind us and went first over the finishing line! We had yet a splendid and thrilling moment just before the last buoy with Ericson, where they have to give way to us! A bit of pride, we felt that we made up our errors so fast and who knows, we will get first on handicap as well that we will see later on the notice board. As fast as we could, we sailed to the marina to get our nr.2 repaired because we really need this one very badly during light winds. On Langkawi there is only one sail-maker and she already had a big odd job to do on the spinnaker of Ericson. Alas, leave it like it is, it is alright may be there will be more wind than we do not hoist the nr. 2. I am not like that and with the help of the muscular strength of the men the genoa was loaded into a taxi buss, within 45 minutes driven to the ferry and sailed by ferry to Rebak, a little resort island at a half an hour sailing distance from Langkawi. Ben, the canvas man, had an eye for this big odd job. Although when he saw the sail- bag, he had to swallow. We had bad luck because of LW so for the second time that day, again we carried it but this time up. The sail-bag pressed into a golf car and upon the little hill to Ben’s loft. The sail and tear was much larger than he had estimated and he had never been working with this material ‘kevlar’ before. Grumbling and after a pep talk, he yet started the odd job. One thing was for sure, the last ferry back I should not catch! Ben estimated that this odd job should take him at least until 01.00. The decision was made quickly that I should stay overnight in the resort on the island. The taxi driver was phoned that he could go home and he could pick me up early in the morning after the first ferry should arrive. Called Ed and happily one room was left, even with a sea view but I did not have a thing on this because it already was pitch-dark but I could hear the sea! In the meantime, I had a gigantic pain in the left side of my body and my belly. What should that be so suddenly? Cystitis or appendicitis? From Nhie, Ben’s girlfriend I got some painkillers but I spit them out, even almost in the lobby of the resort. A humiliating situation. With a big smile of the concierge and a bucket of water, it had been cleaned quickly. During the night, in and out of the bed, drunk a lot of water and I was so glad that it was time to get up, to pick up the sail and go to the ferry. Text messaged Ben and then of course, my phone got empty! Checked out and on off-chance to the loft where Ben was waiting for me. The sail was repaired, five hours labour, once and never again was his comment. The sail bag was already on the jetty, just a question of loading it on to the ferry and of course, it was again LW. With the muscular strength of Ben and the skipper, we could manage to put the sail on to the boat. Happily my back pain got lesser. The skipper and a passenger pulled up the sail from the boat and for the last time they carried the sail bag upwards and with a plop they threw it down on the ground. My taxi driver seemed not to be there and happily, somebody could call a taxi for me. After three quarters of an hour, the taxi arrived, this time a car! After some pushing and pulling the sail was on the back seat. Please, can you hurry up because the race starts at 09.30 and in the mean time, it was 08.45. I had the presence of mind to ask the taxi driver if I could borrow his phone, I phoned the reception of the marina so they could inform Ed that I was arriving.. The whole team was waiting to collect the sail. Ed: You already go to the boat, we take care of the sail. Happily, we could be in time for our start. Everyone on board? Hey, where is the nr. 2? That story, I will tell you later, responded Ed. Long story shortened. We became first overall and first over the finishing line. A protest had been made by the skipper of one of the other yachts in our class. We had been hoisting the nr.2 and our rating was not quoted correctly plus our rating was too high, according to the skippers opinion. In consultation with David, the rate decreased at around the same level of the other boats in our class and we were not allowed to hoist the nr.2 during the race. GRRRRRRRRR! I had to swallow as you can imagine! Happily, we kept our first place despite of our rating had been changed. Back straightened and up to the starting line. We go for it! Pain, I let it go, like it is and I bet the pain will be gone by the end of the day. Probably I drunk much too less water that day, a bit of dehydration. We had a great start with the help of counting before the start by our guest, a chief-editor of the Strait Times- an English/Malaysian newspaper. He had taken his lady-secretary with him, a very friendly woman with Dutch ancestors. The nr.3 genoa up, we sailed despite of the light weather, 10 kn. true wind, quite good. Happily, we are allowed to hoist the gennaker but that was not enough to hold on our first position because we also sailed across the buoy. That can happen when you are laying first in the race! We have to sail to that buoy! No, over there is the buoy! Indeed the wrong one, so we gypped quickly! It became a ‘close’ finish and Non de Plume went home with the first prize that day. Racing like this is much nicer because the ratings are closer to each other that makes it a lot more competitive and much more challenging. Every little mistake is punished right the way and that happened the third day. The tacking on the gennaker did not go quite faultless and by doing so the sheet came under de boat! Ed solved this quite quickly, pulled the other sheet and gyped back and the sheet could be pulled back from under the boat. The wind totally dropped and than a downwind sail to the finishing line plus the current against us, what a disaster! We saw our competitors sailing along us. The fourth day turned an attempt on our patience. Just before our start the wind decided to stop blowing, the catamarans floated over the starting line as we had to start. It turned into a floating party over the starting line, all the boats got mixed up. Eventually nobody knew what to do. The wind picked up a little, and we had some speed! Can you call it like that? Sure, we are sailing again and the boats in the race spread out. We yelled too early, we drifted to the first buoy while our competitors sailed a little faster. Near the second buoy it looked like it if we were gaining because the wind picked up again but the others were able to use the advance of the wind earlier because they were on an upwind tack. Boléro is difficult to sail when the wind is between 2 and 6 knots and especially on a downwind course. It is, like, it is! Anyway, on the finishing line a shout of joy from the boat behind us, of course by the rating, they got 3rd that day. Happily we were allowed to drop one race and of course….this one we dropped Last year we had the last two days much more wind, that’s what Boléro and her crew likes. This time we sailed much more pleasant, much more excitement and yet that gives something extra’s. to the regatta too.. The price-giving that evening felt literally into the water. Fortunately, we received our third prize just before it really started to rain. Exactly at the moment that the first prize overall should have been presented, the floodgates of heaven opened and the rain poured over all of us. The notabilities, including the prime minister, stayed well seated despite umbrellas were handed out,which they categorical refused because the sailors also stood into the rain. Until it all became too much and we all fly inside. Is the weather distracted? In this time of year rain? Very unusual! Later on the first prize overall, an all included trip to Valencia in 2007, was presented, in the restaurant, by the prime minister to the crew of ULUMULU- a Malaysian yacht, a Farr 52, Are Malaysian people chauvinistic? Sure, they were very proud of it that they got first in the racing class and that they had also won the first prize overall. Fortunately, it got dry when it was time for the closing ceremony: the fireworks! Not really disappointed, a third prize overall like last year, we went to our bunk to get ready for the following morning, the lay day with a water polo match and a kayak race. The crew made a fine show in the water polo match, they just lost by 5-4 and by kayaking, the Vikings (25 years old) only got hold on Ed and Yasuf on just one meter before the finishing line! The prize-giving was presented during the pleasure of a drink, a bite and some music. The crew of Silolona, an Indonesian classic yacht-a pinisi-www.silolona.com, played the stars from the sky(Dutch expression),great dancing and so became this evening ‘the event’ of the regatta week.