stuart midgley

The Audi Winter Series run out of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia has begun. The first race was the 3rd of May, and this last Sunday was the second.

Race 1 proved a less than auspicious start. Tigger sailed very well, placing second out of about 16 boats. A great achievement, sullied only by the 3-boat collision that we were part of about half-way through.

Tigger was hit on the starboard quarter by another boat, which impact spun us around and forced our bow into the port quarter of another boat. The first contact caused little damage but unfortunately our bowsprit punched a hole clean through the side of the other boat in the second impact.

Protest flags all around, a hearing that went late into the night on Thursday, witnesses from other boats and a reserved decision while the protest committee worked through all the details with their decision not made until 5pm the following day. Tigger - disqualified. You don’t have to like the protest committee, you just have to accept their decision.