2nd Raja Muda

Onboard Fast track we happily managed a 2nd place overall in the Raja Muda!

Just one point behind after seven races was Richard Barnhurst’s Fast Track, a First 45 with a story to tell. In race 1 (Port Klang to Pangkor) they split the mainsail, evacuated two crew towards the coast by hailing a fishing boat, and got a man up to Langkawi to retrieve another main from storage and back to Pangkor in time to start race 2. Scoring RET (fleet +1) for that race may have cost them the regatta. Over the next six races they worked their way through the entire wardrobe of headsails, suffering one delamination/split after another, but still stayed in touch on the scoreboard. On the first leg of the last race, another split headsail was quickly replaced by the last shot in the locker – a J4. Tactician Matt Humphries said, “there was a bit of a park-up in front of us, so we hoisted the J4, tacked away, sailed around everyone else in the flat patch, and won the race. But for that first score, and finishing with three wins from eight races, we were well in contention for the title. Seems like we’ll have to come back…” Fast Track are hereby awarded the Sail-World Asia Trophy for sheer cussed perseverence - to be collected in beer at the RHKYC Main Bar.

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