Lumix again

Victory for Jonathan Whitty's team at the 18ft skiff's 3-Buoys Challenge series on Sydney Harbour

Jonathan Whitty, James Hozack and Aron Everett made it two-in-a-row victories when they steered their Panasonic-sponsored Lumix 18ft Skiff home an easy winner of race 3 of the 3-Buoys Challenge series on Sydney Harbour today.

Lumix took the lead mid-way up the first windward leg of the course then had little difficulty maintaining the lead for the rest of the course before scoring a 2m24s win from Race 1 winner Smeg (Nick Press, Dan Phillips and Dave Ewings).

Fisher & Paykel (Grant Rollerson, Peter Nicholson and Geoff Bauchop) was a further 1m7s back in third place, ahead of Thurlow Fisher Lawyers (Jack Macartney), Rabbitohs-Kenwood (Brett Van Munster) and Yandoo (John Winning).

Today’s windward-leeward course was set for a northeast breeze but the first of several wind shifts arrived shortly after the start and split the fleet into two distinctive groups.

Thurlow Fisher Lawyers and Mojo Wine (Chris Nicholson) won the start but Lumix and Fisher & Paykel took full advantage of the shift when they went to the southern side of the course.

Mojo Wine’s crew saw the advantage being created and came back to mid-stream while The Kitchen Maker (Darren McKavanagh) led those on the north.

Lumix also benefitted from the 3-buoys handicapping and went around the ‘red’ buoy to open up a lead of more than one minute. Fisher & Paykel was in second place ahead of Mojo Wine and Haier Appliances (Rick Peacock).

The spinnaker run back to the bottom mark was tight as the fleet battled the light breeze which was coming from the East-ESE. Smeg was the big improver as the skiff moved into third place just ahead of Haier Appliances and Mojo Wine.

With little work required over the next two laps of the course, the race became a little processional as Lumix set a cracking pace.

At the bottom mark on the second lap her lead had been extended to 2 minutes as Smeg moved up into second place.

The leading positions didn’t change over the final lap of the course.

Results