Australian yachts lost and gained in the protest room after day two of racing at the Rolex Farr 40 world championship being sailed on San Francisco Bay while the entire fleet lost out on racing on day three due to lack of wind yesterday.
Australian champion in the high-performance keelboat class, Sydney yachtsman Guido Belgiorno-Nettis and his boat Transfusion were disqualified from race five following a protest by defending world champion, Italy’s Alberto Rossi, helming Enfante Terrible.
The international jury found Transfusion guilty of breaking rule 10 of the Racing Rules of Sailing over a port-and-starboard right-of-way incident.
Transfusion has dropped from second overall to eighth place in the 19 boat fleet and in this no-discard regatta is 30 points behind the leading US boat Plenty (Alex Roepers).
The two other Australian Farr 40s in the fleet, Lisa and Martin Hill’s Estate Master from Sydney and Andrew Hunn’s Voodoo Chile from Hobart, have each gained a place as a result of Transfusion’s disqualification.
Estate Master is now second overall on 32 points, 18 points behind Plenty, while Voodoo Chile is fourth overall on 34 points.
The Italian boat Enfant Terrible is now third on 33 points, while US yachtsman Jim Richardson, helming the Australian-crewed Kokomo, and is fifth on 39 points.
With five races scheduled, Saint Francis Yacht Club race officers have brought forward to 11am the starting time for today’s final racing.
Peter Campbell
