Race Day Summaries

WAIPU COVE ENDURANCE

Waipu Cove  |  30 January 2010

Type: Endurance

High tide: 08:30

SUMMARY

Round 1 National Endurance Race

The Waipu Cove endurance race was the first of 3 tabled endurance races for the 2010 series. The overall national Thundercat championship placings are determined by cumulative points from the best five surf races plus 1 endurance. With this in mind 21 Boats entered hoping for a good result in the light conditions. Winds at race start at 11.15am were 15 knots from the southeast with a 1.5 metre NE sea swell. The race course was from Waipu Cove across to a turn buoy at the east end of Langs beach then to a second turn buoy north of the Waipu river mouth and back to Waipu Cove, a distance of 20km. This circuit was to be completed 5 times with boats entering and exiting the surf line each time they returned to race control at Waipu. In addition all boats were forced to complete a compulsory fuel stop on any chosen lap.

Of the 21 boats only 12 completed the 100km course, the remainder succumbing to gear failure or ending upside down in the choppy conditions. Fuel change techniques were critical and places were lost or gained on the beach or in the surf line. After 100km of racing only 1 metre separated the first 2 boats and the run up the beach was won by Jungle Coffee just ahead of Smuggler Marine. Only a few seconds later Black Pepper secured third position closely followed by Plumbquick in fourth.