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Navy Boat Beats Somtam On Corrected Time

Stronger winds bring more exciting sailing conditions in competitions, including the ongoing BMW Royal Langkawi International Regatta 2005.
But the Royal Malaysian Navy boats Kapal Diraja Pelanduk (KDP) I and II are hoping for less wind for the final two days of the competition tomorrow and Saturday.
After Race 3 yesterday, KDP II and Thailand's Somtam Express are tied in first position in the overall standings of the sports boat category with five points each.
On Tuesday, KDP II won Race 1 but the Phuket-based Somtam hit back to win the nex race.
Kapal Diraja Pelanduk II (right) trails Somtam Express in Race 3 but was declared the winner on a corrected time of 2'30:56. Yesterday, Somtam crossed the finish line in 2'28:23, more than 26 minutes ahead of KDP II, which was timed at 2'55:18.
But still KDP II was declared the winner on a corrected time of 2'30:56. The faster Somtam had an adjusted time of 2'34:19.
There are still three more races to be completed in the final two days and the category's defending champion KDP I is also close behind the joint leaders with eight points in a three-boat tussle for the Langkawi Sports Class Trophy.
Last year, KDP I took advantage of light wind conditions to pip Somtam to the overall title on the final day of competition.
"Somtam is a fast yacht built for speed and revels in windy conditions," said Lt Chin In, the team manager for the Navy teams.
"Just as we did last year, the KDP boats can turn the tables on Somtam in calm waters. And we are hoping that the wind would slow down on Friday and Saturday.
"Both the KDP boats can also take heart from the fact that we have lower handicaps than Somtam. This means that if we do not cross the finish line first, we can still win the race on corrected time as long as we stay close enough to the Thai yacht."
In the Premier racing class, two-time champions YO! moved a step closer to winning the Prime Minister's Challenge Trophy for the third consecutive time by notching a third victory in as many races yesterday.
Although closest challengers SonnenKoenig and Ulumulu managed to stay close to YO! during the first half of the race, the defending champion pulled away in the latter part for another comfortable victory.
"The win (in Race 3) was not as easy as it looked because everybody on board worked very hard to pull away from the rest of the fleet," said Yo! owner and skipper Peter Ahern.
"After three straight wins, I am now about 50% sure that we will retain the title. Although my crew are working well together, we cannot take anything for granted as unforeseen circumstances, like fluke weather conditions, can throw a lifeline to our rivals."
Besides YO!, the other yachts which have registered a perfect three win in three races are La Samudra (Premier cruising category), Chameleon (multi-hull racing) and Remington (club boat).

Langkawi 03/03/2005