Day Three’s first race started with light air and flat seas. Great Britain’s Imarsat Hedgehog helmed by 2006 J/24 European Champion Ian Southworth and Chris McLaughlin took a strong early lead and held it to the finish, followed by Chris Snow on Bogus, and Argentina’s Tag Heuer in third place.
The big wind shifts of yesterday repeated themselves today as the wind clocked south just before the start of the second race. The Race Committee reset the course quickly, and the fleet had one of the best starts of the regatta so far, with only 3 boats over the line early. 18 knot winds forced the quickest boats on the first windward leg to change to small jib, but by the turn, the big sails were up again. In oscillating winds, Mauricio Santacruz on Bruschetta and Chris Snow battled for position, while Canadian John Polglase on Fragata sailed to a first place finish. Two-time Mexican National Champion Kenneth Porter on S finished the day in 13th place.
Off the water, Sponsor Village continues to be the post-race Happy Hour spot – top-notch local restaurants have been offering gourmet specialties and the cerveza has been very, very cold. Wednesday’s Fiesta on the Beach featured a traditional Mexican buffet – time to loosen your belts, sailors.
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