SAILING:THE END was marked with the hallmark of the week. A snakes-and-ladders conclusion to an unforgiving contest that ultimately saw German Tommy Mueller on Sinewave win the Brewin Dolphin Dragon Gold Cup by a single point.
And yet it could have been so different. Even Mueller didn’t know the outcome when he crossed the finishing line in first place, a clear race winner but was first place enough? Going into the sixth and final race, it was the race-one winner Lawrie Smith, with Tim Tavinor and Joost Houwling, who had it all to lose as he had worked back up the fleet following a day-two setback to take the lead once again going into the final day.
On the face of it, a 12-point lead in any regatta would appear comfortable. Not so fast cautioned the Gold Cup veterans, this ball could bounce any number of ways.
All Smith had to do was place in the top 11 at the finish and he would beat Russian Dimitry Samokhin. Mueller was in third place but with 20 points in the difference, surely the British skipper, a former Olympian and round the world race veteran could deliver the goods? But it was the German who led the 60-boat fleet from the outset of the two-hour long race and established a commanding lead that he couldn’t tell where the leader or the runner-up were in the throng of white sails astern.
It was clear, both were very deep. But how deep? Smith rounded the first mark in the mid-30s but appeared to have an edge in speed. On the second time round, he had pulled up to 23rd place and looked set to take out a few more boats on the downwind leg. Mueller could have his win if only Smith could hit 20th. But at the leeward mark-round, congestion obliged Smith to sail wide to stay moving and then tack for clear air to the left hand-side of the course – the less favoured side – and work back up the fleet.
He succeeded, at least in part but at the finish narrowly missed overtaking two other boats so he placed 22nd for the race while Samokhin was just ahead in 19th.
Mueller, with veteran Vincent Hoesch, who counted six Gold Cups in his career, and Michael Lipp were heading for Kinsale to lift-out, pleased with the race win but already preparing themselves for the news that another boat had won when an event RIB pulled alongside with the unofficial result and the celebrations kicked-off.
The Gold Cup puts even the masters through the mill with upwind legs of over two miles and minimum race duration of two hours. The no discard rule helps also.
As the week progressed, Irish crews displayed plenty of potential and early on the possibility of a top 10 or even a podium finish by the end. However, it was disappointment as none made it inside the top 10 with Martin Byrne on Jaguar with Adam Winkelmann and Pedro Andrade in 11th followed by Kinsale YC host commodore Cameron Good with Simon Furney and Henry Kingston winning the Corinthian trophy and 12th overall.
