SAILMAKER Philip Watson blazed a trail through the 21-boat Class Three CHS fleet in his Bolero Pathfinder for his second win yesterday. It was the second outing of the Nissan Autumn League at Howth that has so far seen some of the closest racing of the 1996 season.
Watson, pushed to the back of the pack in an aborted start of the 39-boat class, later flew a protest Hag and made a temporary repair to his hull. However none of this appeared to affect the performance of the tall rig Bolero which now leads Class Three CHS by 2.5 points from I Switzer's Gung-Ho.
Mark Mansfield has established a 3.5 point lead in the Sportsboat division and yesterday, sailing the 1720 Union Chandlery, he outwitted a strong Dublin challenge, coming from third at the first weather mark off Ireland's Eye to win despite a new challenge from Ruffian champion Barry O'Neill in Pinball Wizard.
O'Neill showed impressive speed, both upwind and downwind, in the 10-knot conditions to pass second overall and local favourite Lemon, sailed by Robert Dix. Dix now has five cumulative points and his third place yesterday keeps him well clear of Sinkin Whiskey, helmed by Anthony O'Leary, who has nine points with four races left to sail.
Mustang Sally (Max McMullen) was an impressive winner in Class Zero CHS and her win over Surfin Shoes gives her second overall to Roy Dickson's Cracklin' Rosie who had to be content with a fifth place in the 11-boat fleet after her win in the opening race of the series on September 15th.
In Swords, Royal St George junior Gerard Owens claimed the ISA Junior Helmsmans Championship by 11 points at Broadmeadow yesterday, beating the defending champion and IYRU youth bronze medallist, Laura Dillon, in the process.
Owens (17), who only qualified as a runner-up from the Mirror Class and who sailed with torn ligaments in his right foot, took seven wins and three second places in the 12-race series that was raced in strong breezes on Saturday.
By lunch yesterday, with moderate eight to 10-knot conditions, Owens had established a comfortable margin over the Laser Class representative Jerome Devitt, who finished second overall with 22.25 points. The event was sailed in both ISA-supplied Laser 4.75 and 420 dinghies. Europe Class representative Daragh Peelo was fourth on 25.75 points, with defending champion Laura Dillon fifth.
Local helmsman Neil Spain finished third in the fleet of 12 invited helmsmen and women but there was no place allocated for the Mirror European Youth champion, Ross Killian, of Dun Laoghaire, who was available to sail and was within the ISA ace limit.
