#Qkeywest – Ireland's Peter O'Leary on board the Ker 40 Catapult still has it all to play for in the final day of Key West regatta today. In IRC 3, an extremely competitive 10-boat class with a diverse group of designs, is still very much up for grabs. Arethusa, a Swan 42 skippered by Phil Lotz, maintained the lead for a second straight day by placing second in the last two races on Thursday. Catapult, owned by Marc Glimcher of New York, is seven points behind in second. Tonnere de Breskens 3, a Ker 46 campaigned by Peter Vroon of The Netherlands, is just one point behind Catapult.
Key West 2014 got off to an atypically slow start due to difficult conditions the first couple days, but reliably strong winds off the Conch Republic certainly delivered on Wednesday and Thursday. Organizers with Premiere Racing have crammed six races into the last two days and just like that all three divisions are on the threshold of reaching the regatta goal of 10 for the week.
Northerly winds ranging from 12 to 16 knots allowed for another three-race day on all courses.
Hap Fauth's Bella Mente has pretty much secured overall victory in IRC 1 class on Thursday. The Minneapolis resident has steered his Judel-Vrolijk to first place in five of nine races in totaling 15 points, three better than runner-up Caol Ila R, a 69-footer owned by Alex Schaerer. With only one race scheduled on Division 1 for Friday, Bella Mente needs only to complete the course in order to win the regatta.
Spookie, the Carkeek 40 skippered by North Sails pro Steve Benjamin, has clinched victory in the High Performance Class. Heidi Benjamin is calling tactics for her husband, who has won five races and placed second or third in the other four in totaling 15 points.
IRC 3, an extremely competitive 10-boat class with a diverse group of designs, is still up for grabs. Arethusa, a Swan 42 skippered by Phil Lotz, maintained the lead for a second straight day by placing second in the last two races on Thursday. Catapult, a Ker 40 owned by Marc Glimcher of New York, is seven points behind in second. Tonnere de Breskens 3, a Ker 46 campaigned by Peter Vroon of The Netherlands, is just one point behind Catapult.
Dave Brennan, principal race officer on Division 2, is hoping to complete two races on Friday. That may not be possible with afternoon winds expected to exceed 20 knots, which might be too much for the J/70s and Melges 24s on the course.
Standings after Four Days - Top Three in Class
Mini Maxi Class (IRC 1) (IRC - 3 Boats)
1. Bella Mente, Hap Fauth , USA, 15
2. Caol Ila R, Alex Schaerer , USA, 18
3. Shockwave, George Sakellaris , USA, 24
52 Class (IRC 2) (IRC - 6 Boats)
1. Quantum Racing, Doug DeVos , USA, 20
2. Ran, Niklas Zennstrom , UK, 23
3. AZZURRA, Pablo A. Roemmers , ARG, 29.5
52 Class (Super Series) (One Design - 6 Boats)
1. Quantum Racing (SS), Doug DeVos , USA, 20
2. Ran (SS), Niklas Zennstrom , UK, 24
3. AZZURRA (SS), Pablo A. Roemmers , ARG, 28
High Performance Class (HPR - 4 Boats)
1. SPOOKIE, Steve & Heidi Benjamin , USA, 15
2. Riot, Marc Ewing , USA, 21
3. Decision, Stephen Murray , USA, 23
IRC 3 (IRC - 10 Boats)
1. Arethusa, Phil Lotz , USA, 26
2. Catapult, Marc Glimcher , USA, 33
3. Tonnerre de Breskens 3, Peter Vroon , NED, 34
Melges 32 (One Design - 7 Boats)
1. Delta, Dalton DeVos , USA, 13
2. Hedgehog, Alec Cutler , BER, 14
3. Helly Hansen Inga from Sweden, Richard Goransson , SWE, 27
Melges 24 (One Design - 6 Boats)
1. Little Wing, Nicola Ardito , ITA, 7
2. Tramp, Thomas Ritter , USA, 18
3. Zingara, Richard Reid , CAN, 25
J 70 (One Design - 60 Boats)
1. Helly Hansen, Tim Healy , USA, 15
2. Savasana, Brian Keane , USA, 42
3. Boats.com, Ian Atkins , GBR, 46
PHRF 1 (PHRF_ToT - 8 Boats)
1. Spaceman Spiff, Rob and Ryan Ruhlman , USA, 28.5
2. Fireball, Team Fireball , USA, 30
3. Teamwork, Robin Team , USA, 31
PHRF 2 (PHRF_ToT - 7 Boats)
1. Rush, Bill Sweetser , USA, 15
2. Heat Wave, Gary Weisberg , USA, 28
3. Rhumb Punch, John and Linda Edwards , USA, 29
J 80 (One Design - 12 Boats)
1. Vayu2, Ron Buzil , USA, 12
2. Rumor, John Storck, Jr , USA, 35
3. Blue Jay, Bob & Cheryl Hayward , USA, 40
