Light winds forced an early finish in Saturday’s ISORA Coastal Race off the Welsh coast, with skippers agreeing to abandon the full course and adopt a shortened result.
The result is an early indicator of continuing form for current ISORA champion Pata Negra, who capitalised on the light-air conditions to secure the win.
Race organiser Peter Dunlop proposed finishing at the position of the leading boat due to fading breeze and the long leg to the next mark. “It looks unlikely the wind is going to fill in,” he said, suggesting a pragmatic end to proceedings.
A second proposal was then agreed by all competitors to take the YB tracker VMG leaderboard at 17:00 as the final result.
Positions at that time confirmed Pata Negra as race winner, ahead of Finally and Lightning. Crackajack placed fourth.
Some competitors had already indicated the difficulty of reaching the leader’s position in the dying conditions. “It’s unlikely Crackajack will make it,” one skipper noted prior to the decision.
The race, part of the ISORA Coastal Series, had started earlier in the day off Pwllheli on a course that included marks at St Tudwal’s Islands, Carreg y Trai and the Gwylan Islands.
All skippers subsequently confirmed agreement with the shortened result, bringing the race to a close shortly after 17:00.
