By Ian Grant at Airlie Beach.
Skippers and crews contesting the final race of the 2011 Meridien Marinas Airlie Beach Race Week were forced to drift about waiting for wind in the warm and windless Whitsunday Islands earlier today.
They waited patiently on a calm Pioneer Bay before a soft easterly wind filled in.
As expected the power sailing New Zealand maxi trimaran Team Vodafone again dominated after spending time in the aquatic parking lot between the Bluff Point and the Grimston Point rounding marks.
Thankfully a pleasant 10-12 knot breeze blew across the bay from the direction of Hayman Island allowing the record breaking Team Vodafone to record another runaway line honours win.
Team Vodafone skipper Simon Hull simply described the weather as being a lottery for the sailors but a perfect day for tourists- plenty of sunshine and a breeze hardly strong enough to ruffle the sea surface.
However the light and unstable wind failed to prevent the Team Vodafone crew from recording their sixth line honours win from six races.
They sailed fast but not fast enough to beat the smaller Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron trimaran Trilogy which was consistently sailed by skipper Keith Glover and his principal crew mates Ben Kelly and Julian Bethwaite to win the series on corrected handicap.
In other classes the former French Kiss Americas Cup sailor Pierre Gal steered his Coffs Harbour Yacht Club sports boat Kiss to a comfortable overall win while Peter Sorensen steered his Middle Harbour Yacht Club sloop The Philosophers Club to an impressive win in the Grand Prix IRC class championship.
Skipper Peter Sorensen hopes to retain this form when he lines up to contest the Audi Hamilton Island Race Week starting with the Lindeman Island race on Saturday.