The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-08-10
FINISHES FIVE
MILES IN FRONT
OF DEFENDER
The Columbia Loses
Her Rival.
HAS LUCK IN HER FAVOR
Wins by Over Twenty-Five Minutes,
But Her Antagonist Encoun-
tered a Series Of
Gains.
HAS LUCK IN HER FAVOR
Special Dispatch to The calL

NEWPORT, r. l., Aug, 9.-The New
York Yacht Clubs cruise from Gard
liners Bay to this port to-day, a dis
lance Of forty-three miles, was full Of
interesting brushes, While the yachts
ran the last half Of the forty-three
miles in Il constantly increasing south
west breeze the first half of the day
was hulley.
1t is no disparagement TO the Column
bia TO say that her defeat Of the De-
fender of over twenty-five minutes was
due more 10 the bad Judgment and hard
luck of the latter boat, which left her
in a soft spot, than to actual superior
ity: still the new boat showed herself
very able in broad reach with q con-
sIautly increasing breeze, and it is not
too much to say that she made an aver
age Of fully thirteen knots in the run
along shore from Watch Hill TO Point
Judith. So rapidly dropping the De
fender that when she jibed around the
WhisUing buoy Of Point Judith her
rival was huh down 10 the westward,
over five miles astern. On the run up
from Point Judith, dead before the
wind, the Columbia gained a minute
or TWO more, 50 that at the finish the
OLD defender had received the worst
beating in her history.
There was never d moment during the
day when there was not wind enough
to fill the sails, While the last fifteen
miles We're sailed in a grand breeze
from the southeast that gave each boat
Z great move. The day itself was per
feet for the sky was cloudless and the
air was full of Vigor. A huge fleet of
steam yachts watched the sailing craft
start and accompanied them over the
most Of the course, and all Newport
saw the finish at BrentOns Reef light
ship, the cup defender OF 1898, the Nigi-
liant. leading the fleet over the line
after a warm contest with the schooner
ColOnia Of fifteen miles or more. At
the finish there was fifty-five seconds
between the boats, but as the Vigilant
started six minutes ahead the COlOni0
beat her easily on the run, although, Of
course. the boats sailed in different
classes.
The yachts started at 1890 in a fairly
strong westerly breeze, all breaking
out Spinnakers on crossing the line.
Then SIX or seven miles were quickly
sailed but a half hour after the start
the wind began to slacken and soon
some were almost becalmed. All dur
ing the soft spell Of two hours the
Columbia seemed to be especially IA
Vored, for she carried a breeze right
through and gained rapidly on the De-
fender. The latter, too, made mis-
take in getting too near the Fisher
Island shore, so that when the wind
did come around the Columbia caught
it half hour ahead. It was at this
time as the boats passed the entrance
to Fisher Island Sound, that the Column
bia made the great gain that gave her
such a lead From Watch Hill to Point
Judith she fairly flew over the water,
with her boom well off TO port and her
big balloon jib tOpsail drawing like a
q
on this reach along shore, and, looking
back every yacht seemed fairly buried
in canvas. The hOmestretch of seven
miles from Point Judith to Brentons
Reef lightship was made dead before
the wind on freshening breeze, and
the way the boats jumped along was a
caution.
The day was a grand one from Alb
o'clock on At that time the Defender
took in her spinnaker, the Columbia
soon following suit Away ahead, more
than five miles in the lead, were the
Vigilant and the ColOnia. The sloOp
and schooner were making the hottest
fight of their career for the honor of
finishing first For several miles they
sailed close together, beam to beam.
Both rounded the whistling buoy off
Point Judith at 1884 leading the fleet.
The Arctic came next at 3:43, the Co
lumbia sweeping grandly around the
buoy at 348:3 80 and the Navahoe at the
same time The Columbia could not
overhaul and pass the. Vigilant in the
seven minutes run to the finish. Even
the Colonia was unable to do it. The
latter yacht jibed to starboard off
Narragansett and dropped astern just
as they both passed the old cup de-
fender, Volunteer, which, with Hank
Half at the wheel had come out to
meet the fleet.
smartly the crew of the Vigilant took
in her spinnaker just before reaching
the lightship. Then they jibed her,
and like an arrow she shot across the
Colonia's bow. She crossed the finish
line just fifty-five seconds ahead of the
schooner and finished first of the fleet
The Columbia swept across the finish
line at 4:24:20, taking in her spinnakers
a few seconds before reaching it. She
was just twenty-One minutes and three
seconds ahead of the Defender. Ac-
cording to the official figures the Co.
Iumbia won by twenty-five minutes
and twenty-five seconds.