The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-05-22
RELIANCE WINS IN FIRST RACE
DEFEATS COLUMBIA BY IL MN
JTES ~ SECONDS.


~ Seconds Faster Than Cslun,bia's
--Race MARRIED BY Light, F1uky Winds
on the First Leg -Reachl Ing In Q Fair
Breeze Acrsss the Sound the Reliance
an Hour Reliance Gains On Each Leg
The Reliance won her first race yesterday.
defeating the Columbia. twice the defender
Of the Americas Cup, by IA minutes ~ sec
onds As a test of the abilities OF the two
yachts the contest was rather an unsatis-
factory one, being married In the first part
by lack of wind and then by auky, paltry
streaks that favored first one yacht and
then the other. 1t was hard to determine
which boat was most favored. The ReE-
ance rather surprised many by showing
her ability as a drifter. She crossed the
line In the lead and gradually opened out
a space Of water and. aided by first
one favoring puff and then another. had a
half mile lead when five miles of the course
had been sailed. This put her off Oyster
Bay. and nice little breezs was drawing
out OF that harbor. which she got first. the
Columbia then being absolutely becalmed.
The Reliance soon increased her lead
to a mile, and she carried this breeze on
until she got better one drawing out OF
Huntington harbor. This was shortly be-
fore 5 o'clock. and 1t steadily increased
in strength until it was blowing about nine
miles an no ur, ana in this breeze the yachts
were able to finish the race.
The first leg Of the course was a broad
reach Of eleven miles. II took the Reliance
2 hours So minutes 10 seconds actual time
to get to the turning mark On this leg
she beat the Columbia by minutes 70 Sec
onds
The second leg of the course was a reach.
with the wind aft the port beam. For
this leg the yachts had steady breeze Of
about eight-miles strength. The Reliance
was at least two miles ahead of the Column
bia, figuring on the speed she was travelling,
and the time that elapsed between tho two
boats at the marks, and on this leg. which
was three miles, the Reliance gained min
ute 80 seconds.
The boats were 80 far apart that 1t was
impo ssibIe to tell whether one was favored
more than another by the wind. The
Rel lance carried a reaching jib topsail,
lib and forestaysail and she went through
the water very fast. Her time from mark
lis at the rate OF 1871 knots an hour. The
yacht seemed to have found weather con-
ditions that just suited her, steady breeze
and perfectly smooth sea, and she went about
her business in an easy way that was very
impressive, She was heeled 40 that her
lee rail was just down TO the waters edge.
The Columbia started on this leg OF the
course without her jib set. She went
more than half way to the second mark
without settlng 1t and then had 1t hauled
to windward for some time.
The third leg Of the course wa close
reach. The yachts had to make a short
hitch Of two minutes duration to fetch
the finishing line This leg was eleven
miles in length and the Reliance gained
4 minutes % seconds more, On this leg
the Columbia seemed to point higher than
the new boat. but she may have been
favored by a slant. The Reliance sailed
the eleven miles in hour Z minutes "a
seconds The Columbia had slight mis-
hap on this leg of the course The tack
of the baby jib topsail parted and the sail
slid up the stay and was Tapping about
at the mast head for some minutes 1t
was finally hauled down and then reset.
Toward the end Of the race the winu mod
Grated, ana after the Reliance had crossed
the finishing line it headed the Columbia
ana she had to make longer hitch than
the Reliance.
The race showed that the Reliance can
drift we'll. She will keep going in the
lightest weather, and the when it freshens
and she heels over on her side she easily
sea is smooth. Just what the Constitution
would have done yesterday cannot be esti-
mated In q race on Newport two years
ago, when the wind was very light, the
Constitution defeated the Columbia by 20
minutes.
There was quite lively procession Of
steam yachts, excursion steamers and tugs
through the Fast River and down the Sound
y, stertlay morning. They began to start
from the city at clock, and by - o'clock.
there was large feet gathered Oh Matini-
Among the vessels noticed were Com
modore Frederick g. Bourne's Delaware.
Adrian Iseln, Jr.'s Surf, August Belmont.s
Maxwells Celt. H. T. sloane's Idler, H; W.
Putnam, Jr. g. Ariadne, j. ". Alker's Flor
ence, n. G. Herreshof's Roamer, Charles
Srnithers' Muriel, F. NJ. Hoyt's Isolde r. A.
Smiths Prysteer sened hH s onsids
Amoreuse. Park City. the tender Of the
columbia; Sunbeam, the tender OF the
Reliance: Satellite. the tender Of the Con-
Nylked, Heys, .Intrepid, Vanish,
Duchess, schooner Emerald,
,wned by ". E. Iselin; steamer Mayita,
Il ga, Coranto, Natoya, Wanderer and
.ayrock.
The members OF the regatta committee,
5. Nicholson Kane, Newberry d. LAYTON
md Edward Fl. Wales, we're on board R. A.C.
Smiths Privateer, and other gu-e.s on this
yacht were: Comptroller Grout, Philip
Col. Hester, Commander j. y.
Jerrold Kelley U. s. N; Irving Cox, j.
Frederic Tams. George Cormack. The
members OF the club and their guests we're
IN board the steamer Sirius and the steamer
was we'll crowded. There were other ex-
,ursion steamers and several tugs with
mail parties on board.
When the early arrivals reached the
vicinity Of Sands Point the Reliance could
Ne seen at her moorngs of New Rochelle.
Her big mainsail had been hoisted and
lbove 1t lowered huge club topsail. just
he sort OF sail TO catch the light airs that
loaf aloft. 1t was a well-ftting piece or
'anvas. too. with a little too much fulness
N the leach, hut otherwise well made,
The mainsail was the one used by the
'acht in her last trial off Newport and it
lifted well. 1t was stretched out to the
nd of the boom and gar and had few
wrinkles along, boom and leach. On the
ther side Of the Sound was the Columbia
n Glen Cove. She, too, had mainsail
nd club topsail set and was ready to go
ut and start. The old boat looked well
Ter mainsail fitted az well AZ that of the