New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-06-27
Has Three-Minute Margin
on the Vanitie in a
30N-Mile Race.
DEFIANCE BEATEN
BY TEN MINUTES
Seawanhaka Corinthian Regatta
Sailed Under Fluky Wind
Conditions on Sound.
BY L. DE B. HANDLEY.

day at Oyster Bay IN the regatta OF
the Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht
Club, and the Resolute added to her
long string of victories by sailing a
/ 302 mile triangular course in hours
/ 6 minutes AZ seconds, defeating the
/ Nanitie by minutes seconds, and
the Defiance by 10 minutes 10 seconds
actual time.
Owing TO changes said to have been
made in the Vanitie the committee re-
fused to give out corrected times, but
stated that they would not alter the
| results.
Light weather prevailed when the
! feet assembled off Lloyd's Neck and II
/ looked for awhile as if the race would
/ develop into a drifting match, bat
later a fresh southern breeze sprang
up and there were most interesting
| developments.
The course was from the Flat Rock
buoy, in Oyster Bay, to a spar of
/ Greenwich, then around the Cows buoy
TO a mark of Long Neck and back "a
the starting point. 1t had TO be SAILED
twice around.
With fitful airs floating in from the
( southeast the contesting yachts had Il
run to the first mark, reach to the
second and beat home.
The Vanitie was over first when the
signal for her class sounded, and the
Resolute followed, with the Defiance
under her lee and well blanketed.
That first leg was not race but a
hunt for wind. Captain Half, of the
Nanitie, saw some rumpled water far
above his course and promptly went
? uff ha in nj
wake. Captain Pynchon Of the Defiance
I elected instead to point straight for the
mark, and thereby found himself corn
pletely becalmed. As result the tw9
others sailed in a circle, covered seq
eral miles more than necessary and yet
reached the turn long before the Deli-
ance.
The wind chasing yachts kept well
together, and il was quite noticeable
that whenever there was maneuvring
TO be done the crew of the Resolutc
worked faster and more to the pur-
/ pose, while her skipper took advantage
of every opening and outwitted Cap
/ tain Half.
Thus, when they rounded the mark
the Herreshofi sloop had not only
bridged the Vanitie's lead but had Sc
cured first position by over one min
/ ute.
The usual thing happened after that
the Resolute increased her lead SEN
sibly, and though the others picked up
at intervals she won rather easily.
In reviewing the race, however, the
/ first round should be overlooked alto
/ gether, for the wind was so streaky as
to make absolutely impossible any
comparison. Throughout the second
round, instead, the breeze was fresh,
| steady and we'll distributed, so that the
yachts had an even, fair test.
/ In reviewing this 151z -mile round II
will be found that the Vanitie gained
/ minute 10 seconds on the Resolutei
while the Defiance lost only three sec
onds. Reckoning allowances, there
fore, the Defiance actually defeated
both her rivals, while the Vanitie out
sailed the Resolute. A rather differ
/ ent aspect is placed on the latter's
/ victory thereby, for while she out
drifted her opponents in light, fuky
airs she showed poorly in a steady
/ breeze that probably blew from eight
/ to ten miles an hour.
/ On the whole, it was the Defance's
/ day. She did better than expected in
/ reaching and furnished a decided sur
/ prise by gaining on the two others in
/ both windward legs. In ten and one
half miles she picked up 2 minutes 80
seconds on the Resolute and 3 minutes
/ 3 seconds on the Vanitie.
The stock of the tri-city yacht took
| a sudden leap yesterday, and many
who have in the past been frankly
skeptical of her ability to figure in
/ the trials now are willing to concede
/ that she may prove an important fac
/ tor.
Captain Howell has won most favor.
/ able comment from all on his work as
1 skipper, and when he has had time to
/ become thoroughly familiar with his
craft and to whip his crew into a
| smooth running piece of machinery
I such as the Resolute's crew is already
| he is certain to do better. Thus far the
I Defiance has been Overwhelmingly
handicapped by accidents and the fire.
auent changes necessary to put her in
/ racing trim. Even now she is not tuned
/ up to the highest pitch.
4 The thought will not down, however
f that il is a mistake for Owens, the de-
4 signer, not to give his worthy creation
/ the amount of light canvas she needs
( to compete with her rivals in reaching
and running, boat for boat.
Without pretending to expert knowl-
/ edge, it would seem as if much could
( be g4ined by this change. 1t is esti-
mated that the increased sail area
would deduct only two or three min
utes from the Defianee's present al
( lowance over a thirty-mile course, if
! she used all the available space in
her forward triangle, and the benefit to
/ be derived would more than compen-
safe for the small difference in handi-
! cap.
Particularly in triangular racing
when two-thirds of the distance is
usually covered carrying kites, the ad-
/ vantage gained would be material.
To the general public the winning
4 streak of the Resolute has undoubted-
" given the impression that she is
by far the best boat of the three, and
n must be admitted that-thanks to
Charles Francis Adams, EDS, splendid
handling, and 10 a remarkably clever
/ we'll trained crew-she has shown SUI
periority.
stances, had demonstrated eonelusively
that she is the equal OF the Herreshoh
Yacht. at least under certain condi-
tons, and when properly sailed. Now
that the Defiance begins to loom uT
as a dangerous foe to both, there is
/ nromise of far more interesting racing
than has been seen heretofore, and OF
n splendid fight in the trials which
will eventually decide which boat is
TO have the honor of meeting Sin
4 Thomas Lipton's Shamrock ~ in the
contests off Sandy Hook next Septem'
Der for the worlds championship.
Twenty-six Yachts in
DIocE leland Dacn