Kiasu Sailing Team

Around the Island Race (ATIR) is coming on Sunday.
This year again we will be on the water with 2 boats, Paddy B and Kiasu !
With a mix of seasoned sailors, trainees or first timers … both boats will do their best to show off their sailing skills and above all … enjoy the tour !
Both boats have had recently big renovation works … with a new standing rigging and new batch of “ North” sails for Kiasu and a wonderful internal refitting for Paddy B !
Many lines have been replaced and of course we have 2 brand new spinnakers, thanks to our 2 generous sponsors ! ( look at their name on our big spis once we turn Cape d’Aguilar and we switch to downwind ! )
The weather forecast looks perfect to allow a full round so … Let’s have fun this Sunday !

And now ... time to debrief from the team results after the Around the Island Race 2021 ! ...ta...da...
Sorry to focus only on 4 boats as it will take me hours to check every single sailor who sailed with us on different events ... but we love you all ❤️ and I know that some of u were on winning boats ...congrats !🏆

Best achiever in his class ... PADDY B (PB) ! 4th Impala to reach back Kellett Island after a bit more than 6h10mn ... PB is kind of the tramp of the Impala fleet using exclusively donated 2nd hand sails, keeping the maintenance at the necessary minimum ... the epitome of the Green attitude ! 😆 Even the engine sometimes stubbornly refuses to consume any gasoline ... pretending it cannot be started ... (actually, I am a bit unfair as it turned like a Swiss watch to bring us to the start zone ...not very far 😎 )
But the real magic of PB comes from her Captain ... Herman Wong who has more than one trick up his sleeves ! Adventurous option is his favorite one ... "We are not the fastest ...so we have to be the smartest ..." or the lucky ones sometimes ...😎😅😂.
I Yves Milot did my best as foredeck, mast man and "sh*t-fixer'... and was pretty busy with multiple repairs on the way related to the old age of everything on board ... (not mentioning the crew 😂😂). Melody Chan and Max did very well flying the spi for hours ! Sharly and Stephen, the newbies passed their exam according to Herman.

2nd best performer ... Arcturus ! 6th in their ATI division and if my source is reliable she achieved her complete Round for the 1st time ! 😁. Claire Becq our experienced Pit and eager to learn something new was part of the crew. Of course the bosses were there Florence, Dennis WT Chien, CY Fong Bao ,all 3 pretty busy, as many regulars were missing. They actually took over Paddy B in the harbour few minutes before Finish line. Well done guys !

It was not easy for Kiasu. Chris Li was at the helm ... for the longest time ever ... and Eric Yu was the only really experienced and usual crew on board, taking care of the bow ... Lawrence was "hired" at the last moment to bring some extra knowledge on board ... Actually they had fun ... and enjoyed the trip ... happy to safely recovering from some wild broaches I heard ... around Cape d'Aguilar and Stanley Peninsula ... Ivan Chan, Yuan did their best and at least came back with memories !
Kiasu made it in 5h40mn ...but unfortunately missed the Sandy Bay mark ... and was declared NSC ... (not sailed the course).

Fuzzy Duck was attempting to complete the Round ... once again !😆😅😂 She has been pampered to give her the best chances with race wash and new antifouling ...looking like new !
The crew is not made of the most agressive sailors in town, but they have all long hours sailing in HK waters and perfectly capable to make it with, I am sure, some family on board to enjoy a perfect Sunday ! The wind was good for them this year and passing Lei Yue Mun was just a formality ...
Unfortunately for only few minutes they missed the last cut-off time ... and missed their target to be ranked in the "Official Results board"... Whatever ... close try ! Every year is better than the previous ... so next year it will be it ! Johnnie Cheng, Eddie Chan !

Well done all and see you soon on the water ... Lipton Trophy is in 3 days ... We are so lucky in HK to enjoy a non-stop sailing year with races almost every WE !

Hey dear followers !
For one of the major events of the season …Around the Island race … the Team will participate this edition on many different boats … including Kiasu of course … but also Paddy B (Impala), Arcturus (Sunfast 3600) … Fuzzy Duck where some founder members will be enjoying the tour as every year and a lot of other boats it’s impossible to list here … as we have so many friends/sailors sailing with us all along the year ….

Herman will helm on Paddy B all around, Chris and Howard will skip Kiasu.
As of today the wind is planned to be light which may play on the nerves of the skippers when reaching the traditional “stop over” in Lei Yue Mun and Cyberport … not mentioning Green Island… if we are able to get that far … 😅…

Impalas are usually quite good in ATIR … as pretty adaptable boats … starting early … according to their rating … which allows a competition between boats of all sizes from light cata, or Waszp (single handed foiling dinghy)…. to TP52 or more …

Kiasu did also very good many times in that race … she will have on board a mix of new comers and a strong team of experienced guys … and sure , they will be committed to deliver a good result again !

Good luck to Arcturus whose top sailors usually race also on Taxi (Impala) and have an amazing track record on ATIR ! Quite serious contenders in their class !

For some of the 200 participating boats … it’s a “family style” trip … but for many it’s a true race where focus and performance are expected !

See below how some of our team members are training to have an enjoyable next WE … 😎🤩

Hello everybody !
We’ve been silent quite a long time as sailing has been pretty much hectic since March 2020 … with few batches of CoVid 19 restrictions …
Since … things are almost back to normal … at least on the water … we are all still craving for the traditional gatherings after race …

Anyway Kiasu has been “operating” in most “big” and popular races … with ups and downs … but always with a lot of enthusiasm !

A lot of new comers on board, experienced or newbies, eager to learn more from the core crew members and Captain or sharpen their skills through competitive racing.

Kiasu is part of Saturday Series and Typhoon series organised by Heben Haven YC, with 2 teams and 2 skippers !
Let see how they perform and progress throughout summer !

Few members participate as well to Sunset series on Friday evening … sailing Paddy B (Impala). These races are always a mystery game with unpredictable conditions … from strong gusty wind … to disconnected few patches of light breeze … that make you in … or out ! 😅

More to come !

After some frustration during China Coast Regatta, with a bit of good things and too much of less good 😅, the Kiasu Team is back for ATIR ... the famous Around the Island race !

As all registered boat teams ( ard 250 !) we have been anxiously following the weather forecast 20 times a day 😂 ( more than US Presidential Election 🤣😂) for the last few days as a typhoon/tropical storm was threatening the event ! Quite unusual in November ... probably a gift from Global warming ...🤔

Finally the seasonal strong stream from NorthEast accelerated in the Taiwan strait (classic Venturi effect) and cooler coastal water put an end to the menace like a blown out candle ! 😎

Tomorrow Kiasu and a very motivated crew will try to round Hong Kong Island at her best ... Wind is planned to be around 10knots which should allow a full round ... starting and finishing around the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club close from Kellett Island !

Wonderful drone-shot from Panda Man !

As many of our competitors and friends, we were eagerly waiting for getting back to race during Summer after the first episodes of CoVid-19.
Engaged on Typhoon Series, helmed by Herman or Saturday's series helmed by Howard, Kiasu has proved to be sometimes successful 🤩, sometimes less😭 ...but always determined and happy to be on the water !😁
Of course a regular attendance to the Sunset series on Friday evening has also brought a lot of fun and crazy action to the very girly team, showing their skills with quite good performances !

Many new crews have showed up on our deck, as it is a constant direction from our boat captain to bring newcomers on board !

Now back to CoVid-19 prevention measures, the team understands and supports the fight against this damned virus.

Such a illness generating so many waves of a kind we never imagined ...
Waves were mostly for us memories of some exciting moments on Kiasu, enjoying the surf downwind pulled by our legendary Philippines Spinnaker ! 😂😎

Kiasu Sailing Team, 2nd of the Turkish Airlines Around the Island Race 2018 !

After 2015, 2017, ... Kiasu achieves the Hat Trick and do it for the 3rd time ... !
Great result for the crew, and fantastic day on the water for the more than 200 boats competing on that day.

Rounding in 4h20 mn ... Starting under grey sky and finishing under bright sunshine ... race conditions were just awesome !

Crowded Prize giving yesterday on Royal Yacht Club ... where sailors could “re-play” their race ... and share the best of memories !

Tomorrow... one of the most famous race in HKG ...
Around The Island Race ! (ATIR)... Kiasu is going ... with a well trained and “hungry” crew !

Some of the best shots taken by pro photographers during China Coast Regatta 2018 ...