Organisers of this weekend's Coastal Classic yacht race are hoping yachties packed an extra sandwich or two, because they could be out there for a while. A light northerly headwind is set to make the annual race - from Westhaven Marina in Auckland to Russell in the Bay of Islands -slow-going. Kerikeri's Pete Woods, a veteran of 23 Coastal Classic races, changed his race plan to suit. "We're a `reaching running' boat, so a light headwind isn't going to suit us at all," he said. About 1000 sailors in 230 yachts were expected to compete in the 190 nautical-mile "Classic", which was first staged in 1982 when it attracted just a handful of boats. Mr Woods built Physical Favours, his own double-hulled Murray Ross 30, more than 3 1/2 years ago and it has been in the water for about five months. "But this is the first big test for it, it should go pretty well." The race began in Auckland at 10am yesterday. The race record is seven hours, 20 minutes, but that 1996 record won't have a shot of being broken this year. "We're thinking we'll be about 20 or 21 hours, but we're prepared to be out there for 30," Mr Woods said. His own personal record is 12.5 hours. But far from a leisurely sailing trip with mates, it would require all the concentration the crew could muster. "It won't be quite as easy as we would have hoped. We'll just need to work even harder." Mr Woods said the team would be sticking close to the headlands and making the most of the wind, which would be "on the nose". To keep the five-man Physical Favours team going, they're loading up on sandwiches, muesli, biscuits and coffee - lots of "easy stuff we don't have to spend ages cooking". The men don't have a roster for who stays up on board, it's "all hands on deck" until someone wanted to bunk down for a nap. And what does every good sailor want when he's back on dry land? A beer, of course. "They give you a six-pack of beer when you arrive, and that'll be gone in about 30 seconds. We'll have a pack on board, too, and that'll be gone in another 30 seconds," Mr Woods said.
