21-11-2004 (Sunday)
Most yachts opted for a very conservative start to Race 1 on this year's RMIR. The three big racing class yachts of Neil Pryde's HI-FIDELITY, Nick Burns/Warwick Downes MANDRAKE and Troy Yaw's ULUMULU were quick to hit their straps off the starting grid and settled in to the fine reaching conditions, checking each others pace, until well after sunset when all havoc usually breaks out.

For anybody still out on the water approaching the islands around 3:00 - 4:00am a big thunderstorm struck leaving a huge area completely windless and shrouded in mist until a light sea breeze started to fill in around noon or about seven hours latter. All the big Premier Cruisers and the leaders in the Cruising Classes managed to sail through it all and finish but those further back endured hours of drifting in the current before deciding to call it a day and gracefully retiring.

23-11-2004 (Tuesday)
Spinnakers up and drawing in 8 to 10 knots of South Westerly breeze with beautiful Pangkor Island in the background made a picturesque sight at the start of Leg 2. After surviving the Leg 1 presentation night and sharing one of Malaysia's badminton greats Tan Yee Khan's wonderful hospitality at his Seaview Resort the yachties bid farewell and headed off to the start line.

To everyone's surprise a good following breeze was there to greet them. Some of the cruisers had to brush the cobwebs of the spinnakers whilst the racers made quick work of sailing through the fleet after starting last on the grid.

The battle of the heavyweights in the Classic Classes where rally rules apply and motoring hours are taken into consideration sees Paul Hopkins CHINOOK OF HAMBLE taking the honours in Class 4 from Alan Main's Backchat and Klaus Karthe's GREENSLEEVES in third place. Class 5 sees Lt. Mohd Hamdan and the boys from the Royal Malaysian Navy getting the better of Dato' Richard Curtis's merry crew on the 100 year old EVELINE.

25-11-2004 (Thursday)
With the 4 leading yachts in the racing class being tied on 10 points they all headed out early in search of the elusive extra knot of boatspeed crucial for victory in this leg 3 decider. The passage races carry double points so a podium position is essential to stay in the running.

In Cruising Class 3a Glenn McFarlane's SIMBA added a third win to his tally and Gunnar Berg Leknes CHANT DE LUNE reversed the places with Alex Nah's EL SEA this time to share 2nd spot overall. Andrew Findlay's PELANGI added another win to his score and take a handsome lead in Cruising Class 3b plus the combined overall Cruising Class stakes. Fatimi Afendi's JANJI surprised Keith Brown's MIXXIA this time round to begin closing the gap on the leaders.

Classic Class 4 sees Paul Hopkins CHINOOK OF HAMBLE taking the honours yet again from Klaus Karthe's GREENSLEEVES and Christian Rannou MEMESTRA back in third place this time. Class 5 sees Lt. Mohd Hamdan's MUSYTARI getting the better of Zainal Misran and his fellow sailors from the Royal Malaysian Navy on MARIKH with Dato' Richard Curtis's 100 year old EVELINE trailing in 3rd spot.

26-11-2004 (Friday)
Neil Pryde's HI-FIDELITY scored 2 wins today to lift them to the top of the leaderboard and rest one hand on the Racing Class trophy. MANDRAKE skippered by Warwick Downes finished up with 2 second places and Troy Yaw's ULUMULU with 2 third places and unless there is any dramatic changes in the last 2 races they will finish up in that order.

Although Langkawi has long been a favourite holiday destination this year we have the pleasure of Liz George and a CNN film crew that will be featuring the RMIR on her popular sailing show MAINSAIL. Also Bryan Willis the Jury Chairman and Chief Umpire for the America's Cup has taken up part time residency in Langkawi where he finds time to produce interpretations of the racing rules in book form and CD.

27-11-2004 (Saturday)
Having enough wind to complete the entire racing program for the first time since 2001 keeps the sailors very happy and can be considered as a measure of success. Originally designed as a cruising event it is a pity that more visiting yachts have not included the regatta into their itinerary as the hectic social program and the camaraderie created between competitors makes it a good introduction to Asian waters. Racing wise the combination of overnight passage races and inshore races is not everyone's cup of tea but those interested in improving their navigation and seamanship skills will find the event very challenging indeed.

The curtain comes down on another successful RMIR.

Abstracts from www.asianyacthing.com