Conditions were perfect for the two-day race, with fair winds and, on Sunday, bright sun, as the ninth annual Homer Yacht Club Land's End Regatta decorated the bay with billowing sails.

As a spectator sport, sail races are long on beauty and short on drama. But on board, the action is so keen there is barely time to eat the soggy tuna fish sandwiches. Extreme tides, fluctuating more than 22 feet (-4.2 to 18.2), added more challenge.

Light air, 10 to 12 knots, Saturday gave the smaller boats and spinnakers an advantage, while Sunday's brisker breeze, 15 to 18 knots, favored the heavier racers. Wind Dancer, a 30-foot Albin, had the best corrected time Saturday. Joy, a Newport 41-footer, won Sunday. Wind Dancer's times were 1 hour, 55 minutes, 39 seconds for the 10.92-mile course Saturday giving her an average speed of 5.66 knots. Joy's speed that day was 5.65 knots, with a corrected time of 1.55:52. Wind Dancer won that race by 13 seconds.

Then on Sunday, Joy bested Wind Dancer by 4 minutes, 34 seconds. Her official time was 1.17:54 with an average speed of 6.75 over the 8.7- mile course while Wind Dancer's corrected speed was 6.37 knots for a total time of 1.22:28.

"It was a very, very close race, especially Saturday," Yacht Club Commodore Craig Forrest said. "Only one minute 17 seconds separated the four top boats in corrected times that day."

Assisting skipper Bob Cole with strategy for Wind Dancer, guest mariner Ryan Storkman from North Sails of Seattle, was also right in the middle of the action, helping hoist and lower sails, and trimming them to maximize speed. His expertise transferred, as if by osmosis, to newcomer Colin Tolman, who said he had never set foot on a sailboat before Sunday's race.

Everybody on Wind Dancer agreed that Tolman should be named rookie of the year. The other crew, Glenna Holtby, also new to sailing, got her first experience Saturday and was already performing like an old hand during Sunday's race.

Forrest said the club has considered handicapping the boat that gets an assist from the visiting expert, but has decided against it so far. "Sometimes the visitor crew can work against you since he lacks local knowledge," he said

This is Joy's second regatta win, and skipper Mark Brinster credited his crew. "It's all in the teamwork," he said as he was presented the large silver chalice and bottle of champagne at the awards banquet that followed Sunday's race. Joy won the 2003 regatta as well.

Although the initial jockeying at the starting line was accident-free, the turn at the green can one mile from the start, did spawn several close encounters and a discussion of rules, but no setbacks, Forrest said.

Extreme tides — causing variable and fast currents —threw an additional factor into the calculations. On some points of sail, the current was estimated to be running four knots against the racers, depending on which area of the bay they were in.

The first day's course was to the can and back, then to Kayak Beach (Haystack) and back to the start and then out to a marker in front of Gull Island and back to the finish. On Sunday, race officials chose green can, Kayak Beach, green can — with returns to the start line marker on each leg — for the course. Four of the boats were first time competitors in the regatta.

Final overall standings were Joy, Wind Dancer, Arctica, Crusader, Sea Sound, Gwylan, Fjordfinder, Merry Maid, Lolamar, Fianna, Trinity, Osprey, Tichuk and Water Rat, who scratched.