Author: jollysailor

With a trick NNW wind Karen set a devilish course for the young sailors!  Glad that I was not sailing it as I would have never found my way round.

There were seven out tonight and at the end of the first lap Lucy/4.7 led from Molly in an Oppie with Jazmine in a Topper in 3^rd place. She was followed by Oliver, Alex and Rohan all in Oppies.

On the second lap the only change in position was Jazmine overtaking Molly for 2^nd place. Oliver, Alex and Rohan all received the finish hooter at the end of this lap.

At the end of the third lap Lucy was still leading with Jazmine in 2^nd place and Phoebe in 3^rd after overtaking Molly. Everyone but Lucy was finished at the end of three laps and she completed four laps.

On corrected time the final order is – 1^st Molly/Oppie; 2^nd Lucy/4.7; 3^rd Jazmine/Topper; 4^th Oliver/Oppie; 5^th Alex/Oppie; 6^th Phoebe/Topper; 7^th Rohan/Oppie.

Well raced all of you and thanks as ever to Karen and Martin L and  Richard S.

Tonight was lovely and sunny with a 5-7 mph NNW wind. SOOD Ron set the first mark as 6, then 9, 5, C (just behind the line) and back through the start.

The fist beat was quite tricky because to approach the mark on starboard tack you had to be careful not to go too far into the lee of the trees. There were 15 starters (but only 12 signed the Declaration Sheet – come on guys, you run the risk of not being included in the runners and riders!).

Jess/Laser was fist back across the line followed closely by Chris H/Comet , Rhys/Laser, Newton & Sam/RS200 and Emily/Radial. These first six were pretty close together crossing at about 10 second intervals. About one minute later MikeT/Comet crossed in 7^th place and 40 seconds behind him came another close group consisting of Alessandro & Matt/470, Mark/Laser, Aileen/Comet and Mike A/Lightning. Then there was a gap before Paul H and Rick in Lasers and Sally/Comet came through, slightly ahead of Cecilia in her Laser (nice to see you racing again Cecilia).  

Lap 2

At the end of this lap Jess was still leading, but Newton & Sam had moved up to 2^nd place by overtaking Chris and Karen was up to 4^th passing Rhys. Emily maintained her 6^th place but had slipped back from the leading five and was now in a battle with Mike T. Mark had passed Alessandro & Matt to move up to 8^th and behind them Aileen was sailing serenely along in her own patch of water. Paul H also gained a place by passing Mike A. Rick also passed Mike A, but then gave the place back to him when he became too closely acquainted with No 9! Sally and Cecilia received the hooter at the end of this lap.

Lap 3

No change in position for the first five finishers, but Mike T had passed Emily to cross in 6^th place and there were no other changes.

The order on the water was – 1^st Jess; 2^nd Newton & Sam; 3^rd Chris H; 4^th Karen; 5^th Rhys; 6^th Mike T

On corrected time this changes to – 1^st Chris/Comet; 2^nd Mike T/Comet; 3^rd Jess/Laser; 4^th Newton & Sam/RS200; 5^th Emily/Radial; 6^th Karen/Laser.

Thanks to SOOD Ron and the race team of Andrew Steele, Anthony & Puja Sharma McLachlan and Steve & Terry Hutton.

Apologies to the unidentified young man from last week, who was sailing a Pico. Welcome to the racing fleet Steve Chege and don’t forget to sign in.

Another sunny morning with a light WSW wind around 5 mph. SOOD Richard S set the first beat to 4, then C, 9, 5, 6, 7 and back through the start.

Pursuit Race

There were 22 starters including Adrian B in his classic Avon Scow and Chris K had somewhat surprisingly opted for a Radial and Mike T & Alessandro were out in Mike’s Enterprise.

There was little change from the fist lap positions to the 35 minute gun and the final order was – 1^st Newton/Solo; 2^nd Chris H/Comet; 3^rd Karen/Laser; 4^th Chris K/Radial; 5^th Darren/Laser; 6^th Mike T & Alessandro/Enterprise

Handicap Race

Richard shortened the course for the second race so it became a four lap race of about 10 minutes per lap (to start with!).

Newton was first back across the line with Karen and Darren not far behind and crossing together. Chris H was ominously close in 4^th place and about a minute ahead of Mike T & Alessandro and they were 40 seconds ahead of Chris K and Ron/Mirror in battling for 7^th place.  The Lasers of Rick and Nigel were next across the line with Sally/Comet and Alistair/Laser about one minute further back and they were followed by Adrian in his Avon Scow.

Lap 2

No change in the first six places, but Rick and Nigel had passed Ron to move up to 7^th and 8^th and Alistair had got past Sally. Adrian had decided to go off piste and enjoy the sun.

Lap 3

The only changes on this lap were Nigel moving up two places to 6^th and Ron repassing Rick. Alistair and Sally received the hooter at the end of the lap.

Last Lap

With the wind dropping, this last lap took nearly twice as long as any of the previous laps, but Newton eventually crossed the line in 1^st place ahead of Karen in 2^nd  with Darren just pipped on the line by Chris H for 3^rd place.

The final order on the water was – 1^st Newton; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Chris H; 4^th Darren; 5^th Mike T & Alessandro; 6^th Chris K; 7^th Ron; 8^th Nigel; 9^th Rick.

On corrected time this becomes – 1^st Chris H/Comet; 2^nd Newton/Solo; 3^rd Karen/Laser; 4^th Darren/Laser; 5^th Sally/Comet (one lap down); 6^th Ron/Mirror

Thanks to SOOD Richard Stanley and the race team of Andrew Steele, David Knight, Gareth Evans, Hadey Lines (again), Jamie Harris and Jason Beeldere.

With a shifty WNW wind Mike A set the first beat to B (between 5 and 6), 5, C (down towards 1), 4, 8, A (just behind the line).

At the start there was a gaggle of boats jostling for position at the starboard end of the line and a few were over the line and had to restart.

Lap 1

There were 22 starters and at the end of the lap, Ed/Aero and Ralph/Laser crossed the line together. Emily/Radial came through in 3^rd place just ahead of Darren/Laser, Alessandro & Matt/470 and Jess/Radial. There was a slight gap before Chris H/Comet and Rick & Steve/RS200 came along with only two seconds separating them as they battled for 7^th place. Next along were Mark/Laser, Jamie H/Laser and Newton & Sam in the second RS200 (note who’s leading the RS200 battle!). Hadey/4.7 and Karen/Laser crossed together further down the fleet than usual followed 30 seconds later by Mike T/Comet. Another 30 seconds elapsed before Jeremy/Laser turned up being chased by another old salt, Mike C in his Solo (less of the old Grandad!). Over a minute later the lanterne rouge squadron emerged from the heat haze led by Hattie/Radial,  then Ron/Mirror, Sally/Comet, Chris & Carol & Guest/Sport 14 and finally Russell in his Mirror and a young man in RSC1 Pico (sign the Declaration Sheet!).

Lap 2

Ralph had moved up to 1^st place with Darren 2^nd, Emily still 3^rd and Jess up two places to 4^th.   This set a pattern for the rest of the race with Darren keeping Ralph honest, but not quite catching him and Emily and Jess having a good battle in their Radials. Ed was down to 5^th with Jamie H and Newton & Sam moving up to 6^th and 7^th places. Mark moved up one place by passing Rick & Steve (who unfortunately for them had conceded class bragging rights to Newton & Sam). Karen had gained three places up to 10^th and Jeremy had slipped past Mike T, but behind them there was no change in the order. Chris & Carol had a fair shot at taking out the start line pin!

Lap 3

No change with the leading two but Jess had taken 3^rd position from Emily. Newton & Sam moved up another place passing Jamie H in the process. There was a bit of shuffling going on further back but nothing of great significance. Sally, Chris & Carol and Russell received the hooter at the end of their third lap.

Lap 4

The final lap and Ralph held onto his lead to cross the line in 1^st place with Darren just 15 seconds behind him. Jess consolidated her 3^rd place, but Emily had a disastrous last lap being passed by Ed, Newton & Sam, Jamie H and Mark.

The order on the water was – 1^st Ralph; 2^nd Darren; 3^rd Jess; 4^th Ed; 5^th Newton & Sam; 6^th Jamie H

On corrected time this becomes – 1^st Jess/Radial; 2^nd Ralph/Laser; 3^rd Darren/Laser; 4^th Ed/Aero; 5^th Emily/Radial; 6^th Ron/Mirror and 7^th and 8^th were the Comets of Chis H and Mike T!

Thanks to SOOD Mike Arnott and the race team of Dave Lomas, Leo Coppens, Nick Maria and Steve Mann.

It was a nice sunny morning with a gentle WSW wind of about 8 mph. SOOD Gareth D set a course of 4, 2, 3, A, 6, 7 and back though the start.

Pursuit Race

14 starters this morning and in the light wind the early starters were still ahead at the end of the first lap with Ron/Mirror leading from the Comets of Chris and Mike T, then Dave & Ann/Leader followed by two more Comets, Aileen and Sally. Then a pack of seven Lasers came along with Richard F at the rear in another Comet.

At the 35 minute hooter the final order was – 1^st Karen/Laser; 2^nd Chris H/Comet; 3^rd Dave & Ann/Leader; 4^th Mike T/Comet; 5^th Darren/Laser; 6^th Sally/Comet.  

Handicap Race

Gareth shortened the course for the second race to 4, 9, 5, 5, 7 and back through the start.

First back across the line was Karen/Laser followed 15 seconds later by Darren in another Laser. Two minutes later Mark/Laser crossed the line just ahead of Richard S/Laser followed by the two Comets of Chris H and Mike T. A bit like Noah’s Ark order two by two across the blue! Next along was Adrian in his Rooster with James P/Laser and Aileen/Comet not far behind him, but two minutes ahead of Nigel/Laser and Ron/Mirror.

Lap 2

No change in the leading two, but Richard S had moved up to 3^rd place by passing Mark. Adrian was up three places to 5^th, but there were no other movers up the fleet.

Lap 3

Darren had managed to get past Karen to take victory at the line. The only other movers on this last lap were Adrian passing Mark to cross in 4^th place and James P passing Mike T.

The order on the water was – 1^st Darren; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Richard S; 4^th Adrian; 5^th Mark; 6^th Dave & Ann.

On corrected time the order changes to – 1^st Darren/Laser; 2^nd Karen/Laser; 3^rd Ron/Mirror; 4^th Chris H/Comet; 5^th Mike T/Comet; 6^th Adrian/Rooster.

Thanks to SOOD Gareth Deli and the race team of Christine Hunt, Hadey Lines, Sarah Stucky and Alex and Martin Lewin.

 It was a pleasant evening with a South wind of about 10 mph and SOOD Sally set the first beat to A (just past Tektona’s old mooring), then B (down towards No 1), 5, C (middle of the lake and back through the start line.

Lap 1

Karen/Laser was first back across the line followed closely by Newton & Sam/RS200 and they stayed close together in these positions for the whole of the five laps of the race. Ed/Aero 5 came through in 3^rd place some 30 seconds ahead of Jamie H/Laser. Steve & Rick/RS200 crossed in 5^th place not far ahead of Emily/Radial and Roland/Solo who crossed the line together in the battle for 6^th place. Next along came Dave & Ann/Leader not far ahead of close bunch led by Chris H/Comet then  Mike A/Lightning, Mike T/Comet, Alessandro/Aero 7 and Aileen/Comet. Then there was a trio of Lasers, Nigel, Alistair and Jeremy battling for 14^th place with Paul H/Supernova just 20 seconds further back. At the back of the fleet there was another trio, but Mirrors this time, with Ron slightly ahead of Russell and Andrew (great to see the Mirror racing fleet increasing) with Chris M and crew Anthony & Puja in the Sport 14 caught up in the Mirror battle.

Lap 2

Dave & Ann had a good lap moving up five places to 3^rd with Ed, Emily and Roland enjoying a good tussle behind them. Nigel also gained five places moving up to 9^th passing Aileen, Alessandro and Mikes T and A. There were no other changes behind this group.

Lap 3

Emily was the prime mover on this lap, advancing three places to 3^rd. The other movers (in the right direction) were Nigel, Alistair, Jeremy and Paul H all gaining two places to move to 7^th, 11^th,14^th and 15th respectively. Basically this bunch had caught up with the boats ahead of them and started making a nuisance of themselves! Andrew/Mirror retired at the end of this lap.

Lap 4

Dave & Ann passed Emily to regain 3^rd spot. Ed and Jamie H were steady in 5^th and 6^th places and Roland had moved up one place to 7^th by passing Steve & Rick who actually crossed the line abreast with Nigel. Chris H crossed the line in 10^th place followed by Mike A who had gained two places by retaking Alessandro and Alistair.

(Alistair might have something to say about tacking in front of him!) Jeremy also gained two places passing Alessandro and Paul H. At the end of this lap Jeremy, Alessandro, Alistair, Paul H, Aileen, Mike T, Ron, Chris M & Puja & Anthony and Russell all received the hooter.

Lap 5

Karen and Newton & Sam crossed in 1^st and 2nd places and Emily had repassed Dave & Ann to take 3^rd. No change with 5^th and 6^th but Steve & Rick had won the battle with Nigel and Roland to cross in 7^th place. Alessandro, Alistair and Jeremy all gained a place relegating Mike A to the lanterne rouge!  

The final order on the water was – 1^st Karen; 2^nd Newton & Sam; 3^rd Emily; 4^th Dave & Ann; 6^th Jamie H; 7^th Steve & Rick; 8^th Nigel

On corrected time this becomes – 1^st Karen/Laser; 2^nd Emily/Radial; 3^rd Chris H/Comet; 4^th Newton & Sam/RS200; 5^th Dave & Ann/Leader; 6^th Ed/Aero 5; 7^th Roland/Solo; 8^th Jamie H/Laser

Thanks to SOOD Sally Newlove and the race team of Carol Meunier, Chris Smith, Hadey Lines, Janos Ratkai, Monica Beer and Thomas Mearns.

It was blowing a hoolie this morning, SSW 18 mph with gusts well into the 20s!

SOOD James P set a course of A, B, 2, 4, 9, 5, C, 6 and back through the start, which sounds interesting but cannot tell you the location of  A, B and C.

Pursuit Race

There were 15 brave starters and at the end of a lap the early starter young William S/Topper was still leading from Hadey/4.7 (good to see Hadey racing again after a long break due to injury – thought she might have chosen a calmer day to make a comeback!). Chris K/Laser was 3^rd with Chris H/Comet 4^th and Paul R/Aero in 5^th. The old strong wind maestro Jon/Laser crossed in 6^th place and Aileen/Comet was hanging in there in 7^th ahead of Richard S/Laser and Mike T/Comet.

However, this does not tell the whole story as there were numerous capsizes and the list of retirees contained some illustrious names, Adrian/Rooster (pushing his luck with that big sail!)Darren/Laser,  Dave L/Radial (wondering what he was doing out there), Karen/Laser, Newton/Solo, Steve S/Blaze.

Newton’s rudder blade snapped clean into two pieces just below the tiller attachment and he found himself sailing down the rowing strip on the wrong side of the buoy line, only to meet Steve and his Blaze who were tethered to the buoys! Steve had capsized close to the buoy line and in righting the boat dipped one of his wings under the line and eventually had to be dragged out backwards!

While this drama was being played out the remainder of the fleet was battling on and at the 35 minute gun the final order was –

1^st Hadey; 2^nd Jon; 3^rd Paul R; 4^th Chris H; 5^th Chris K; 6^th Richard S; 7^th William S; 8^th Aileen; 9^th Mike T.

Great result for Hadey in her comeback race and well done to young William for battling on..

Handicap Race

James tweaked the course for the second race to A, B, C, 4, 9, 6, 5 and not surprisingly after the carnage of the first race, the fleet was down to 7 starters.

Paul/Aero was first back across the line followed 30 seconds later by Steve S/Blaze (who despite his first race mishap was up for another go at the elements!). Jon/Laser crossed in 3^rd just four seconds behind Steve with Chris K/Laser a minute behind them with the Comets of Chris H, Mike T and Aileen battling for 5^th place.

Lap 2

The first three were holding their positions but Chris K retired letting the Comets of Chris H, Mike T and Aileen up to 5^th, 6^th and 7^th.

Lap 3

At the end of this lap Jon came through 10 seconds ahead of Paul with Steve still in 3^rd place. Further back Mike had got past Chris H to move up to 4^th and Aileen retired.

Lap 4

Paul regained the lead by repassing Jon and Steve also managed to pass him to cross in 2^nd place with Mike T and Chris H retaining their positions to finish 4^th and 5^th.

On corrected time the only change in the order is Jon taking 2^nd place from Steve.

1st Paul/Aero; 2^nd Jon/Laser; 3^rd Steve/Blaze; 4^th Mike T/Comet; 5^th Chris H/Comet.

Well done to everyone who sailed whether they finished or not.

Thanks to SOOD James Primrose and the race team of Doug Hughes, Mustafa Nimet, Nathan Osney, Nigel Lacey and Sally Newlove.

With an ENE wind varying from 8-12 mph, SOOD Rick set a course of D (near No 1), 4, A (middle of lake), C (between 3 and 4 on the buoy line) and back through the start.

There was a good turnout of 20 and first back across the line was Darren/Laser followed 30 seconds later by Mark/Laser. Newton & Sam/RS200 were through in 3^rd place with Dave & Ann/Leader in 4^th just ahead of Roland in his Solo. Not far behind them were Karen and Ralph in Lasers followed by Alessandro & Matt/470. Then there was a gap of two minutes before Paul H/Laser crossed in 9^th place and he was about one minute ahead of Nigel/Radial in 10^th. Mike T and Aileen in Comets crossed the line together battling for 11^th place with Emily/Radial close behind them.

A minute later Mike Todd/Laser (good to see you back on the water Mike) and Sally/Comet were split by only three seconds. Then came the scrap at the back of he fleet with Ron/Mirror leading Cecilia/Radial (good to see you on the water as well), Rich/Comet Duo, Russell/Mirror (another welcome addition to the Mirror racing fleet!) followed by yet another Mirror  Sail No 3518 (but no name on the Declaration Sheet).

We’ll soon have more Mirrors than the Palace of Versailles!

Lap 2

Same first two, but Karen and Ralph were up to 3^rd and 4^th and Emily gained five places to move to 8^th. Mike T/Comet was up two to 9^th and further back Rich gained a place by passing Cecilia. Mirror 3518 received the gun at the end of the lap.

Lap 3

Darren still led but Karen was now up to 2^nd place pushing Mark down to 3^rd. No change with 4^th to 9^th positions but Alessandro & Matt had regained two places to move to 10^th. Nigel and Paul H continued their battle.

Lap 4 (and last)

No change in the first five positions but Newton & Sam passed Dave & Ann to take 6^th place and Aileen gained a place by passing Paul.

The order on the water was 1^st Darren; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Mark; 4^th Ralph; 5^th Roland; 6^th Newton & Sam.

On corrected time the first five retain their positions but Dave & Ann take 6^th place away from Newton & Sam.

Thanks to SOOD Rick and the race team of Angus Nairn, Claire Davies, Hadey Lines and Steve Sharp.

First, apologies to the Race Team of last Sunday as I omitted to thank you for your efforts in running the race. So many thanks to SOOD Richard Stanley and the team of Aileen Moore, Alessandro Michea, Bill Coulter, Hadey Lines, Ian Hall and Matt Baxter. We cannot run the races without the OOD Volunteers, so thank you again.

So back to today and with a NE wind about 8-12 mph, I guess SOOD Ron had a challenging task of setting a course with the wind in this direction. Posterity will never know as it was not recorded on the race sheet and as I was in Scotland the wind there would bear little resemblance to Berkshire!

Pursuit Race

There were 17 starters this morning and it was good to see some old faces returning, Mike Newlove out with Sally in his Leader, John Windass in his Laser. Also welcome to Chris Wharmby, in another Leader, joining the racing fleet for the first time.

At the end of the first lap there was an odd mix of boats leading the race, but the whole fleet was pretty close together. Earlier starting Newton/Solo was in front with later starting Karen/Laser behind him, then Chris W/Leader was going well in 3^rd place being chased by last man away Paul R in his Aero. Then it was Chris K/Laser, Mike & Sally/Leader, Darren and Jamie/Lasers, Dave & Ann/Leader!

Aileen was the only Comet out today and erstwhile Comet sailor Mike T was out in an Enterprise with hid old 470 buddy Alessandro. It is only a matter of time before Mike T makes his debut in an Oppie!

At the gun the order was – 1^st Newton; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Paul; 4^th Chris W; 5^th Richard S; 6^th Chris K  

Handicap Race

The wind had increased and become gustier for this second race.

First back across the line was Darren/Laser followed closely by Steve/Blaze. Then there was a long gap before Newton/Solo came through in 3^rd place and not far behind him was Adrian in his big sail Laser/Rooster. Karen and Jon were next through the line in Lasers and there was another long gap before the Lasers of Jamie and Richard S crossed fairly close together battling for 7^th place. Then along came the battle of the Leaders with Mike & Sally ahead of Chris W and Dave & Ann with Aileen reluctantly getting involved! Bringing up the rear of the fleet were John W/Laser, Nigel/Radial and Mike T & Alessandro/Enterprise. Paul R and Chris K retired on this first lap.

Lap 2

Steve took the lead from Darren and Adrian took 3^rd place from Newton. The order of the leaders remained the same, but John W and Nigel both moved up two places to 11^th and 12th.

Lap 3  

Steve retained his lead on the water to cross the line in 1^st place with Darren still second and Adrian 3^rd. Karen passed Newton to cross in 4^th place and Richard S gained two places to move to 6^th. Jamie was steady in 7^th place and John W gained another two places to cross in 9^th place. Mike T & Alessandro avoided the lanterne rouge by catching and passing Aileen.

The order on the water was – 1^st Steve; 2^nd Darren; 3^rd Adrian; 4^th Karen; 5^th Newton; 6^th Richard S

On corrected time this changes to – 1^st Darren/Laser; 2^nd Newton/Solo; 3^rd Karen/Laser; 4^th Steve/Blaze; 5^th Jamie/Laser; 6^th Mike & Sally/Leader

Thanks to SOOD Ron Vass and the race team of Andy Steele, Jewels Vass, Mike Caton and Russell Harrison.

As for last week another WSW wind, but not quite as strong at about 11 mph. SOOD Mark set a course of A, 9, 5, 7 and back through the start.

There were 14 starters and welcome to Nathan in his GP14.  First back across the line was Karen/Laser well ahead of Rick & Steve/RS200, who were pleased to be leading the other RS200 of Newton & Hattie! In between these in 3^rd place was Mike T out in a Comet again! Roland/Solo was in 5^th just ahead of Darren/Laser and Dave & Ann/Leader. Alessandro/Aero 9 was next along then Nigel, Jeremy and Paul H all in Lasers ahead of Sally/Comet, Nathan/GP14 and Chris & Carol/420.  

Lap 2

No change in the first two, but Darren was up to 3^rd place. Other movers up the board were Alessandro, Nigel and Paul H all up one place to 7^th, 8^th and 11th respectively.   

Lap 3

Karen still led and Newton & Hattie gained three places to cross the line in 2^nd place. Rick & Steve were down to 3^rd with Roland pipping Darren across the line by just one second in the battle for 4^th place. Mike T after dropping six places on the previous lap regained three of those to cross in 6^th place. Further down the fleet Paul H gained another place by getting past Jeremy and Chris & Carol passed Nathan. Paul, Jeremy, Sally, Chris & Carol and Nathan were all finished at the end of this lap.

Lap 4 (and last)

Karen had cleared away at the front and crossed the line five minutes ahead of Rick & Steve who had regained 2^nd place from Newton & Hattie in the RS200 battle (we will never hear the last of this!). Darren repipped (if there is such a thing!) Roland to cross in 4^th place and Dave & Ann repassed Mike T and Nigel.

The order on the water was – 1^st Karen; 2^nd Rick & Steve; 3^rd Newton & Hattie; 4^th Darren; 5^th Roland; 6^th Dave & Ann

On corrected time this changes to – 1^st Karen/Laser; 2^nd Mike T/Comet; 3^rd Roland/Solo; 4^th Rick & Steve/RS200; 5^th Dave & Ann/Leader; 6^th Newton & Hattie/RS200  

Five different boats in the first six!

Thanks to SOOD Mark and the race team of Angus, Clare, John, Steve and Rhys.