Reading Sailing Club Members

With a South wind about 12-14 mph, Chris H set the first mark as A (level with 2 but more into the middle of the lake) then 2, 9, 5, 6, 7 and back through the start.

There were 19 starters and first back across the line was Karen (Laser) closely followed by Newton (Solo), Mike T (Laser) and Ellen (Laser). About a minute later Dave & Ann (Leader) crossed in 5^th place with Dean & Nick (Vago) right on their transom and another minute elapsed before Ralph (Laser) came through. Then there was a close bunch consisting of Mike A (Lightning) followed by the Lasers of Paul H, Rick, Alistair S and Jeremy and these lads enjoyed a good battle throughout the race. Ron (Mirror) was not far behind and being chased by Sam in a Radial. Then there was a slight gap back to Emily (Topper) and Jemima and Ed in their Oppies and they also enjoyed a close battle for the whole of the race. Then bringing up the rear was Bob (Solo) making his first appearance of the year and Dave P in his Mirror.  Sally & Stuart (Leader) made an early retirement before completing the first lap.

At the end of the second lap Karen still led but Ellen had moved up to 2^nd place with Mike T still 3^rd and Newton was down to 4th. The next three boats held station, but Rick was up two places to 8^th place. Further back Jemima had passed Sam and Emily to move up to 14^th spot.

At the finish Karen crossed the line in 1^st place with Mike T up one place to 2^nd and Ellen a close 3^rd. Newton, Dave & Ann, Dean & Nick and Ralph all maintained their positions, but it was all change in the bunch behind as they struggled with the dodgy wind around No 7. Alistair S came up trumps and took the 8^th spot from Rick virtually on the line! Behind this group Sam caught and passed Ron and Jemima with Emily finishing just ahead of Ed.  Bob and Dave P both retired.

The finishing order on the water was –

1^st Karen; 2^nd Mike T; 3^rd Ellen; 4^th Newton; 5^th Dave & Ann; 6^th Dean & Nick.

On corrected time this becomes – 1^st Newton; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Jemima; 4^th Mike T; 5^th Dave & Ann; 6^th Ellen.

Thanks to Chris Hilson and the OOD Team of Monica, John H, Mike C, Mike T Nigel and Rich F.

The highest turn out of the year so far with 27 starters. There was a good turnout of our younger sailors, Jemima, Ed and Phoebe in Oppies, Emily in her Topper and Rhys and Joe in Lasers. A couple of our older sailors also returned from their winter hibernation, welcome back to Chris A and Richard H.

In fairly light wind the race was a three lapper, although eight of the boats were finished after completing two laps.

The finishing order on the water was –

1^st Ralph – Laser; 2^nd Nev & Mike – Leader; 3^rd Mike T – Laser; 4^th Paul R – Aero 7; 5^th Newton – Solo; 6^th Chris – Solo; 7^th Hugh – Laser; 8^th Karen – Laser.

On corrected time our Oppie aces jump up the leader board and the order becomes –

1^st Jemima – Oppie; 2^nd Ed – Oppie; 3^rd Nev & Mike – Leader; 4^th Ron – Mirror; 5^th Ralph – Laser; 6^th Mike T – Laser; 7^th Newton – Solo; 8^th Paul – Aero

Unfortunately, I was not present, and the race sheet seems to have gone missing, but thank you to the SOOD and his team and sorry for not including your names in this brief report.

Easter Cup 2019

The Easter Cup races took place in beautiful sunshine on Good Friday and Easter Monday with 27 competitors racing in two races on each day. It was good to see a great turn out of our younger sailors with Bea, Ed, Jemima and Phoebe in Oppies, Emily and Shiloh in Toppers and Milo and Rhys in Radials. It was also nice to see a Wayfarer on the water in the hands of John and Linda, not to forget the re appearance of our own pink lady Monica.

Good Friday

Race 1

Paul R (Aero) and Karen (Laser) kept the first two positions throughout the race, Newton (Solo) was 3^rd on the first lap but displaced by Ralph (Laser) for the remaining two laps. Mike N took his new Leader out and had a steady race in 6^th pushing the two Lasers of Mike T and James just ahead of him. There was some close racing throughout the fleet and Chris H (Comet), Adrian (Rooster), Richard S (Laser) and Sally & Stuart (Leader) were enjoying themselves in the middle of the fleet with Milo and Rhys in Radials just behind them having a great battle. Ron (Mirror) had a lonely race just off the back of this group, but clear of the young sailors at the back, Ed, Jemima, Phoebe and Bea in Oppies and Emily and Shiloh in Toppers who were also enjoying their own race!

Finishing order on the water was – 1^st Paul; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Ralph; 4^th Newton; 5^th James; 6^th Mike N  

On corrected time this became –    1^st Karen; 2^nd Jemima; 3^rd Paul; 4^th Ed; 5^th Newton; 6^th Ron

Race 2

In the second race Paul got away again and led from start to finish. Mike T held 2^nd place for the first two laps, but then Karen came past him on the third lap. Behind them James, Newton and Ralph enjoyed a good scrap as did Milo and Rhys again. In the first race Rhys had come out on top, but Milo just pipped him in this one.

Finishing order on the water was – 1^st Paul; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Mike T; 4^th Ralph; 5^th James; 6^th Richard S.

On corrected time it was –               1^st Paul; 2^nd Jemima; 3^rd Karen; 4^th Ed; 5^th Mike T; 6^th Newton.

Thanks to Hugh who was SOOD today and his OOD Team of Marion T and Ian B.

Easter Monday

Today the man in a fast boat was not Paul in his Aero. but Julian B in his Devoti D-Zero.

Race 1

There was a similar situation to the first race on Friday as Julian B led from start to finish with Karen in 2^nd place. Mike T was 3^rd for the first two laps but Ralph snatched the place form him on the last lap. Monica (Europe) made a star appearance to show the boys she could still had it, before gracefully retiring. Adrian had a steady race in 6^th place, but behind them there was a really close battle between Joe (Laser), Chris (Comet), Alistair S (Laser), the Leaders of Nev & Mike C and Sally & Stuart along with John & Linda in their Wayfarer and Rhys (Radial). Further back Ron (Mirror) and Sam (Laser) were having a close race in front of Jemima and Ed (Oppies), who were at it again, with Emily (Topper) and Phoebe and Bea in two more Oppies following.  

Finishing order on the water was – 1^st Julian B; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Ralph; 4^th Mike T; 5^th Newton; 6^th Adrian

On corrected time it was –              1^st Karen; 2^nd Newton; 3^rd Julian; 4^th Jemima; 5^th Ralph; 6^th Ed

Race 2

Again, Julian and Karen led from start to finish with Mike T in 3^rd right up to the last lap when he slipped down to 6^th! Ralph did it again moving up from 7^th on the first lap to take 3^rd on the last. Newton occupied 4^th spot for most of the race just ahead of Adrian and Joe who had a good battle for 5^th place just ahead of Nev & Mike C, Chris H and Rhys. Following them there was another close contest between John & Linda, Sally & Stuart and Sam and further back Jemima was leading Ed, Emily, Phoebe and Bea in the battle of the young sailors.

Finishing order on the water was – 1^st Julian; 2^nd Karen; 3^rd Ralph; 4^th Newton; 5^th Joe; 6^th Mike T

On corrected time this becomes –  

1^st Karen; 2^nd Jemima; 3^rd Julian; 4^th Chris H; 5^th Newton; 6^th Nev & Mike C

Thanks to SOOD James and his OOD Team of Bill C, Ian B, Marcin, Marion T, and Nicholas M

The overall winner and Easter Cup holder for this year was Karen with Jemima in second place and Newton in third.

A great weekend of sailing and congratulations to the girls (again!)

It was a beautiful sunny morning with a light N to NE wind 5 – 6mph and Mike T used a CB start with the CB near Tektona and the pin out towards the buoy lin. The first mark was X (near to 8), then 5, 4 and back through the start, a nice easy course to remember (you would think!).

Nev was out in his newly acquired Leader and apparently crew Mike N has also acquired a new Leader (things are hotting up in the Leader fleet!) Rhys was taking after his old man (less of that) by using a BLACK full rig Laser.

Pursuit Race

There were 13 starters and at the end of the first lap the early starters were still at the front of the fleet with Ron (Mirror) leading Chris H (Comet), Mike A (Lightning) and Bea (Oppie). Ron and Chris managed to stay out in front for the whole 35 minutes, but Ellen & Newton (RS200) slowly snatched 3^rd from Karen (Laser) in the last few minutes of the race. The final positions were –

1^st Ron; 2^nd Chris H; 3^rd Ellen & Newton; 4^th Karen; 5^th Mike A; 6^th Richard S (Laser)

Handicap Race

Dave I, as usual, opted for a nice cup of tea rather than a second race so the fleet was down by one.

Karen was first back through the line followed by Newton & Ellen, Chris H and Mike A, then came the three Lasers of Richard S, James and Adrian. Next along in 8^th place were Nev & Mike leading the other two Leaders of Sally & Mike C and Dave & Ann with Rhys trapped in the middle of them. Bea was next across the line some distance ahead of Ron. Now you would think that with only three marks that that it would be difficult to go wrong, but Ron found himself about to round X only to be told that he had missed the start line out! Credit to him, he turned around and went all the way back up the lake to go through the start line.

At the end of the second lap the three leaders were in the same order, but James had moved up to 4^th place by overtaking Mike A and Richard S. With a wind that was dropping, this turned out to be the gain that James did not want, as after he had crossed the line Richard and Mike and everyone else behind received the finish gun!  Rhys had managed to clear the Leaders to finish 7^th just ahead of Adrian, but in the Leader battle there was a change of fortune with Dave & Ann coming up to 9^th, Sally & Mike C in the middle and Nev & Mike down to 11^th. Bea was 12^th and Ron did persevere to finish just as everyone was packing up!.

On the third and last lap Karen at the front caught the best of the falling wind and got well away from the other three. The final order on the water was –

1^st Karen; 2^nd Chris; 3^rd Newton & Ellen; 4^th James, then one lap down 5^th Richard; 6^th Mike A  

On corrected time Karen, Chris and Newton & Ellen keep their positions, but Mike A moves up to 4^th with Richard S 5^th and Dave & Ann up to 6^th. Poor James drops down to 8^th, but to rub salt into the wound finishes behind Rhys!

Thanks to Mike T and the OOD Team of Alistair S, Colin H, Ian B and Richard C

Finally, a note of apology – in the last week report I got the name of Ron’s grandson incorrect!

Sorry Levi and well done for crewing for Gramps, he obviously could have done with you this week as well !

Also, Shiloh did start the second race in his Topper, but retired which I missed, but in mitigation so did the OOD Team.

With an ENE wind (but swinging around slightly) of about 11 mph, Peter R used a Tektona start with a first beat to X (near 8 but slightly further out) then 1, 3, 5, 2. This gave everyone the dilemma of which side of the island to opt for on the way from X to 1 !

Pursuit Race

Phoebe was first away in her Oppie followed by Ron & Milo ( Mirror), then the Toppers of Emily and Shiloh and three and a half minutes later Chris H (Comet) and Rhys (4.7) got away.

At the end of the first lap Phoebe was still leading by quite a distance and looking as if she might hang on for the victory. However by the time the gun went she had been caught by some of the later starting fast boats, but she still got a 7^th place. The final order was –

1^st Ellen & Newton (RS200); 2^nd Mike T (Laser); 3^rd Steve S (Solo); 4^th Chris H ( (Comet); 5^th  Mike C & Sally (Leader); 6^th Dave & Ann (Leader); 7^th Phoebe (Oppie)  

Six different boats in the first seven !

Handicap Race

The course for the second race was changed to X, 5, 1, 2 and back through the start.

Richard S (Laser) was first back across the line but he was closely followed by Newton & Ellen (RS200), Steve S (Solo) and Hugh (Laser – nice to see you back on the water Hugh). About 30 seconds later Dave & Ann (Leader) came through followed by a tight bunch led by Rhys (4.7), then Adrian (Laser), Rick (Laser) and Mike T (Laser). Another close trio followed with Chris H (Comet) battling with Sally & Mike C (Leader) and Jeremy (Laser). About a minute later Ron & Milo (Mirror) crossed the line in 13^th place followed by Nev & Mike in the third Leader. Then there was a bit of a gap back to sisters Emily in her Topper and Phoebe in her Oppie.  James came to grief near the end of the lap when his boom got trapped and although he tried to re-rig on the water he eventually had to retire. At the end of this first lap the whole fleet was still close together and rounding marks was a tight affair.

Richard still led at the end of the second lap just ahead of Newton & Ellen, but Mike T gained six places to move up to 3^rd place. Hugh and Dave & Ann crossed the line together in the battle for 5^th place and Nev & Mike also gained six places moving up to 8^th spot. Chris H gained a place to move up to 9^th and Jeremy made up two to move to 10^th. Emily and Phoebe were gamely battling on at the back of the fleet.

By the end of the third lap Newton & Ellen had managed to snatch the lead from Richard with Mike T still in 3^rd. Steve S retired when lying in 4^th place (presumed gear failure) and Hugh eased away from Dave & Ann to consolidate the 4^th spot vacated by Steve. Nev & Mike were up another place to 6^th place and Jeremy gained three places to move up to 7^th and Rick regained three places to move to 10^th.  Emily received the gun at the end of this lap and Phoebe also finished. On this lap the wind had increased slightly and there were some strong gusts coming through, which caused some exciting moments for a number of competitors.

At the end of the fourth and last lap there was no change in the order of the first six boats. Chris gained two places to finish in 7^th place, just pipping Adrian across the line. Rick gained another place to finish 9^th and Sally & Mike C also gained a place to take 10^th with Jeremy, Rhys and Ron bringing up the rear.

The finishing order on the water was –

1^st Newton & Ellen; 2^nd Richard S; 3^rd Mike T; 4^th Hugh; 5^th Dave & Ann; 6^th Nev & Mike

On corrected time it’s smoke and mirrors time and just when you do not expect it up pops Ron (this time ably assisted by grandson Milo) to steal the victory from the front runners! Then along comes the other silent assassin Chris H to take the 2^nd spot, which means the two leaders are pushed down to 3^rd and 4^th places and the two Leaders retain their 5^th and 6^th positions pushing Mike T and Hugh down two places..

Thanks to Peter R and the OOD Team of Dean J, Gareth D, Mike A, Richard C, Robbie H and Sam S.

James had to contend with a light NE wind of about 8 mph, which is always a tricky direction when setting a course. He opted for a Tektona start with the first mark as A (near to 7, but further down the lake) then B (near to  6, but again further down the lake to avoid the wind shield of the trees on the North bank), 8, 5, 8,4, 2 and back through the start.

Pursuit race

There were 12 starters this morning with Ben joining the Sunday fleet for the first time sailing a Pico (welcome to the Sunday fleet Ben). Chris H (Comet) and Rhys (4.7) were first away and Chris was still leading at the end of the first lap with Dave & Ann (Leader) in 2^nd place but being caught by Jon (Laser) and Bill (K1). At the gun the final positions were –

1^st Chris – Comet; 2^nd Bill – K1; 3^rd Jon – Laser; 4^th Ellen & Newton – RS 200; 5^th Dave & Ann – Leader; 6^th Richard S – Laser

Handicap Race

Everyone started the second race, which turned out to be just two laps because of the light wind. Newton & Ellen (RS200) were first back through the line about 30 seconds ahead of Richard S (Laser) in 2^nd place, who was just ahead of Ralph (Laser). Bill (K1) was a lonely 4^th place well ahead of Chris (Comet) and Rick (Laser) and they were about 30 seconds ahead of Jon and Adrian, who crossed the line together in their Lasers. Dean & Nick (Vago) were not far behind, but they were two minutes ahead of Dave & Ann (Leader) and Rhys (4.7) and bringing up the rear was Ben (Pico).

At the end of the final lap, there was no change with the first four boats, but Jon had moved up two places to 5^th spot and that was the only change in position in the entire fleet.

The final positions on the water were –

1^st Newton & Ellen; 2^nd Richard S; 3^rd Ralph; 4^th Bill; 5^th Jon; 6^th Rick

On corrected time the first two keep their places, but Chris moves up to 3^rd pushing the others down one place.

Thanks to James and the OOD Team of Alistair J, Bea P, Ian B, Mike C, Mike T and Sophie.

Light winds this morning so Adrian set a short course of X, 5, 9, 4 and back though the start.

Pursuit race

There were 13 starters and at the end of the first lap Mike C & Sally (Leader) were leading ahead of Ellen & Newton (RS200) with Jon (Laser) in 3^rd place having just passed Nev & Mike in the second Leader out today. Simon (Blaze) was catching them fast followed by Bill in his K1.

At the gun the order was –

1^st Ellen & Newton; 2^nd Mike C & Sally; 3^rd Simon; 4^th Jon; 5^th Bill; 6^th Nev & Mike

Handicap Race

Everyone started the second race and at the end of the first lap Simon came through the line one minute ahead of Newton & Ellen, who were closely followed by Ralph (Laser) and Bill (K1). Then Jon and Rick both in Lasers crossed the line virtually together with Jon’s bow just ahead. Thirty seconds late Nev & Mike crossed in 7^th place with Dean & Nick (Vago), Gareth E (Laser) and Richard S (Laser) close behind them. Sally & Mike C were only ten seconds further back, but they were well ahead of Franz (Laser) and Emily (Topper).

On the second lap Simon doubled his lead and there was no change in the order of the next five boats, but Richards S gained three places to move up to 7^th place and Nev & Mike passed Gareth E to move up one place.

No change in the leading three at the end of the third lap, but Jon had moved up one place to 4^th by passing Bill. Nev & Mike passed Dean & Nick and Rick to move up to 6^th place, but no other changes in the right direction? Emily, the only young sailor out today, received the gun at the end of the lap.

On the fourth lap Jon moved up to 3rd place and Bill up to 4^th place at the expense of Ralph and everyone else maintained station.

At the end of the fifth and last lap (for nearly everyone) Simon was now six minutes ahead of second placed Newton & Ellen and he was so far ahead that Adrian sent him round for another lap in case he felt deprived of race time! Bill pipped Jon by one second for 3^rd place and Richard S got past Nev & Mike to take 6^th spot and Rick snatched 8^th place from Dean & Nick.

The final order on the water was –

1^st Simon; 2^nd Newton & Ellen; 3^rd Bill; 4^th Jon; 5^th Ralph; 6^th Richard S.

On corrected time, no change in the first two places, bur Nev & Mike take 3rdwithJon, Ralph and Richardkeeping their places.

Thanks to Adrian and the OOD Team of Gareth D, Issy, John W, Karen T and Ron.   

It was not quite as windy as previous Sundays this morning about 8 – 10 mph, but it kept swinging from WSW to WNW, which made Mike A’s job of setting the start line very tricky. For the first race he set the first mark as X (on the buoy line about halfway between 5 and 6).

Pursuit race

20 starters and there was a reasonable breeze at the start of the race, but by the time the Lasers started this had died away, which resulted in a mass rounding of the first mark. In fact, Ron (Mirror) was approaching X just as the Lasers were clearing it! Fellow early starters, Chris H (Comet), Rhys (4.7), Mike C & Sally (Leader), Will (Radial) and Dave & Ann (Leader) occupied 2^nd to 6^th places at the end of the first lap.

The gun went about halfway through the second lap with the final order as – 1^st Chris H; 2^nd Will; 3^rd Mike C & Sally; 4^th Rhys; 5^th Dave & Ann; 6^th Simon (Blaze)

Ron would have been 2^nd, but unfortunately missed out the first mark on the first lap!

Handicap Race

 The wind got up a bit more for the second race and swung to the South, so the start line was adjusted, and X dropped, so the first mark was now 5, and 6 and 7 were added to the end of the course. Steve S (Solo) joined the fleet making 21 starters for the handicap race.

Simon (Blaze) was first back through the line with Julian B (D-Zero) chasing him. Then there was a slight gap before Newton & Ellen (RS200) crossed the line in 3^rd place followed closely by Mike T (Laser) in 4^th. About one minute later Jon (Laser) came through in 5^th place followed by Bill (K1) and the Lasers of Ralph and Richard S. Chris H (Comet) was next along in 10^th place, just ahead of Steve S (Solo) and Rick (Laser). About a minute later James (Laser) crossed in 12^th spot with Alistair S (Laser) not far behind him and Dave & Ann (Leader) overlapping him across the line and the other Leader with Sally and Mike C right on Dave & Ann’ transom. Jeremy (Laser) was only 5 seconds behind them leading another tight group consisting of Will (Radial), Gareth E (Laser), Adrian (Laser), Ron (Mirror) and Rhys (4.7). So, the back half of the fleet was enjoying some very close sailing.

Simon increased his lead slightly on the second lap, as did Julian on the 3^rd placed boat of Newton & Ellen with Mike T still chasing in 4^th place. Ralph moved up two places to 5^th by passing Jon and Bill. Rick also moved up two places to 9^th just behind Richard S passing Chris H and Steve S in the process. Alistair also moved up two by passing Chris and James and in the Leader battle behind them Sally & Mike C had got past Dave & Ann. Further back Adrian was another to gain two places passing Will and Gareth E and Ron also got past Gareth with Rhys not far behind them.

By the end of the third lap Julian had made up some ground on Simon, but Simon was still leading. No change in position for the next two, but Jon had regained 5^th place from Ralph. The 8^th, 9^th and 10^th positions were still held by Richard, Rick and Steve, but James had moved up two places to 11^th. Further back Adrian and Gareth both gained a place and Gareth, Ron and Rhys received the gun at the end of this lap.

At the end of the fourth and last lap, Simon crossed in 1^st place with Julian not far behind in 2^nd place and Newton & Ellen claimed 3^rd with Mike T not far behind in 4^th (coming home in pairs!) Ralph just pipped Jon for 5^th place and Richard just pipped Bill for 7^th place!  In the fleet behind there were no other changes in position. The final positions on the water were –

1^st Simon; 2^nd Julian; 3^rd Newton & Ellen; 4^th Mike T; 5^th Ralph; 6^th Jon  

On corrected time there was no change in position, which is quite unusual for our mixed fleet!

Thanks to Mike A and the OOD Team of Mike Todd, Steve George and Tony Riley.

Spring Series 2 races should have taken place last Sunday, but with winds of 40 mph plus, SOOD Roland S wisely decided that it was a non-starter, much to the relief of most!

This week was a little better with a West wind of about 20 mph and stronger gusts. Most of the Lasers had opted for radial rigs and Will had dropped down to a 4.7. Julian B turned up with his new Devoti D-Zero, a new addition to our mixed fleet. Mark B set the first mark as 4, then 2, 5, 9, 6, 7 and back through the start.

Pursuit race

17 starters which was pretty good considering the testing conditions. At the end of the first lap, early starters Ron (Mirror) and Chris H (Comet) were still ahead, but Mike T and Jon (Lasers) were closing in on them. Sally & Mike C (Leader) came to grief early on and retired. Everyone else persevered, including Emily in her Topper and by the finish gun Jon had taken the lead and the final order was –

1^st Jon – Laser; 2^nd Mike T – Laser; 3^rd Ron – Mirror; 4^th Julian B – D-Zero; 5^th Adrian – Laser; 6^th Steve S – Aero

Handicap Race

Sally & Mike C having got warm and dry decided to stay that way and Julian joined them, which took us down to 15 for the second race. This was further reduced to 13 when Mike T and Ralph both retired on the first lap. First back through the line was Steve S followed about 30 seconds later by Jon and then Newton, with new crew Sam in the RS200 with James (Laser) on their transom. About a minute later Adrian crossed in 5^th place with Will (Radial but flying a 4.7) not far behind. Another minute passed before Dean & Nick (Vago) hove into sight, just ahead of Ron, Chris H and Jeremy (Laser) with Rick and Alistair also in Lasers slightly further back but enjoying a good battle of their own. Emily bravely battled on at the rear of the fleet.

On the second lap Rick and Alistair caught and passed Jeremy and that was the only change in position, but on the third lap we lost two more when Steve S retired from the lead and Alistair got a nasty bang on his nose, splitting it across the bridge and was forced to retire. Jon was now in the lead, but there was no change in the order of next five boats. Rick gained two places to move to 7^th by passing Ron and Chris H. Ron, Chris, Jeremy and Emily all received the gun at the end of this lap.

On the last lap the only change in position was Rick gaining another place up to 6^th by passing Dean & Nick. The final positions on the water were –

1^st Jon; 2^nd Newton & Sam; 3^rd James; 4^th Adrian; 5^th Will; 6^th Rick; 7^th Dean & Nick

On corrected time Jon takes the victory, but Ron moves up to 2^nd with Newton & Sam down to 3^rd place. James takes 4^th with Adrian and Will 5^th and 6^th.

Emily did a great job sailing in difficult conditions which deterred many from sailing at all. Well done Emily!

Thanks to Mark B and the OOD Team of Ann & Dave, John H and Richard S. In fact, Ann & Dave and Richard all volunteered on the day, as there were four no-shows! So special thanks to them or we would not have had a race at all.

It was very windy morning and nearly all capsized at some point. In fact, at one point a big gust came through and knocked four or five down like skittles.

Pursuit race

There were 10 starters and enough wind for the fast boys at the back to catch the early starterswith Simon in his Blaze coming through the fleet to take the gun at time up. Mike T (Laser) was 2^nd and Will (Radial) did well to stay ahead of James (Laser) and claim the family honours by finishing 3^rd.

Steve S (Aero) was 5^th with Adrian (Laser) in 6^th place.

Handicap Race

Franz decided not to take part, so we were down to 9 for the second race of the day.

It was a three-lap affair and Simon led for all three laps with Steve S in 2^nd place for all three laps

At the end of the first lap Adrian was 3^rd just ahead of James in 4^th with Mike T 5^th. Some way back Chris H (Comet) in 6^th place was well ahead of Ron (Mirror), Will (Radial) and Dean & Nick in the Vago, the only double-hander out today.

On the second lap Mike T moved up to 3^rd place with James retaining 4^th with Adrian down to 5^th.

The main excitement was towards the rear of the fleet with Team Vago. The Jones boys were excelling in their capsizes, including one with the spinnaker up! The onlookers watched knowing exactly what was going to happen. Things went further downhill for them after that, because they missed out No 6. Eventually they got back and rounded 6, then capsized again, and then acquainted themselves with the trees. They even jinked the rescue boat because in attempting to recover them its bung came out and the boat filled with water. Prime candidates for the Endeavour trophy for battling on through adversity.

Chris, Ron and Will all received the gun at the ed of the lap.

Back to the final lap and no change in the front three, but Adrian had repassed James to take 4^th place. The final positions on the water were –

1^st Simon; 2^nd Steve S; 3^rd Mike; 4^th Adrian; 5^th James; 6^th Chris H (one lap down)

On corrected time the first three retain their positions, but Ron moves up to 4^th with Adrian 5^th and James 6^th.

Unfortunately, the names of the OOD Team were not recorded on the race sheet, but should have been Dave P, Christopher K, Issy, Mark P, Mark R and Simon R, so thanks to you if you turned up, if not where were you!