Reading Sailing Club Members

Oh, what a beautiful morning ! It was pouring down – some of us, well most of us actually, looked out of the bedroom window and opted for a cup of tea in bed. Poor Richard S did not have that luxury as he was SOOD.
The race nearly did not take place as at 09.45 there were only two sailors and three were needed to make it a goer (technical term to denote the feasibility of running the race was rapidly receding).
The OOD Team had turned the lights off and were about to leave when Mike Tr turned up really eager to race (you always get one don’t you!). The team quickly opened up the red shed and got the rescue boat out (devotion to duty or what).

The wind was about 2-3 mph (as much as that!) from the North but kept swinging through 90 degrees and Richard used a start line from flagpole to 8, then X (left of 6), 6s, 7s, 5p, 9p, 8p.

Pursuit
The rain continued for most of this race and at the gun the positions were –
1st Mike Tr – Laser; 2nd Rick – Laser; 3rd Chris H – Comet

Handicap
The wind got up to 10 – 15 mph for this second race and during the race the rain gradually stopped. It turned out to be a three lap affair and the positions remained the same for every lap.
So, the final score was –
1st Mike Tr; 2nd Rick; 3rd Chris H

On handicap it is likely that Chris will leapfrog the other two, giving him and Mike Tr a victory each on the day.

Thanks to Richard S and the OOD Team of Sally & Mike and Tim B. (I think the racers owe you a drink)

A much better wind than last week, about 12 mph from the SW, enabled Mike A to set a long first beat to 4, then 2, 5, 8, 6, 7 and back though the start .

Pursuit Race
There were 19 starters and at the end of the lap the first starter Ron (Mirror) was still leading with Peter S (Byte) in 2nd place, Karen (Radial) was 3rd and Julian B (OK) 4th. The next three boats, Ellen & Newton (RS200), Mike Tr (Laser) and Simon (Blaze) crossed the line together, but it was clear that the fastest boat on the water was the Blaze of Simon B.
At the gun Simon was up to 1st spot and Karen just managed to pass Ron to take 2nd. Jon C was up to 4th with Julian B 5th and Ellen & Newton 6th.
Bill (K1) suffered a gear problem and had to retire.

Handicap Race
At the end the first lap Simon (Blaze) was first back though the line followed by Julian B (OK), Jon C (Laser) and Richard S (Laser) and these four kept the same positions for all four laps of the race, although Simon did gradually increase his lead at the front. So all the horse trading went on behind them and Mike Tr (Laser – sporting his new radial cut sail) was through in 5th place with Newton & Ellen (RS200) hot on his transom with Dean & Nick (Vago) close on their coat tails ! (mixed metaphors for a mixed fleet). Karen (Radial) came through next in 8th place not far ahead of Alistair S and Frantz (both in Lasers). Papa S (Byte – congratulations Peter – and Sylvia of course, who had no little part to play!) was 11th but only 10 seconds behind Frantz. There was a slight gap back to Paul H (Supernova – joining the fast fleet), then Dave & Ann (Leader). About a minute later along came Ron (Mirror) who had managed to distance himself from the family battle at the back of the fleet involving Emily (Topper), Sam (Pico) and Phoebe (Oppie). Ralph crossed the start line then made a tactical retirement as he said he had a date with a camel and did not want anyone else to get the hump!

No change in the first six on the second lap but Karen, Alistair and Frantz all passed Dean & Nick to gain a place. Behind these Paul H also gained a place but no further change and Phoebe received the gun at the end of the lap.

On the third lap, remarkably there were no changes in position for the first ten boats although it was difficult to split Mike Tr and Newton & Ellen at the line in the battle for 5th place. Paul H gained another two places (confirmation of his fast fleet status, although it had taken him some time to get up steam!). The only other change in the fleet was Sam getting past Emily. They and Ron received the gun at the end of this lap.

At the end of the race Simon crossed the line well ahead of the rest of the fleet and at last there was excitement amongst the other leading boats as Newton & Ellen pipped Mike Tr for 5th place by just one second! The rest of the fleet maintained station and the final positions on the water were – 1st Simon; 2nd Julian B; 3rd Jon; 4th Richard S; 5th Newton & Ellen; 6th Mike Tr

On handicap the first two keep their positions, bur Karen moves up from 7th to 3rd pushing Jon and Richard down to 4th and 5th and Mike Tr just pips Newton & Ellen for 6th spot.

Thanks to Mike A and the OOD Team of Bob W, Brian M, Ian B, Jess and Sally.

It was quite a good night for the last of the Gillette Series with another NW wind, but slightly stronger than last week at about 10 mph. Curtis used a flagpole start with the first mark 6 then 5, 8, 4 and back through the start.

There was a good turnout with 23 boats starting and first back through the line were Jess, Mark and Karen, all in Lasers. Dave & Ann (Leader) came through in 4th place followed by the Lasers of Jeremy and Joe with Mike A (Lightning) and Monica (Europe) not far behind them. The Solos of Newton and Steve S crossed the line next with Alistair S (Laser) sandwiched between them. Paul H led another trio of Lasers with Richard H right behind him and Mike T further back. A minute later Ron came along in his Mirror just ahead of Sally and Stuart (Leader),Dean & Nick (Vago) and Cecilia (Laser), these four boats were close together and enjoying a good tussle. Then came the battle of the juniors led by Rhys (Topper) with Jemima (Oppie) not far behind him, then further back Sam (Pico – not quite a junior but looking young enough!), Emily (Topper) and Bea Oppie).

Jess still led at the end of the second lap, but Karen had passed Mark to steal 2nd place with Dave & Ann still in 4th. Newton had gained four places to move up to 5th pushing Jeremy and Joe down to 6th and 7th. Monica and Alistair had both passed Mike A to move up to 8th and 9th places. Richard H passed both Steve S and Paul H to move to 11th and Dean & Nick gained three places to move up to 14th. Cecilia gained two by passing Mike T and Ron to move to 16th. In the battle at the back Rhys and Jemima maintained position but Emily had passed Sam with Bea persevering at the rear. Sally & Stuart, Rhys, Jemima, Emily, Sam and Bea all received the gun at the end of the lap. As usual Monica retired when lying 8th (not that she usually retires when lying 8th, but does with one lap left!)

Jess maintained her lead and crossed the line in 1st place with Karen and Mark holding 2nd and 3rd. Newton passed Dave & Ann to finish 4th. Joe had got past Jeremy to take 6th place (a good performance by Joe in a full rig Laser). With Monica’s retirement Alistair S finished in 8th place with Steve S up two places to 9th. Everyone behind these gained a nominal place courtesy of Monica.

The final position on the water were –
1st Jess; 2nd Karen; 3rd Mark; 4th Newton; 5th Dave & Ann; 6th Joe

On handicap Jess will keep her 1st place, but Jemima jumps up to 2nd pushing Karen, Mark, Newton and Dave & Ann down one place.

Thanks to Curtis and the OOD Team of Ferdinando, Paul B and Ralph.

Congratulations to Karen for winning the series and also to Jemima for finishing in 2nd place and top junior.

The final races of the series turned out to be a wet and windy affair, completely different to most of the Summer Sundays.

The incessant rain resulted in only eight starters this morning, although all of them persevered and completed both races. The series leader in both Pursuit and Handicap, Chris H in his Comet, finished in style by winning both races , so congratulations to Chris on winning the Summer Series.

Pursuit Race
Chris H (Comet) caught early starter Ron (Mirror) and managed to stay ahead of Newton & Julian (RS200) to claim victory at the gun. The final order was –
1st Chris H – Comet; 2nd Ron – Mirror; 3rd Newton & Julian – RS200; 4th Ralph – Laser;
5th Mike Tr – Laser; 6th Adrian – Rooster; 7th Chris M –Laser; 8th Nick & Dean – Vago

Handicap Race
A five lap affair and at the end of the first lap Chris H led from Newton & Ellen with Ron 3rd, but then the wind increased and Ralph came through to the lead on the second lap with Mike Tr up to 2nd and Adrian up to 3rd place. Newton & Ellen were 4th just ahead of Chris M and Dean & Nick in close company with Chris H and Ron bringing up the rear.
By the end of the third lap Mike Tr had taken the lead from Ralph and Dean & Nick were up two places to 4th pushing Newton & Ellen down to 5th place. Chris H had gained a place by passing Chris M.
Mike Tr still led on the fourth lap but Adrian had passed Ralph to move up to 2nd. Newton & Ellen and Chris M had got past Dean & Nick to move to 4th and 5th and Romn received the gun at the end of the lap.
The last lap saw Adrian with his big sail Rooster crossing the line to claim victory on the water. The only other mover was Chris H gaining two places to finish in 5th place .

The final position on the water were –
1st Adrian; 2nd Mike Tr; 3rd Ralph; 4th Newton & Ellen; 5th Chris H; 6th Chris M; 7th Nick & Dean; 8th Ron (one lap down)

On handicap of course Chris takes the victory with Mike Tr up to 2nd, Ron 3rd, Ralph 4th, Adrian 5th and Newton & Ellen 6th.

Thanks to Rick and the OOD Team of Bob W, Brian M and Chris B.

Youth/Junior and Oppie Sailing is now over for this year and what a year it was! 40 children worked towards various RYA Youth Sailing Scheme certificates, 7 children had a taster session ready to start next summer, 2 senior instructors, 2 instructors, 2 assistant instructors, 2 trainee instructors, 2 helpers and that’s without the parents and grandparents!
Monday nights have been fun and the children have learnt loads. The Oppie sailors finished the season with a Regatta and Party – it was an amazing evening of games on the water, food and prizes.

Thank you to everyone to helped and participated.

Karen

 

After the deluge of last Sunday we were back to warm sunny weather with light winds. Julian B used a Committee Boat start out towards No 5 with a start line parallel to the buoy line. With a SSE wind from nothing to about 4 mph he set the first “beat” to 8 then X (on the buoy line between 5 and 6), 5 and back through the start.

Pursuit Race
Only eight starters this morning probably due to the lack of wind, although we did get two laps in due to the judicious short course. The only early starter was Ron in his Mirror and not surprisingly he was still in the lead at the end of the first lap with Rhys in a full rig Laser in 2nd place. (this may have been Rhys’ first race in a full rig, so he is rapidly following in brother Will’s wake!).
Ron was hoping that the wind did not increase, but Newton & Ellen caught a nice little puff, which worried him but turned out to be too brief to enable them to catch him. At the gun the order was –
1st Ron-Mirror; 2nd Newton & Ellen-RS200; 3rd Mike A-Lightning; 4th Richard S-Laser; 5th Rhys-Laser; 6th Dean & Nick-Vago; 7th Ralph-Laser; 8th William B-Laser

Handicap Race
A little more wind arrived for the second race, about 5-8mph from the SW, so Julian swung the start line round and the course was changed to 4, 9, X and back through the start.

At the end of the first lap Ellen & Newton led by quite a distance from Richard S who was just ahead of Ralph. Mike A and Rhys came through close together in 4th and 5th with Ron about 30 seconds back in 6th place just ahead of William B and Dean & Nick.

On the second lap there was no change in the two leaders. William B had moved up to 3rd with Mike A 4th and Ralph 5th, but these three were very close with Rhys slightly further back. Behind them Dean & Nick had passed Ron.

At the finish Ellen & Newton crossed the line well ahead of Richard and Ralph was back up to 3rd. Final positions on the water were –
1st Ellen & Newton; 2nd Richard S; 3rd Ralph; 4th Mike A; 5th William B; 6th Rhys;
7th Dean & Nick; 8th Ron (on the same lap!)

On handicap the first three are safe but as usual Ron moves up the leader board to 4th spot pushing Mike and William down a place.

Thanks to Julian B and the OOD Team of Mike Tr, Rick and Sally.

It was quite a pleasant evening with a light wind, about 8 mph, from the NW and Julian B elected to use a Tektona start.

There were 17 starters including a family trio of young sailors Emily and Ollie in Toppers and Phoebe in an Oppie.
First back through the line was Newton (Solo) followed by Hugh (Laser) and Steve S in another Solo and these three maintained the same positions for the whole of the five laps of the race!
On the first lap Richard H came through in 4th place but he was down to 10th by the second lap and then retired so he was obviously having a problem with something! Paul H (Laser) was 5th followed by Dean & Nick (Vago), Sally & Mike C (Leader) and Rick (Laser). Mike A (Lightning) and Dave P (National 12 s/h) crossed the line together just in front of Jeremy (Laser) about one minute ahead of Curtis (Laser) and Ron (Mirror). After a bit of a gap Bill turned up in his K1, followed later by Emily leading Ollie and Phoebe at the rear of the fleet. Phoebe received the gun at the end of her first lap.

On the second lap Dave P moved up to 4th and Rick up to 5th with Dean & Nick still in 6th place, Paul H was down to 7th,but Jeremy was up three places to 8th.

On the third lap there was no change in the first four positions but Dean & Nick had moved up to 5th by passing Rick and there had been some good mid-fleet battles which had not resulted in any place changes by the end of the lap. At the end of the lap Emily and Ollie received the finish gun and Curtis retired.

Lap four saw Rick repassing Dean & Nick to reclaim 5th place and Sally & Mike gained three places to move up to 7th with Paul H 8th and Jeremy 9th. Further back Bill had caught and passed Ron and they both received the gun at the end of the lap.

Only one change in position on the last lap as Mike A passed Jeremy, who gets the lantern rouge tonight! The final order on the water was –
1st Newton; 2nd Hugh; 3rd Steve S; 4th Dave P; 5th Rick; 6th Dean & Nick

On handicap the first three retain their positions, but one-lap-less Ron moves up to 4th place pushing Dave P down to 5th with Mike A up to 6th.

Thanks to Julian B and to the OOD Team (sorry – names not on the race sheet, but should have been Sophie, Mark P, Julian W, Gavin and Nick T)

With a SW wind about 12 mph but increasing, John W set the first beat to 5, then 9, 3, 2, 4, 8, 6, 7 (he couldn’t find No 1 in the box!) and back through the start.

Pursuit Race
First back through the line were the early starting Oppies of Jemima and Ed with Ron in his Mirror hanging on to 3rd place. Ominously (for them) the next three boats were Ellen & Newton (RS200), Paul R (Aero) and Julian B (OK) with Simon B (Blaze) fast approaching. At the gun the two fastest boats on paper were through to the lead and the final placings were –
1st Simon; 2nd Paul R; 3rd Jemima; 4th Ellen & Newton; 5th Julian B; 6th Mike Tr, and interestingly Ed was 7th.

Handicap Race
The wind increased for the second race of the day and first man back though the line was Paul R (Aero), but only two seconds in front of Simon (Blaze) with Julian B (OK) about one minute further back. Hugh (Laser) was next through in 4th place just ahead of Newton & Ellen (RS200) and Mike Tr (Laser). Karen and Mark B (Lasers) crossed the line in 7th and 8th places about one minute ahead of Rick in another Laser, who was just ahead of Dave & Ann (Leader). Another minute elapsed before Alistair S (Laser) came along and he was nearly one minute ahead of the next man Ron (Mirror), who in turn was a minute ahead of Dean & Nick in the Vago, but they were only just ahead of Chris H (Comet). Two minutes later Jemima (Oppie) and Dave P (Mirror) crossed the line together only 10 seconds ahead of Ed in the other Oppie and bringing up the rear of the fleet was Sally & Nev in the second Leader out today. So the fleet was well strung out, but tended to be in small groups rather than solitary boats so everyone had some someone to race against.

By the end of the second lap Simon had taken the lead from Paul with Julian B still 3rd, but Newton & Ellen and Mike Tr had passed Hugh to move up to 4th and 5th places. Karen was still 7th but Rick had just got his nose in front of Mark to cross in 8th place. Dean & Nick gained a place to move up to 12th and Sally & Nev moved up two places. Dave P, Jemima and Ed all received the gun at the end of the lap.

At the end of the third and final lap Simon had increased his lead, but Paul was still 2nd and the only change in order behind them was Sally & Nev getting past Chris H. Ron retired on this lap.
The final positions on the water were –
1st Paul R; 2nd Simon B; 3rd Julian B; 4th Newton & Ellen; 5th Mike Tr; 6th Hugh

On handicap the first three retain their positions, but Jemima moves up to 4th pushing Newton & Ellen down to 5th and Mike Tr to 6th.

Thanks to John W and the OOD Team of Bob H, Chris S, Peter R and Steve P.

With only one race left the Summer Series races are finely poised.

In the Pursuit Series, Chris H leads with 10 points, Karen has 12 and Mike Tr 14 points, so it is all down to the wind on the last race of the series. It will probably need to be very windy for Karen and Mike to catch Chris but it is certainly possible.

In the Handicap Series Chris H leads again with 11 points, Ron has 12, Mike Tr 14 and Newton & Ellen on 16 points. Again it probably depends upon the wind in the final race of the series. If it is a light wind day then it will probably be between Chris and Ron, but if the wind gets up then Mike or Newton & Ellen could pip them.

It was a good wind tonight coming from the SW about 12-13 mph. Curtis set the first beat down to 4 then 1, 2, 9, 8, 5, 6, 7 and back through the start.

There were 20 out tonight with a mixed bag (net) of boats. As usual the dominant class (in number anyway) was the Laser and the first four back across the line were Mike Tr, Ellen, Mark B and Ralph. Again as usual, the first non-Laser was Newton in his Solo crossing in 5th place well clear of Hugh (Laser), but he was only just ahead of Dave & Ann (Leader), John H (Laser with the same sail number as the leader not the Leader, that other confusion is the Leader and the RS200!) and Dean & Nick (unmistakeable in more ways than one in their Vago). Then there was another medley of closely spaced boats led (but not for long) by Mike A (Lightning) followed by Sally & Nev (Leader), Chris H (Comet), Paul H (Laser) and Dave I (Radial) and Jeremy (Laser). After about a minute along came another motley trio, Mike T (Radial) Dave P (National 12) and Ron (Mirror) with Joe and John behind them trying to get to grips with a Sport 14. Cheerfully at the back of the fleet was Jemima in her Oppie not worrying about her apparent last place.

On the second lap Ellen seized the lead from Mike Tr with the four boats immediately behind them holding station. John H gained a place passing Dave & Ann with Dean & Nick behind them steady (for the first time ever) in 9th spot. Sally & Nev passed Mike A and Chris H passed both of them and Paul H went one better by passing all of them. Jeremy got past Dave I to gain a place as did Dave P and Ron. Joe & John and Jemima serenely carried on at the rear of the fleet except Jemima did not carry on for long as she received the gun at the end of the lap.

At the end of the last lap there had been no change in the order of the first eight boats, but Chris H had caught Dean & Nick to take 9th place. Mike A had repassed Sally & Nev and Mike T had repassed Ron. The final order on the water was –
1st Ellen; 2nd Mike Tr; 3rd Mark b; 4th Ralph; 5th Newton; 6th Hugh

On handicap – she’s done it again ! Jemima moves up to take 1st place pushing Ellen down to 2nd with Mike Tr 3rd . Newton leapfrogs both Mark and Ralph to take 4th place.

Thanks to Curtis and the OOD Team of Fraser, John H, Martin W and Mike C

Gillette 18 – 15th August 2018

With a SW wind of 14-16 mph and veering between SW and SSW, Chris H set the first beat to 9 then 5, 3, 2, 4, 6, 7 and back through the start.

18 starters tonight and Simon B (Blaze) was first back through the line well ahead of Julian B (OK), then came the Lasers of Karen, Ellen, Hugh and Mark. Newton (Solo) was through in 7th place followed by another three Lasers helmed by Ralph, Mike Tr and Rick. The first two-man boat, the Vago of Dean & Nick, crossed the line in 11th place followed by a trio of Leaders led by Nev & Mike, then Dave & Ann and Sally & Stuart. Right behind them were Paul H and Curtis in Lasers with Bill in his K1 and Sam in her Topper bringing up the rear of the fleet. She received the gun at the end of her first lap, but well done for going out in the frisky conditions.

At the end of the second lap Simon was well ahead and Ellen had moved up to 2nd place by passing both Karen and Julian. Mark and Newton had both got past Hugh to move up to 5th and 6th positions and Hugh and Ralph crossed the line abreast of one another. Dean & Nick moved up to 10th by passing Rick, and Curtis gained four places to move up to 12th. There was no change in the order of the Leaders and they were comfortably (well relatively so given the wind conditions!) ahead of Bill.

Crossing the line at the end of the last lap Simon was five minutes clear of Julian B who had regained 2nd place by repassing Ellen. Ralph and Mike Tr had both passed Mark and Newton to finish in 5th and 6th places, but behind them Newton, Mark and Hugh were virtually together crossing the line ! Nev & Mike had gained three places by passing Rick, Curtis and Dean & Nick. Dave & Ann also got past Dean & Nick, but it was a very close thing with only four seconds between them and only another three seconds back to Sally & Stuart.
Apart from the two lads at the front who got away there was some really close racing throughout the fleet.

The positions on the water were –
1st Simon; 2nd Julian B; 3rd Ellen; 4th Karen; 5th Ralph; 6th Mike Tr

On Handicap the first three will keep their positions, but Newton will move up to 4th pushing Karen down to 5th and Ralph to 6th.

Thanks to Chris H and the OOD team of Issy, Jess B, Monica and Simon R.