Reading Sailing Club Members

Another hot sunny day for the second Sunday in a row, but guess what – very little wind again. The forecast was for 3- 4 mph from the NNE and if you got that you were lucky! Mark B set a short course with 4 as the first mark, then 2, X and back through the start.

Pursuit Race
Only 5 starters this morning, the rest were in the garden sipping aperitifs. At the end of the lap Chris H had caught the Mirrors of Ron and Jules and was in the lead with Ron still 2nd and Karen up to 3rd.
At the gun Chris was still leading with Karen now up to 2nd place, Ron 3rd, John W 4th and Jules 5th.

Handicap Race
All five started the second race and at the end of the first lap Karen led followed by Chris then John W and these three were already some eight minutes ahead of Ron and Jules.
These positions did not change throughout the race, but the gaps between them widened. Ron and Jules received the gun at the end of the second lap, but the other three were sent round for one more.
The final positions were –
1st Karen(Laser); 2nd Chris H (Comet); 3rd John W (Laser); 4th Ron (Mirror); 5th Jules (Mirror)

These positions did not change when the RYA handicap was applied.

Thanks to Mark B and the OOD Team of Bill C, Ian S, Patrick C and Will S.,

A lovely hot sunny day for the start of the 2018 Summer Series, but there was very little wind !

Pursuit Race
Despite the patchy wind there were 14 starters and by the gun Ellen & Newton had managed to catch the early starters to take the win. The final positions at the gun were –
1st Ellen & Newton (RS200); 2nd Chris H (Comet); 3rd Karen (Laser); 4th Laser 1374239; 5th Mike Tr (Radial); 6th James (Laser)

Handicap Race
James, Simon (Blaze), Dave I, Rick and Jules all decided not to contest the second race, presumably they had to be home in time for tea or supper!
The race was a one lap affair and lasted about 30 minutes. Wisely Dave L decided not to send them round again or it might have been very much longer and some might have missed their bedtime as well as supper.
At the end of the lap the positions on the water were –
1st Newton & Ellen; 2nd Mike Tr; 3rd Mark (Laser); 4th Nick & Dean (Vago); 5th Karen; 6th Laser 137439 (rumoured to be Steve S?); 7th Adrian (Rooster); 8th Chris H; 9th Ron (Mirror)

On handicap the first two will keep their positions but Ron will move up to 3rd place with Chris up to 4th and Mark and Nick & Dean will tie for 5th place.

Thanks to Dave L and the OOD Team of Ann L, Alistair and several others who pitched in to help.

The wind was about 12 mph from the NNE and Mike A used an Island start with a first beat down to X (in the middle of the lake about level with No 8) then 5p, 9s, 4p, 2p and back through the start.

There were 18 starters and it turned out to be a five lap affair with some really close tussles. Karen (Laser) was a clear leader at the end of the first lap followed by Mark and Ellen in Lasers who crossed the line together. Then came the two Solos of Steve S and Newton who had a close battle for most of the race. There was a very close battle between the next four boats of Hugh (Laser), Rick (Laser), Curtis (Radial) and Dean & Nick (Vago) and this also continued throughout the race .After a gap of about 40 seconds another three boats crossed the line in close order led by Sally & Stuart (Leader) then Jeremy (Laser) and Paul H (Laser). Two minutes elapsed before Ron (Mirror) turned up and he was about the same distance ahead of Ed and Jemima in Oppies and Thomas M in his Topper with Luke (Topper)and Chris & Carol (Sport 14) bringing up the rear of the fleet.

At the end of the second lap Karen still led, but Ellen had squeezed past Mark to move up to 2nd place with Steve S and Newton still chasing them. Both Rick and Curtis had got past Hugh to move up to 6th and 7th places and Paul H had made up two places to 10th place.

On the third lap there was no change in order with the first five boats, but Hugh had regained 6th spot with Rick 7th and Dean & Nick up one place to 8th by passing Curtis. The only change lower down the fleet was Thomas gaining one place by passing Jemima. Luke received the gun at the end of this lap and well done to him as this was his first race.

No change in the leading four on the fourth lap, but Hugh gained another place by getting past Newton to take 5th place from him and that was the only change of position on this lap. Ed, Thomas, Jemima and Chris & Carol all received the gun at the end of the lap.

At the end of the final and sixth lap there was no change in the order of the first six boats, but Dean & Nick had got past Rick to move up to 7th and Jeremy had passed Sally & Stuart to take 11th place.
The final order on the water was –
1st Karen; 2nd Ellen; 3rd Mark; 4th Steve S; 5th Hugh; 6th Newton

On Handicap Karen and Ellen should keep their 1st and 2nd places, but Ed will move up to 3rd with Jemima 4th pushing Steve down to 5th and Mark down to 6th.

Thanks to Mike A and the OOD Team of Ann D, Clare D, Graham K, Mike C and Simon B (Blaze).

It was a very light wind this morning, only about 5 mph from the SE which presented a problem in setting a course. James settled for 5, 4, 1, 2 and back through the start.

Pursuit Race
11 starters this morning and the first three at the end of the first lap were still in those positions at the gun. Peter R (Enterprise) who was 4th was caught and passed by the Lasers of Karen and Alistair S before the gun. Adrian (Vago) just managed to get past Rhys (Topper) and further back Dave & Ann L (Leader) were sandwiched by the Vaz Mirror flotilla with Ron leading the line backed up by Jules.
The final positions were –
1st Newton & Ellen (RS200); 2nd Chris H (Comet); 3rd Mike Tr (Radial); 4th Karen (Laser); 5th Alistair S (Laser) 6th Peter R (Enterprise)

Handicap Race
James made a slight course change using X in place of 5 and everyone started the second race. Peter R was first back through the line with Ellen & Newton in 2nd place and Karen in 3rd, just 10 seconds ahead of Chris H. There was then a gap of about four minutes before Dave & Ann came through the line followed by Alistair S and Adrian. Another two minutes elapsed and Mike Tr crossed the line about one minute ahead of Ron, Jules and Rhys.

By the end of the second lap Newton & Ellen had taken the lead with Karen in 2nd and Chris H in 3rd place and Peter R down to 4th. Adrian had gained two place to move up to 7th and Ron was up one to 8th place.

No change in the top four on the third lap, but Alistair gained two places to move to 5th and there were no other changes. Alistair, Dave & Ann, Adrian, Ron, Mike Tr, Jules and Rhys all received the gun at the end of this lap.

The four leaders sailed on for another lap and Karen crossed the line in 1st place having caught and passed Ellen & Newton.

The final positions on the water were –
1st Karen; 2nd Ellen & Newton; 3rd Chris H; 4th Peter R; 5th Alistair S; 6th Dave & Ann.

On handicap Karen will keep 1st place, but Chris will move up to 2nd with Ellen & Newton 3rd, Peter R 4th and Ron and Jules moving up to 5th and 6th.

Thanks to James and the OOD Team of Claire D, Gareth D and Richard H.

There was quite a brisk wind tonight going up to about 15 mph and coming from the NNE most of the time, but veering around N as usual. Ellen was on duty for the second Wednesday in a row.

There were 13 starters and 12 finishers, but not all on the same lap.
At the end of the first lap the leading 10 boats were all still fairly close together with Mark (Laser) in the lead followed by Newton (Solo) and Nick & Dean (Vago). Curtis (Radial) came through in 4th place just ahead of the Lasers of Richard H, Ralph and Rick and the Supernova of Paul H. Jeremy (Laser) was about 20 seconds behind them with Sally & Stuart (Leader) another 20 seconds further back. Then along came the Oppies of Jemima and Ed with Ron (Mirror) close behind them.

On the second lap there was quite a bit of manoeuvring going on. Mark was still leading by a minute from Nick & Dean who had moved up to 2nd and Ralph had gained three places to move up to 3rd with Richard H moving up to 4th. Paul H had passed Rick, and Sally & Stuart has passed Jeremy and further back Ron had caught and passed Ed.

By the end of the third lap Newton had regained 3rd place and Ralph had retired, not sure if he took to the water or something broke. Richard H and Curtis were still 4th and 5th respectively. Paul H gained another place to move up to 6th with Sally & Stuart repassing Jeremy to move up to 7th. Ron had moved up three places to 9th passing Rick, and the Oppie of Jemima.

There was no change in the positions of the three leaders on the fourth lap, but Curtis passed Richard H to move up to 4th. Paul H, Sally & Stuart, and Jeremy remained 6th, 7th and 8th with Rick repassing Ron to move to 9th. Ed had caught and passed Jemima and they both received the finish gun at the end of the lap.

The only change on the fifth lap was Jeremy repassing Stuart & Sally to move up one place to 7th.
Paul H, Jeremy, Sally & Stuart, Rick and Ron all received the gun at the end of this lap.

At the finish gun Mark crossed the line well ahead of Nick & Dean with Curtis moving up to 3rd by passing Newton and Richard H.

The final positions on the water were –
1st Mark; 2nd Nick & Dean; 3rd Curtis; 4th Newton; 5th Richard H; 6th Paul H

On handicap there will be quite a change with Ed taking 1st place and Jemima 2nd. Mark will drop to 3rd, Curtis 4th, Newton 5th and Nick & Dean 6th.

Thanks to Ellen and the OOD Team of Ann D, Carol M, Cliff P, Martin W and Simon B.

With the wind from the West about 10 mph, David C set the first beat down to 4, then 2s, 3s, 9s, 1s and back through the start.

Pursuit Race
There were 12 starters including newcomer Mike Tr (Radial). Welcome to the fleet Mike and join the other Mikes who race. We’ll soon be able to hold our own “Mike” class race!
Ken (Laser) did not make the end of the first lap as he decided to retire and the positions at the end of the first lap were not much different from the positions at the gun, which were –
1st Newton & Ellen (RS200); 2nd Richard S (Laser); 3rd Chris H (Comet); 4th Karen (Laser); 5th Nev (Comet); 6th Mark (Laser)

Handicap Race
As usual Dave I went for his early cup of tea and Ken had not changed his mind, so the fleet was down to 10 and the wind was also threatening to leave!
There were only two laps and the leading three on the first lap Ellen & Newton, Karen and Mark were still in those positions at the end of the second lap. Richard S who was 4th on the first lap was pushed down to 6th by Chris H and Peter S (Byte). Rick moved up to 7th and Mike Tr dropped from 5th to 8th with Nev (Comet) getting past Adrian (Vago) to move to 9th.
The final positions on the water were –
1st Ellen & Newton; 2nd Karen; 3rd Mark; 4th Chris H; 5th Peter S; 6th Richard S.

On handicap Ellen & Newton retain their 1st place , but Chris and Peter move up to 2nd and 3rd with Karen down to 4th and Mark to 5th with Mike Tr up to 6th.

Thanks to David C and the OOD Team of John W, Karen A, Mike N, Patrick C and Tim B.

There was a reasonable wind tonight about 11 mph from the WSW. Ellen set a first beat down to 4 then 9s, 3p, 8p, 6s, 7s and back through the start.

There were 19 starters and it was good to see a mini fleet of juniors with Ed and Jemima in Oppies and Thomas in a Topper.

The first three back through the start were Karen (Laser), Mark (Laser) and Steve S (Solo), but Dean & Nick (Vago) and Newton (Solo) were not too far behind them. Dave & Ann (Leader) came through in 6th place just ahead of Curtis (Radial), then 40 seconds later Peter S (Byte), Rick (Laser) and Sally & Stuart (Leader) arrived in close company. Further back Mike A (Lightning, Paul H (Laser) and Jeremy (Laser) were having their own race some four minutes ahead of the juniors with Jemima and Thomas crossing the line together with Ed just behind them. At the rear of the fleet Dave P (Mirror) was ahead of Chris& Carol (Sport 14) with newcomer Andy B (Radial) following them.

At the end of the second lap there was no change in the first three, but Newton had passed Dean & Nick to move up to 4th place and Rick had gained three places to move to 6th. Sally & Stuart and Paul H were up one place. Further back Chris & Carol and Andy B had made up four places and Jemima was leading the juniors with Edward now 2nd and Thomas 3rd.
Chris & Carol, Andy B, Jemima, Edward, Thomas and Dave P all received the gun at the end of this lap.

The race finished at the end of the third lap with Karen crossing the line in 1st place with Mark still 2nd and Newton gaining the Solo honours by just pipping Steve S for 3rd. The other movers on this last lap were Paul H and Jeremy who both gained a place. The final positions on the water were –
1st Karen; 2nd Mark; 3rd Newton; 4th Steve S; 5th Dean & Nick; 6th Rick

On handicap, if the juniors are included in the main fleet, the positions would be –
1st Jemima; 2nd Edward; 3rd Karen; 4th Newton; 5th Steve S; 6th Mark B

If the fleets are split the juniors would be –
1st Jemima; 2nd Edward; 3rd Thomas and the seniors would be –
1st Karen; 2nd Newton; 3rd Steve S; 4th Mark B; 5th Dave & Ann; 6th Sally & Stuart

Who said – “life is simple” over to the Racing Sec to sort that one out!

Thanks to Ellen and the OOD team of Alistair S, Helene W, Nigel L and Simon (Blaze).

It was a lovely hot sunny morning, but there was hardly any wind and what there was kept changing direction. Paul R attempted to solve this problem by setting a course in the shape of a box using X, 9, 3 and 2 in the hope that at least there would be a beat at some time.

There were only four takers and it was rumoured that James pulled rank and insisted on the race taking place as he saw the chance of an easy victory ! In the event it was the bloke with the biggest sail (Adrian flying his Rooster) who was six minutes ahead of the fleet at the end of the first lap (the bigger the sail the more wind it can catch – which can be a problem in high winds but not today).
James was in 2nd place and Carol M (first time out in her sister’s Laser) was having a close battle with Rhys in his Topper for 3rd place.

By the end of the second lap James had made some inroads on Adrian’s lead and Carol had pulled further ahead of Rhys. These latter two received the gun at the end of this lap, but Paul made the two leaders go round again (well they did want to sail)

At the end of the race James had made up a little more time on Adrian, but would it be enough on handicap to snatch victory? Well the short answer is NO, so Adrian took the victory.

The final positions were –
1st Adrian; 2nd James; 3rd Rhys; 4th Carol.

Thanks to Paul R and the OOD Team of Bill C, Chris M; Nigel L and Richard H, some of whom managed to stay awake for the whole of the race.

Quite a pleasant morning, but there was only a light wind of about 6 mph and it was very shifty. Karen set the course as Xp, 5p, 9s, 2s, 3s and back through the start.

Pursuit Race
There were only 8 starters this morning, which was surprising considering the warm sunny weather. The order at the end of the first lap was pretty well the finishing order and it was only in the last 30 seconds that the lead changed when Newton & Ellen (RS200) overtook Chris H (Comet).
The final order was –
1st Newton & Ellen; 2nd; Chris H; 3rd Richard S; 4th Dave I; 5th Dave & Ann; 5th Rick; 7th Adrian; 8th Will & the Grandkids.

Handicap Race
Everyone started the second race with the addition of Steve S in his Solo.  The wind was now shifting all over the place and kept coming and going.

The leaders at the end of the first lap were Ellen & Newton (RS200) followed by Richard S (Laser) and Steve S (Solo). Rick (Laser) was 4th with Chris H (Comet) 5th and Dave & Ann (Leader) in 6th place with Dave I (Laser) 7th and Adrian (Vago) 8th with Will & the Grandkids (Enterprise) bringing up the rear (which is hardly surprising knowing the unpredictability of grandkids!)

On the second lap Steve S moved up to 2nd place and Dave I got past Dave & Ann to move up to 6th place. Will and his merry crew received the finish gun at the end of the lap.

On the last lap the first three kept their positions, but Dave & Ann moved up three places to 4th and Dave I got past Chris to move up to 5th. The final positions on the water were –
1st Ellen & Newton; 2nd Steve S; 3rd Richard S; 4th Dave & Ann; 5th Dave I; 6th Rick

On handicap Steve S will move up to 1st place with Ellen & Newton 2nd. Chris H moves up to 3rd with Dave & Ann still 4th, Richard S down to 5th and Dave I in 6th place.

Thanks to Karen and the OOD Team of Chris A, Chris M, Doug H and Stuart.

It was a very pleasant evening with the sun out, but the West wind of about 12 -10 mph gave Newton a bit of a problem in setting the start line. He settled for a safety boat start with the line parallel to the bank going directly out to X on the buoy line then 9s, 5p, 8p, Op (Red flag buoy just North of 8 and halfway along the start line)) and then back through the start line.

14 starters tonight and it was good to see Simon Ba back on the water with his yellow Laser.
There was a bit of a kerfuffle at the first mark with boats coming down the buoy line on starboard encountering boats on port trying to nip across to round the mark!
The other Simon (Blaze) was first back through the line followed by five Lasers led by Karen then Ellen, Curtis, Rick and Simon, although Curtis was using a Radial rig. Mike A (Lightning was next through and having a good tussle with Paul H (Supernova) with Sally & Stuart (Leader) and Richard H (Laser) not far behind them. Then along came Jeremy (Laser) Dave & Ann (Leader) and Chris & Carol (Sport 14) who were all close together and bringing up the rear was Jemima (Oppie) who was the only junior out on the water.

Simon, Karen and Ellen were still 1, 2 and 3 at the end of the second lap, but Rick had passed Curtis to move up to 4th place. Further back the only other mover was Richard H who had got past Sally & Stuart to move to 9th.

On the third lap there was no change in order for the first five, although Karen had moved closer to Simon (Blaze) in the lead. Richard H had gained three places to move to 6th and David & Ann had passed Jeremy.

On lap four no change at the front but a good battle in mid fleet with Simon (Laser) retaking Richard H and Jeremy moving up two places by passing the Leaders, who were having their own race with . Dave & Ann just getting past Sally & Stuart. Jemima received the gun at the end of this lap

At the end of the fifth lap Simon (Laser) had just passed Curtis to move up to 5th place when along came Simon (Blaze) to lap everyone else. So Curtis now in 6th place received the finish gun as did everyone behind him. Further back the battle waged on as Jeremy was retaken by both the Leaders.

The first five had to do an extra lap, although some of them were finishing before the other boats had completed their fifth lap as there was quite a bit of overlapping!

The final order on the water was –
1st Simon (Blaze); 2nd Karen: 3rd Ellen; 4th Rick; 5th Simon (Laser); 6th Curtis

On handicap Karen will take 1st place with Simon 2nd and Ellen 3rd, but Jemima should move up to 4th with Mike A up to 5th and Curtis 6th.

Thanks to Newton and the OOD Team of Cliff, Mark H, Nick and Tracey.