14th June Gillette Series 9

A lovely evening, the sun was out and there was a light wind about 8-9 mph from the South, well some of the time! Curtis was having to cope on his own as none of his OOD Team had turned up. Fortunately Barbara A, a new member and newly trained, stepped into the breech to help Curtis out.
Curtis set the first beat down to X (positioned between No 2 and Tektona), then 9p, 5s, 8p, 6s and back through the start.
 
There were 23 starters and first back though the line was Karen (Laser) with Ellen (Laser) chasing her. Newton (Solo) came through in 3rd place followed by the Lasers of Ralph, Mike T, Mark B and Richard H. Next though in 8th place was Julian W (in the second Solo out tonight), closely followed by John H (Laser) and then after a slight gap John’s son Ben (Radial) and Mike A (Lightning). Jeremy T and Paul H in Lasers came through close together with a slight gap back to Sylvia and Peter having an outing in their RS200. The second two man boat in the fleet Sally & Stuart (Leader)were next through and then some way back came Tracey in her Comet followed a minute later by the new promising team of Mike C & Dean in the highly tuned Wanderer and not far behind them was Rick (Laser). Then came Team Oppie with Jemima and Ed sandwiching Chris & Carol in their Sport 14 who were ahead of Robin & Angela (Comet Duo) with a mystery 4.7 (no sail number and no name on the Declaration Sheet!) bringing up the rear.
 
At the end of the second lap there was no change with the order of the first four boats, but Mark had got past Mike T to move up to 5th. John H had gained a place by passing Julian W and Mike A had got past Ben. Sylvia & Peter had moved up three places to 11th. Further back the mystery 4.7 had gained four places and Ed had passed Jemima. The 4.7, Ed, Chris & Carol, Jemima and Robin & Angela received the finish gun at the end of this lap.   
 
The three leaders crossed the line at the end of the last lap in the same positions they had occupied all race long. Mark had gained another place to finish 4th and Sylvia & Peter and Mike C & Dean had made up two more places. Rick had also made up two places by passing Sally & Stuart and Tracey.
Not exactly an exhilarating sail, but a very pleasant one in the late evening sun.
 
Final positions on the water were –
1st Karen; 2nd Ellen; 3rd Newton; 4th Mark; 5th Ralph; 6th Mike T
 
On handicap the first three keep their positions, but Ed should move up to 4th with Jemima 5th and Mark 6th.
 
Thanks to Curtis who coped admirably with his OOD Team of only one – well done and thanks to Barbara!    
 
PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO SIGN IN ON THE DECLARATION SHEET AND IF YOU ARE SAILING A TWO HANDER PUT HELM AND CREW NAMES ON THE SHEET.

ALSO PLEASE ENTER THE CLASS SO THAT THE CORRECT HANDICAP CAN BE APPLIED TO YOUR RESULT. FOR INSTANCE IF YOU ARE SAILING A LASER AND ARE USING A RADIAL SAIL BECAUSE IT IS WINDY, BUT WANT THE FULL RIG HANDICAP TO APPLY FOR THE SERIES MAKE THIS CLEAR ON THE DECLARATION SHEET

11th June Summer Series 3

With a SW wind13-15 mph and gusty Adrian set the first mark as 9, then 6p, 4p, Op (just upwind of Tektona), Xs (near the main slip) and back through the start.
 
Pursuit Race
There were 18 starters and at the end of the first lap the first three boats were Radials with Sylvia leading Hadey and Curtis, then came the full rig Lasers of John H and Jon C. The first non-Laser was Peter S in a standard rig Byte followed by another two Lasers, Ralph and Richard S. The next boat through was the early starter Chris H in his Comet followed by another eight Lasers! (although some of these were flying radial rigs with Ben the only declared Radial).These were Hugh, Dave L, Ben H, Gareth, Franz, Phil A, Mike A and Ken with Mike C and Dean bringing up the rear of the fleet in Mike’s Wanderer . Rounding 6 Phil A stalled slightly and Ken motoring up behind him struck his transom a glancing blow, Mike A went wide to miss them both, tacked on the buoy line and then tangled with poor Ken who was still sorting himself out on port tack. Ken and Phil both decided to retire as did Mike C & Dean, who came in to do some fine tuning on the Wanderer.
At the gun Jon had come through to take the victory, but Sylvia was still well up in 2nd place with Richard S in 3rd.
Final positions were – 1st Jon; 2nd Sylvia; 3rd Richard S; 4th Curtis; 5th John H; 6th Ralph
 
Handicap Race
There was a course change for the second race, the new course being 9, 5, 6, X and back through the start. Curtis, Phil, Ken and Ralph decided not to go out for the second race which left 14 starters.
Just after the start Mike A capsized on the buoy line, became detached from his Laser and had to swim after it. In the meantime Chris H taking avoiding action went into irons and the two boats inexorably drifted together and by the time they had disentangled the rest of the fleet were rounding 9.
First back through the line was Jon with a useful lead on Hugh, John H, Franz, and Richard S, who were fairly close together. Dave L and Hadey came through the line together in 6th place with Sylvia only one second behind them. Then there was a slight gap back to Ben and Gareth in 9th and 10th places who were followed by the only two man boat out today Mike C and Dean in a newly tined Wanderer! Peter S  followed them through and bringing up the rear were Mike A and Chris H.
 
At the end of the second lap there was no change in the leading three, but Richard S was up to 4th and Dave L up to 5th with Hadey 6th and Sylvia up one place to 7th. Gareth had moved up two places to 8th and Peter S was up two to 10th.
 
On the third lap John H, Richard S and Dave L had all moved up one place by passing Hugh and Sylvia had gained another place to move up to 6th. The only other movers was Mike A up three places to 9th  and Chris H had retired.
 
The fourth lap saw no change in the positions of the leading four boats, but Sylvia was up another place to 5th, but there no other movers in the right direction!
 
At the end of the fifth lap the first three remained the same, but yes you have guessed it, Sylvia moved up another place to 4th! Hugh gained a place back to move to 5th and Franz gained two places to move to 6th. Dave L came to grief rounding 6 and retired after getting out of the bushes! Mike A, Peter S and Mike C & Dean all gained a place after Gareth capsized. At the end of the lap Peter S, Mike C & Dean, Ben and Gareth all received the gun.
 
At the end of the final lap there was no change in the positions of the first three, but Franz had gained another two places to move up to 4th.
 
The final positions on the water were –
1st Jon; 2nd John H; 3rd Richard S; 4th Franz; 5th Hugh; 6th Sylvia.
 
On handicap Jon and John H retain their places, but Sylvia should move up to 3rd pushing Franz and Richard S down with Hadey leapfrogging Hugh to take 6th.
 
Thanks to Adrian and the OOD Team of Bill C, Stephen G, Richard K and Ferdinando.
 


7th June Gillette Series Race 8

The forecast was for rain with a SW wind of 13 mph at 7 pm dropping to 11 mph by 8 pm, but the wind was actually 13- 15 mph with gusts of over 20!
Dave L set the first beat to 4 then 2, 3, 9, 5, 6 and X (No 7 was on the bank as the anchor had come adrift, so X was positioned fairly close to the main slip)
 
There were 19 starters and Mark B (Laser) was first back through the line clear ahead of Karen (Laser), Curtis (Radial), Hugh (Laser), Newton (Solo)),Richard H (Laser) and John H (Laser). Then there was a slight gap back to Ralph (Laser, but using a radial rig) and then a bigger gap back to Steve S (Solo) and Franz (Laser). Then there was a full minute before Mike A (Lightning) crossed the line not far in front of Joe (4.7) and Ben (Radial) and then another minute before Sally & Stuart (Leader) came along. There was another large gap before Ed and Jemima turned up in their Oppies and they were just ahead of Mike C (Wanderer) who was well ahead of Jeremy and Paul H in Lasers.
 
At the end of the second lap Hugh had moved up three places to take the lead with Karen still 2nd and Newton up two places to 3rd. Richard H had gained two places to move up to 4th and John H was up one place to 6th with Franz up three to 7th and Ralph steady in 8th. Ben had got past Joe, but these two and Mike A were having a good battle of their own and kept swapping places. Jeremy and Paul H had passed the two Oppies of Ed and Jemima who were gamely battling on in the windy conditions.
Steve S looked as if he had suffered a gear failure as he came back in with his sail half down and Sally & Stuart and Mike C also retired on this lap.
 
On the third lap the leading three maintained position, but Mark had regained a place to move to 4th. Franz moved up to 6th and Curtis regained two places to move to 7th. Ben gained a place to move up to 9th by repassing Joe. Ralph retired on this lap and Ed and Jemima received the finish gun at the end of the lap.
 
At the end of the fourth and last lap Hugh crossed the line in 1st place a full minute ahead of Karen in 2nd with Mark just getting past Newton to take 3rd place. Ben gained another place to move up to 8th and joined Hugh in claiming family bragging rights by finishing ahead of the old man!
Jeremy and Paul H decided to retire on this lap.
 
The final positions on the water were –
1st Hugh; 2nd Karen; 3rd Mark; 4th Newton; 5th Richard H; 6th Franz   
 
The positions on handicap should be interesting because my rough calculation places Hugh and Newton level, but we will have to see what the results app comes up with! Curtis should also move up to 4th pushing Mark down to 5th.
However there is a surprise in store for the leading boats as although Ed and Jemima finished a lap early it is likely that their corrected times will actually put Ed in 1st place and Jemima in 2nd place!
 
So well done to Hugh for getting the lead on the second lap and keeping it right to the end of the race and well done to Ed and Jemima for pressing on in challenging conditions.
 
Thanks to Dave L and the OOD Team of Bob H, Helen, Rob J, Dean J and Ann L (who was pleased not to get wet this week!)   
 
 

Summer Series Race 2 4th June

The forecast was for a WSW wind about 10 mph, but in fact it was slightly stronger than that, probably 12 – 13 mph. Mike A set the first beat to 4 then 2p, 9p, 5s, 8p ,6s, 7s and back though the start
 
Pursuit Race
There were 20 starters and at the end of the first lap Newton & Ellen (RS200) and Paul R (Aero) had caught and passed the early starters and came through close together but well ahead of everyone else.  Dave P (Mirror) would have probably crossed the line in 1st place, but instead of turning down to No 8 he continued across towards 6 and by the time he realised his mistake he decided it was not worth turning back and retired. The Comets of Nev and Chris H were next through the line, but being closed down by James and Richard S in Lasers.
At the gun Paul R had a clear lead from Newton & Ellen and James had moved up to 3rd and Jon up to 4th with Richard S 5th and Hugh 6th.
Other movers up the fleet were Ralph and Rick (Lasers) both up three places and Jeremy up two places. Peter R sailing his Enterprise (single handed) capsized, but did finish the race as he was on the water when the gun sounded.
 
Handicap Race
Neville decided to sit this one out so there were 19 starters for the second race and again Paul and Ellen & Newton came back through the line in 1st and 2nd well ahead of the rest of the fleet. The four Lasers of Richard S, Jon, Hugh and James were next through and Richard and Jon actually crossed the line together. Steve S (Solo) came through in 7th followed by Hadey (Radial) who was just ahead of Dave & Ann (Leader) and Ralph (Laser), closely followed by Sylvia (Radial), Peter S (Byte CII) and William (4.7). Next through the line and abreast of one another were Chris A (Solo) and Rick (Laser), then there was a slight gap back to Jeremy (Laser) and another gap back to Chris H (Comet) with Dave P (Mirror) bringing up the rear. Peter R decided to retire on this lap. The problem with an Enterprise is that once capsized they come up full of water not dry like a Laser!
 
There was no change in the positions of the two leaders at the end of the second lap, but Paul had pulled further ahead. Jon was a clear 3rd, but James had moved up to 4th with Hugh 5th. Richard must have had a moment because he was back to 6th. Further back Sylvia had gained four places to move up to 7th and Rick had also gained four places to move to 10th. Jeremy and Chris H both moved up one place by getting past William. Dave P received the finish gun at the end of the lap.
 
At the end of the third and last lap there was no change with the two leaders, but Richard had come back well to take 3rd place. The other movers up the order were Steve S reclaiming 7th spot from Sylvia, Hadey up one place to 8th, Dave & Ann up one place to 10th and Peter S up two places to11th and Chris A also gained a place.
 
The final positions on the water were –
1st Paul R; 2nd Ellen & Newton; 3rd Richard S; 4th Jon; 5th James; 6th Hugh.
 
On handicap the first four should retain their positions, but Steve S should move up to 5th pushing James down to 6th.
 
Thanks to Mike A and the OOD Team of Dean & Sue J, Damian M, Ken, Will S and Ian S.
 
 

Gillette Series Race 7 31st May

The wind tonight was a bit perverse (so what’s new!, it started off as a light SW wind 6-7 mph and during the race turned completely round to come from the NE. Peter R set the first “beat” to 5 then 9s, 4s, 6s, 7s and back through the start. This had the unintended effect of a beat to 5 and then a beat back to 6!
 
There were 24 starters including four Toppers, two 4.7s and an Oppie all manned by enthusiastic juniors!
As the wind was very light and seemed to be dropping Peter wisely opted for a one lap race and first across the line was Newton (Solo) followed by Mike T (Laser) and Monica (Europe). Mike A (Lightning) came in 4th with Chris A (Solo) 5th and Mike N & William (his grandson) 6th in their Leader.
This may well have been William’s first race, so I hope that he enjoyed it.
 
Well done to Bea who resolutely battled on to finish in her Oppie despite the wind dropping..
 
There were a number of class battles and the positions in the class are listed below:
Topper – 1 Edward; 2 Ben; 3 Jemima; 4 Rhys
Leaders -1 Mike & William; 2 Hugh & Hadey; 3 Dave & Ann
Lasers – 1 Mike T; 2 John H; 3 Paul H
Solos – 1 Newton; 2 Chris A: 3 Julian W
Comet – 1 Tracey; 2 Nev
4.7 – 1 Joe; 2 William
  
On handicap it is likely that Edward will take 1st position pushing Newton down to 2nd with Ben moving up to 3rd, Monica 4th, Mike T 5th and Mike A 6th.
 
Thanks to Peter R and the OOD Team of Dave H, Roland L and Sally.
 

21st May Spring series Races

The wind was S veering SSW and about 8-10 mph and Mike A set the first mark as X about halfway between 4 and 5, but further into the middle of the lake) then 2, 4, 9, 5, 8, 6, 7 and back through the start (he could not find the numbers 1and 3 in the box!)  
 
Pursuit
There were 19 starters and the race lasted only about a lap and half due to Mike’s giant slalom course.
In the lead at the end of the only completed lap were Newton & Ellen (RS200) followed by Sylvia (Laser), Dave & Ann (Leader), Hugh (Laser – already back from Uni for the Summer) then his old man Curtis (Radial) and Ralph (Laser). At the finish gun Newton & Ellen still led with Sylvia 2nd, but Richard S (Laser) had moved up to 3rd with Hugh still 4th. Karen (Laser) was now 5th with Dave & Ann down to 6th. The other movers up the order were James (Laser) up to 8th and Gareth (Laser) up to 11th. Chris A (Solo) retired as his boat was making water after a collision with another boat, let’s hope the damage is not too bad. Julian B and family out in a Mirror were going well and still led approaching the end of the first lap, but then went straight on at 5 instead of coming down to 8. They realised the mistake and turned but then found themselves coming into 8 on port with a stream of boats coming down on starboard with no way through them, so they also decided to retire and enjoy a leisurely sail.
Final Placings were –
1st Newton & Ellen; 2nd Sylvia; 3rd Richard S; 4th Hugh; 5th Karen; 6th Dave & Ann
 
Handicap
There were 16 starters for the second race, with the loss of the Mirror, Radial and Solo, and Karen got a cracking start, but the boats crossing the line last were unfortunate as the wind died right away and they could only wallow on the line watching the rest of the fleet stream down the lake.
 
Karen led by a long way at the end of the first lap with Sylvia coming through in 2nd place a minute and a half behind her. Richard S was 3rd just ahead of Peter R who was going well single handed in his Enterprise. The next bunch of boats were very close to one another and led by Ralph (Laser) followed by Hugh, then Ellen & Newton (who had done well to make up ground after being one of the late becalmed starters). Virtually crossing the line at the same time were James, Dave & Ann, Gareth, Dean & Nick (Vago), Alistair S (Laser) and Adrian (single handed Vago). Bringing up the rear were Chris H (Comet), Hadey (4.7 – not usually this far back) and Rick (Laser – having trouble with his tiller). Chris H retired at the end of this lap.
 
By the end of the second lap Richard S had moved up to 2nd and Ellen & Newton were up to 3rd.
James had moved up two places to 5th and Dave & Ann had gained two places to move up to 7th and Rick and Hadey both gained a place. Everyone else either maintained station or lost ground (or should that be lost water, although in my experience most boats gain water during the course of the race especially old wooden ones! 
 
At the end of the third and last lap the leading four boats crossed the line in the same order with Karen still well ahead. Peter R had regained two places to move up to 5th and Ralph made up three places to move to 6th.  Further down the fleet Alistair S, Hadey and Adrian all gained a place.
 
The final places on the water were –
1st Karen;  2nd   Richard S; 3rd Ellen & Newton; 4th Sylvia; 5th Peter R; 6th Ralph
 
On handicap the first three should retain their positions, but Peter should move up to 4th with Dave & Ann up to 5th and Hadey up to 6th.
 
Considering their good performance it was a little ungallant of Dave to dump Ann in the water when they came into the jetty !
 
Thanks to Mike A and the OOD Team of David F, John H and Brian M.
 

Gillette 5 17th May

Well after a long dry spell, the monsoon season had arrived ! It had been raining all day and continued to do so through the evening. There was no SOOD so Carol M, Clare D and Ann D volunteered to run the race with a little help from some of the racers, especially those who did not fancy venturing out in a light wind and steady rain ! The wind was roughly NW about 7 mph, although it varied in strength and direction and the course was 6p, 9s, 5s and Orange p (just out and to the left of the smaller slip). The OOD Team decided to use the mast on the decking as one end of the start line, which was a wise decision in the unremitting downpour as at least they had some shelter.
 
In the light wind the race was a one lap affair and there were only six starters. Karen (Laser) led at the first mark followed by Mike A (Lightning) and Newton (Solo). Slightly further back were Nick & Dean (Vago) ahead of Jeremy T (Laser) and Jemima (Oppie). By the second mark Mike was just ahead of Newton with Karen further back, but Nick and Dean were gaining fast. Newton passed Mike on the way down to the Orange buoy and crossed the line in first place.
 
Final positions on the water were –
1st Newton; 2nd Mike A 3rd Nick & Dean; 4th Karen.
 
Jeremy would have been 5th and Jemima 6th, but the wind died away and Jemima was rescued by brother Edward who was out in a canoe (probably the fastest craft on the water!) Jeremy appeared to make the finish line, but was listed as a DNF, so perhaps he gave up hope of ever actually crossing the line !
 
On handicap Mike will probably just pip Newton, but the other positions should remain unchanged.
 
Thanks to the OOD Team of Ann, Clare and Carol and to those who provided assistance.  

BBQ Series Race 1: Sunday 21st May 14:30

A reminder that the BBQ series starts this Sunday at 14:30. The format will be as before, fun informal racing for youth and juniors (but big kids are welcome as well), but around a theme of a famous sailing race. The first in the series will be the “Round the Island”.  As less challenging course will be set for any Oppies not brave enough for a circumnavigation (so Hurst point and back !). 

 Not sure that the weather will necessarily play along, but if it does why not make an afternoon of it and bring along your own BBQ ? 

 
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