Sunday, January 15, 2012

Another great day at Weymouth

Another great days fun racing was had by all at WYC today.

A small but quality fleet of seven boats fronted to start the first race, in 20+ degrees, flat water, and fresh 12-15 knot winds.

We had a couple of Sunbursts, a Paper Tiger cat, and one each of Starling, Topper, Frostbite, and NZ Moth. On paper it should have been an easy win for Pete in the cat, followed by Rob in the moth, and then it would be anyone's guess to pick the finishing order, as all the rest of the fleet share the same handicap.

In practise it was a different story, as a windward-leeward course was set, to minimise the cat's advantage.

In the first race, Keith in the frostbite and Murray in the sunburst took advantage of some race-rust on the part of the other competitors, and got a jump right off the startline. Rob took a quick dip a second after crossing the start, as the moth tried to shed it's rider. The others all had to play catch-up from then on.

Around the first mark, Keith had a small lead over Murray, with Angela in the Starling up in third, and Gina in the Topper close behind in fourth. With a big downwind leg ahead, it looked like the battle of the girls was about to get interesting, but as Gina gybed, the kicking strap tore out of the mast, so her race was done. Rob in the Sunburst and Pete in the PT were next, followed by Rob in the Moth.

For the rest of the race, the order didn't really change, except for Pete finding the gas pedal, and pulling through to third place, just ahead of Angela.

In the second race, the start was much more hotly contested,with Rob K, Angela, Murray, and Keith all crossing the line right on the gun. Murray got his nose in front just before the top mark, and had a big battle with Keith, and Rob, to hold on to the lead. Angela couldn't quite keep up with these three in the conditions, but stayed pretty close. The moth grew its wings in this one, and although Murray did his best, Rob flew past, and got into second, as Keith just got the win.

A third race was started, but no official results were recorded. On the water, it was the PT just heading off the Frostbite, with the Sunburst and Moth close behind. Rob L, in the other sunburst, and Angela in the Starling both had involuntary dips courtesy of a windy flat run.

After the sailing, everyone was smiling ear to ear, and vowed to return.

Things are looking up, with the fleet slowly building in size, and beautiful sailing conditions. Come on down and join the fun - you can even get a fizzy drink and choccy bar afterward!

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