Summer Series – 17th July 2022

No one wanted to write the report for this race- with so many boats on the water it was highly likely that epic duels would go unmentioned, with mutterings that the author was only interested in their own race.

Bob in the tower, mostly on his own, was already overwhelmed with the sheer number of boats, so no chance of a rational report from him !

Race 7 got underway in light winds from the East and a number of boats were left well behind the line when the final hooter went. In such lights winds breakages were unlikely but Robin in his Laser managed just that, and spent the start sequences time attempting to fix his downhaul…which he didn’t need anyway. Two catamarans on the water provided obstacles for the dinghies to sail round at the marks with Sam Hefford in his Sprint 15 out on the water for the first time, edging ahead of Pete Wells in the Dart 16 on Handicap. Pietro in his Topper was sailing on track and to the lay lines and was not phased by the faster boats catching up after the start and bearing down on him on starboard. He was beaten by his Dad Corrado, but only one place, which must have been tough. Meanwhile the Lasers of Danny and Neil pulled away with Neil leading most of the way, only to get overtaken on the very last leg by Danny.

Race 8 got underway with a better start for most and the Lasers taking the lead from the start, this time with Danny ahead initially but the first lap the lead swapped between Neil , Danny and Robin. Danny pulled away from the other two, but with the wind dropping again the rest of the fleet closed the gap. In race one of the day the first five places were separated by ten minutes, in race two by just five minutes. Pietro managed to beat his Dad- revenge is sweet and Neil thinking he had second in the bag took his foot off the gas and was nearly pipped by Robin at the finish – one second in it ! Those at the front of fleet may have omitted to notice Nigel in a Topper sneaking along behind them and ultimately splitting those who thought they were front runners.

The discards have kicked in so Laser Danny returns to the top spot. If you would like that explained ask in the comments below the post or on Random Sailing.

Results