A mid summer fun weekend was planned, it’s a shame the weather put a literal dampener on some of the proceedings, not that the rain dampened enthusiasm!
Sunday started brighter, but with the threat of more rain in the afternoon. There was a good westerly breeze for the Celebrity Glass Pursuit which was being held as a two race series.
Jim/Poppy were first to start in their Hartley and held off the rest of the fleet for most of the first lap, but were overtaken by the GPs in which Val/Ken were putting up a good fight against Dave/Lynn. Some good gusts on the reaches helped Scumper/Joe in their RS400 claw back ground and take the overall lead with a leg to spare.
The afternoon race wind was a bit more variable and eased as the race went on. There were still gusts strong enough for AJ/Sue to recall what it is like to capsize, but they were not as prolonged as in the morning. This time Tony in his Solo led for half the race before being passed by Dave/Lynn, and they held the lead to the finish, though Scumper was very close on their tail at the end. As both Dave and Scumper had a 1st and a 2nd, the tie was split on the last race in favour of Dave.
After a cloudy morning, the clouds started to part, the heat of the sun was felt, which was useful to combat the cooler than recent breeze, from a more typical SW. Indeed many were pleasantly surprised by the strength of the breeze that led to a few capsizes, and some good planing conditions.
Ian/LezliAnn took an early lead in the F15s in both races, but their downfall in the first race was rounding a windward mark the wrong way, which Neil/Rory took advantage of, and held 1st position through to the finish. In the second race, Neil sailed a better beat to take the lead through to the finish, though Ian remained on his tail throughout.
Robbie D/Banter in their 400, and Scumper in his 100, were the main contenders in the fast handicap fleet. Despite having the slower boat of the two, Scumper had some close battles with Robin, taking water at one mark (whether he had it or not!), only to get his comeuppance when he capsized, and struggled to right it as nimbly as he did the Vareo.
No particular changes of position in the slow handicap fleet, with Jim leading the fleet in his Hartley, followed by John in his Pico, and Mik back on the water in his Mirror.
Sunday started with the wind blowing down the eastern edge of the lake as Sale Fell shadowed the western edge. By the time racing started the wind had backed a little to the south so that OD Neil Garrison could get a beat from 1 to 8 and then zig zag the fleet back downwind again. The various gybe marks were the downfall of several helms in the stronger winds, one being Joan/Jack leaving Val/Ken to continue to the finish to take a 1st place in the GPs. The same happened in the next race, resulting in Val winning the McMillan Cup.
Neil had a fresh crew in the F15s, and the strengthening conditions suited him and Nick, securing another two 1sts with a good lead to win the Ullock Mug and let him finish early to go and watch the tennis!
With no racing in the slow handicap fleet, John Roberts results on Saturday earned him the Round Table Trophy with Mik finishing 2nd, and too shattered to race on Sunday!
With overall positions being very close, the cream of the fast handicap fleet battled it out to the end and were suitably shattered after the 5th race. It was Robbie D/Banter that secured the trophy from Scumper with Alex/Olivia 3rd.
We had overcast skies but a constant medium wind from the North East. Julie chose a 0-2 beat and then a near run to 9. Using B midway to 0 this gave three kite legs although the final one was tight.
There were sixteen starters although John got the Musto�s fixed rudder trapped by the Bates� anchor warp and nearly had to capsize to extract it! It was a long line and most went for the port end. Tony�s Solo had a good start as did the Geeps of Joan & Jack and Val & Ken. The Solo got ahead but Joan got through by the end of the beat, both boats remaining close throughout the race.
Josh retired his Tera although Owen persevered in his. Steve & Simon turtled their L2000 but the Safety crew was on hand to make sure they righted it and continued.
As usual when there is enough wind, the Musto rocketed ahead and completed four laps. Both Geeps, enjoying three kite legs on each lap, flew them right to 0 but this nearly caught Joan & Jack out when a gust caught them as they were dropping for the final time.
Then, it was in for an excellent meal prepared by Karen and production of results. On FH it was Tony from Joan & Jack, John, Val & Ken and Mike�s Streaker. The PH winner, putting in a superb performance, was Jon Anson in his Laser. The sister boat of Peter Winfindale was classified second.
Three boats from Bassenthwaite competed at the FF Scottish Nationals at Kippford over the weekend.
The first day was good sailing after being towed out from the estuary sailors were surprised to find a force 4/5 wind making good exciting sailing. At the end of the day, after two races, Neil Currie/Rory were lying 5th, Simon Longstaff/Jonathan 6th and Mike Moore/Kayla were 7th.
In the evening everyone feasted on Loch Fyne produce and listened to Simon Longstaff telling everyone that there would be no wind on Sunday. Morning dawned with only a slight breeze at the clubhouse so Simon/Jon packed up the boat and departed for home. The rest of the fleet were towed out to sea and had two good races starting in a force 3 but dropping towards the end of the second race. However there was still enough wind to allow the fleet to sail back up to the clubhouse on a dead run against a strong current.
At the end of the event 18 boats had competed and the event was won by Steve Goacher (what a surprise!!). Neil/Rory moved up to 4th after listening to Steve’s tuning lecture on Saturday afternoon. Mike/ Kayla finished 8th and Simon Jon 12th (not helped by counting a DNS)
A cloudy start to the day cleared offering mainly sunny spells throughout the afternoon.�With�no wind at home, several people who turned up were surprised by the strength of the wind as there was�some white horses. It again�blew from the NE though at 22C it was�warmer than recently, and warmer than many other areas of the country!
Although the F15s were competing at Kippford in the Scottish Championship, and no doubt looking forward to an evening sponsored by Loch Fyne, there were 17 boats racing for the first races in, inter alia, the Autumn Trophy! (Hopefully Summer is over just yet?). In the GPs, Val/Ken seemed to lose ground for a while (what wasn’t Ken doing that Val thought he should?!), and the first race was won by John/Nigel with a good lead. In the second race, Val/Ken found their form, holding off Joan/Jack though to the finish.
Jim in a�Hartley won both slow handicap races from John in a Pico. There were some consistent results in the fast handicap fleet, with Scumper winning both races in his 100, Tony had two 2nds in his Solo, Robbie D/Banter two 3rds in their 400, and Peter two retirements in his Solo!
Mike was sailing his Streaker, capsized over the Bates almost taking out Herb, the official starter, who said his eyesight was squiffy, then he realised his lens had been knocked out of his specs!
Sunday’s forecast was for light airs, which may have put some sailors off, but the wind filled in suitably for the morning racing, and the sun continued to shine! Ian Hall won in his Solo ahead of Mike in his Streaker, while John/Jack took the honours in the GPs from Val/Ken. Jim C took another win in the slow handicap ahead of John in his Pico. Amber took to the helm of a Mirror, but someone hadn’t given her a full fighting chance as the mainsail was not fully raised…
The wind disappeared totally over lunch but made a reappearance, and with a few remaining sailors prepared for the water a race was started in light airs that rapidly faded again. Jim had taken to his Supernova to tune it back up, not that the conditions were suitable for that, and took an early lead but the lack of wind worked against him and he subsequently retired. With the conditions not looking likely to improve the race was shortened at the first rounding of 0. With the threat of rain, after leading the fleet across the finish line, Val/Ken rushed ashore so Ken could�put the hood up on his open topped car! Fortunately, the rain held off at the club and attacked Binsey instead. Next across the line was Mike in his Streaker who, on handicap, secured 1st pace from Val by just two secs.
Next weekend we host a multitude of open meetings viz Topper NW areas, Laser Travellers, Solo open alongside club racing in the form of a fleet challenge.
The start of half term, another Bank Holiday, and another camping weekend resulted in the unusual sight of a revision/homework table in the clubhouse on Friday night.
Saturday was delightfully sunny, and despite�a forecast for very light airs, the wind did fill in to get racing underway. However, it was neither steady in direction or strength, and there were various lulls for sailors to contend with, along with occasional planing conditions.
Dave/Lynn and Scumper/Zefer mastered the varying conditions and each secured two wins in their respective fleets. In the F15s, Mike/Kayla and Ian M each had a win, while Jim C won the only race in the slow handicap fleet
A�communal barbeque on Saturday night proved very popular.
Blue skies were the order of the day for Sunday, with�slightly greater wind strength than Saturday, though just as shifty and inconsistent in strength! Another good turnout of 32 boats including, notably, six Mirrors with an abundance of junior crews. Ian P has been enjoying his exploits in a Mirror, but has a bit of tweaking to do to ensure his rudder stays attached to the hull! Could it be true that ‘interaction’ between a Mirror and some F15s led to some tearful kids?…
Ian/Elaine took the honours in the first F15 race, but Simon/Jon went on to win the next two. Dave/Lynn had a clean sweep in the GPs. Jim/Poppy won�the first race in the slow handicap fleet, while Andy took the next two in a Mirror. In the fast handicap fleet, results were a lot less consistent with Robbie D/Josh, Mark/Emma, and Scumper each winning a race.
The Hunter’s curry night was�a sellout success raising �500 in aid of charity Asha, and may have led to more�wind�on�Monday!
Monday turned out bright again, with a stronger, though still extremely variable, breeze from the NE for the final two races in the weekend series. Andy/Phil won both GP races, but Dave/Lynn 2nd was enough to win the series. In the F15s, Simon/Jon had a 1st and 2nd to take the series ahead of Neil/Rory. Scumper and Alex/Olivia both won a races, but Robbie D/Banter’s 2nd and 3rd won them the series, as did Jim/Poppy’s 1st in the slow handicap fleet.
AJ had some coaching from the F15 fleet over lunchtime and he moved up to 3rd in the last race. Perhaps he should have taken advice sooner?…
Saturday started with another well attended training session. The wind, though patchy initially, filled in from the north west and backed to the west as the afternoon went on.
There was a good mix of boats across the four fleets, together with some close racing. There was a few capsizes, mainly by Ethan getting to grips with his 600, and a couple of groundings by two F15s! The shifting winds turned broad reaches into close reaches and even beats, but it helped test the sailors skills.
On Sunday, the Bass micro climate again�beat the forecast and, though lighter, the wind filled in from the north west, and after a short postponement, racing got underway. The breeze�was light and shifty and backed to the west, strengthening slightly in the afternoon for the Albert Bates Retirement Trophy, typically sailed around the lake, but contained in the bay due to the likelihood of the wind fading.
Robbie D/Erin in an RS400 led the fleet across the finish line but, on handicap, Steve/Ruth won in their Merlin ahead of Dave/Lynn and Mike/Eric in GPs.
Next weekend we are taking part in the RYA Push the Boat Out campaign to get more people on the water, so encourage your friends and colleagues to�come down and take part and experience life on the water.
This time we had wind! A constant force 4 Easterly. Alex set a course from 0 of B-1-0 which was deliberately short so he put up 6 laps. What he didn�t reckon on was the speed of the Musto Skiff and lap times of 5 mins! Luckily Val and Izzie were on the Bates to ensure lap recording was accurate.
When we had disentangled the port end mark we had a clean start for the somewhat depleted fleet. AJ and Sue had a good starboard end start and were second to John�s Skiff around B but Sue didn�t fly the kite on the next beam reach and Jim�s Supernova and Tony�s Solo got through, positions on the water which they held to the end.
Considering the wind strength, competitors handled the conditions well although Steve Peck / Simon Smith in the L2000 couldn�t stow the kite at 0 and continued half way to 9 before tacking for the line on lap 2.
Safety crews, of which there were several, were having an easy night until John Roberts� Pico capsized just before the final mark. He righted it but turtled again just after crossing the line!
Peter and Karen had elected not to sail so that the meal was done to a tee when crews came ashore. Results were rapidly published but your scribe had some reservations about them so see the amended ones as checked by the Sailing Secretary.
The wind was extremely light last Thursday and it was no different for this second round. There were 13 starters and an X-shaped course 0-9-B-A. The starboard pin was alongside the Bates and Mike & Eric�s GP were luffed into the Bates. They completed a penalty turn and this dropped them back a little.
It was John�s Skiff which was first round the windward mark with Jim fairly close astern in his Supernova followed by Mike & Eric. Hazel in her Radial was trying different tactics to the rest of the fleet and it was paying off with her moving ahead of Richard in his Solo and the newly launched GP of Katherine & Glenys.
AJ & Sue retired the GP and Steve Peck and Simon Smith the L2000.
After B, it had become a run to A but John took the asymmetric course to keep the Skiff�s kite filled and lost ground to the pursuing boats which had taken a direct course. Further down the field Josh kept the Safety Crew active by capsizing his Tera but think he just fancied a swim and some capsize practice!
Then it was in to the restaurant where Neil had prepared a choice of menus and large helpings for all.
Results showed that Mike & Eric had won on FH from Jim. Richard followed in third. Tony collected a 3 for his OD role and leads both series. PH produced a tie for the win between Hazel and Richard with Kath & Glenys taking third.
There’s a busy weekend ahead as, in addition to club racing, we are holding the RS Tera Northerns and a Catapult open.
Busy is an understatement – a fleet of 35 Teras sailed two races,�then club racing took place including a fleet of 10 Catapults, followed by another two races for the Teras. Six hours on the water for the committee boat crew – no mean feat, especially for Herb (though Tog needed a comfort break)!
Although there were shifts (as ever), and Mike/Kayla would say some major shifts that enabled Ian/Lezli-Ann to move from last to 1st in a single leg (while Angus slipped from 1st �to last),fortunately, and amazingly, the general direction remained steady enough to maintain the same start line and beat all afternoon.
There were eight clean starts in the Teras (can’t say the same for the club boats), and some occasional capsizes, but there was some good racing on a dry, but cool afternoon.
Ripon sailors are topping the results overnight with Oliver Kent leading the Tera Pro fleet and Ellie Clark leading the Tera Sport fleet. [Clark and Kent – Superman effect?!]
Two more races were scheduled for Sunday, but gusting winds continued throughout the morning, even after a two hour postponement, so racing was cancelled and Saturday’s results became the final outturn.
After a lay day on Sunday due to strong winds, Monday’s forecast was not promising. However, despite a wet and windy start to the day, the wind eased, the rain stopped, and the sun forced its way through the clouds, so enthusiasm was higher, and racing got underway.
Five Catapults took to the water, and Gareth Ede led the way to win the final race of their open with three straight wins.
Small�fleets of handicap and GPs raced for the�May Holiday and Lyne Tankard trophies. There were a few capsizes, and Mike Fairlamb retired through gear failure in his Streaker, but they were glad to be back on the water, albeit in shifty and blustery conditions.
Although conditions were still sailable, there was no drive to return to the water after lunch, so the series were concluded with just one race to count, and the honours going to Scumper/Joe in the handicap fleet and Dave/Lynn in the GPs.