1st Race of the Season brought surprises with the capsizes
A blustery north easterly greeted 9 intrepid sailors to an “improved” look compound for the first race of the 2022 season. With buoy Number 6 hiding in the barge canal, the PRO for the day set a figure of eight course around the extents of the pond, to give competitors the biggest advantage to stretch their legs after the long winter off.
First capsize of the season goes to Don Bishop, who followed with a further five over the course of the race. Amazingly, with less than a minute to go before the off, the two Kevins had a hilarious ‘coming together’ resulting in two more capsizes; which is a very rare sight, especially for Kev “I don’t check the results” Milton.
The accumulated rust of the winter showed, with most boats being some distance behind the start line on ‘the gun’, but it was Ray “Rocket” Kemish who took the lead on the water and ‘first mark’ honours of the season, closely trailed by the two Supernovas who tried vainly to reel him in over the course of the race.
Race two got under way in similar conditions, with the same course, as requested by the competitors. Only six boats set out, with three having been put off by the grueling conditions in race one. Roger “I don’t care about my handicap… but I do have a watch that tells me EXACTLY how fast I am going” Day opted for a ‘port flyer’ into clean wind and made great progress up the first beat, going on to win on handicap by some margin. (A note to the RYA to request a “real” handicap must surely follow?! [or at least to the RC Sailing]). Second place was taken by Kevin L, with less than 30 seconds between the rest of the fleet on corrected times. Well done to all who ventured out. Maybe you will join them there next week?
For those with the competitive streak:
Race 1: 1st – Ray Kemish; 2nd – Kevin Last; 3rd – Roger Day then JM /PH /BC /MD /KM /DB
Race 2: 1st – Roger Day; 2nd – Kevin Last; 3rd – Peter Hampshire followed by KM /BC /MD
Overall to date: 1st – Roger Day; 2nd Kevin Last; 3rd Peter Hampshire