Sailing Club Series Race 3 - Solo

Published 13:18 on 10 May 2026

There were ten takers for the third race of the Salcombe Yacht Club Sailing Club Series, numbers slightly down perhaps due to the forecast strong East North Easterly breeze, which never really transpired.

With an ebbing tide, Race Officer Tim Fells did not have many course setting options, notably a beat into Yalton was never an option due to a lack of water, so a course of three windward leeward laps of the harbour was set.

Chris Cleaves, Tim Law, David Greening and Simon Dobson started toward the Portlemouth shore, keeping their lanes, to clear the Fairway Buoy and get into the tidal protection of the Yawl trots and draw clear of the chasing pack, with Dobson rounding the windward mark ahead of Cleaves.

The four leaders were in close company down the run to Blackstone, with Cleaves taking the lead on the beat back by the tidal gate that is Woodcot Rocks, with Greening working through to second short tacking up the Town shore.

The four closed up at the windward mark, and places changed down the run.  There was a hole in the wind around the leeward mark as the wind clocked east, allowing Cleaves, Law and Dobson to pull away, and Simon Yates join the leading group.

On the final run to the Millbay mark, Cleaves had been dropped to third place by Law and Dobson, but a masterful move by Cleaves gybing out before the leeward mark, allowed him to break the overlap to round in first place.

Unfortunately for him some rope management issues whilst heading into Mill Bay with Law, allowed Dobson and Greening to tack at the mark, and head to the finish line with less adverse tide, Dobson taking the win from Law and Greening snicking past Cleaves.

By David Greening  | Photos By Lucy Burn