Sailing Club Series Race 8 Solo start.
Published 12:31 on 10 Jun 2024
Regular Salcombe sailors learn to view a Northwesterly wind as imperfect since conditions, especially off the town and on the startline can be extremely random. These days the Solo carries so much mast rake, the cockpit is not commodious. In a Northwesterly especially, the boom is not your friend. Extreme yoga has nothing on some of contortions required of the, generally speaking, superannuated helms.
Fortunately this day there was enough North in the direction to produce some semblance of order but even so, the initial signs were not encouraging. Confronted with this, Andy Savell and team opted for a windward mark at Gerston with a loop of the bag before a circuit of the harbour. Sailed course: 7,3,5.
On the gun there was in fact a consistent North breeze for the sixteen Solos on the line. At least Simon Dobson was OCS and he returned with diligence to clear his name. Those who made it to Snapes and stayed high under its prodigious wind shadow did not fair well. No such error from William Jago who was the first to appear in the Bag. He was pursued closely by people like Cleaves, Hicks and lately returned from New Zealand, Paul Ellis. Also going well was Kiwi ex-pat Gavin Stevens who, as the race progressed rose to least as high as third.
Tempting though it is to power the boat by profanities on days like this, there was decent, albeit shifty breeze all the way to Gerston producing a very nice true beat with little tidal influence. 10 knots at times. Though, there was not much water, it being low tide springs at the time. The front group of seven or so, broke away from the back half of the fleet with Simon Dobson in particular, making very good progress. He with Ellis, caught Jago at Crossways after he made a small mistake on a shift that turned to dust.
Lower down the order we all enjoyed individual battles which characterises the Solo class racing we value so much.
The long run back to the harbour against the now flooding tide produced a few opportunities. Dobson managed the exit from the Bag to the favoured Ditch End shore the best. Ellis second and Cleaves third, as the Race officer shortened and spared us a battle to mark 2.
Nice race. Thank you race team.
Copy: GCS
Pic: Lucy Burn.
