SYC Summer Series, Race 5 - Yawl Report

Published 11:40 on 21 Jul 2025

Twenty keen Salcombe Yawls came to the line for another sunny afternoon racing around the harbour on Saturday 19 July. So keen in fact with an ebbing tide underneath them the first start had to be recalled as there were so many who had started early.

On the restart, with anyone over the line facing instant disqualification, two boats were caught by the starter but the rest got away with it. Of the legal starters John and Katy Meadowcroft were bravest and won the slot on the East Portlemouth beach and were able to tack immediately and build a lead which they were able to extend on their way to the first mark on the Bar. They had a good lead from Andrew and Izzy Wood who had a chasing pack at their heels.

The sail back into the harbour against the tide was tricky with a high risk of snakes and ladders happening. Some of the leading lights in the fleet were deep in the fleet. Whilst the leaders came back into the harbour via Sunny Cove and the East Portlemouth beaches, John Burn and Tris Stone chose to explore the Salcombe side which turned out to be the wrong option. Olly Turner and Chris Skelhorn were more conservative and with great speed and patience steadily worked their way towards the front of the fleet, with an expert rounding of Snapes Point key to their progress.

The second mark was at Frogmore, an hour into the race. The tide was really going out and depth was a concern as was a lack of wind. The fleet consolidated, the Meadowcrofts and the Woods swapped the lead between them, with the Meadowcrofts just rounding Frogmore ahead. It was a total reset for many in the race as we faced a tricky beat back to Saltstone. The Meadowcrofts found fortune whilst the Woods found bad luck as they were overhauled by Greg and Clare Hoar and Turner and Skelhorn.

Thereafter the fleet went to Gerston before a beat back to the finish line, where the Meadowcroft's took the winning bell from the Hoar's. The Woods took a well deserved third place.