Flying Fifteen open meeting at South Cerney Sailing Club

Congratulations to Andrew and Catriona Wallace on winning the South Cerney Flying Fifteen Open this weekend. A superb display of sailing in shifty and sometimes light winds.

Racing started on Saturday lunchtime with a decent but shifty breeze which kept the race officer, Paul Kimmens, and the competitors guessing.

In the first race Andrew and Catriona were first across the line and with enough of a gap between them and the second place boat they scored a 1st place after handicapping. The trend continued in the 2nd race with another 1st place.

After a short lunch break races 3 and 4 were undertaken in much the same shifty breeze.

It was nip and tuck all afternoon with Andrew and Catriona scoring a 3rd place in the 3rd race and missing out on a 1st place in race four by just 2 seconds after handicapping. This meant they finished the day in 1st place after 4 races but with all to play for in the final two races on Sunday.

On Saturday night Pam Weeks served up yet another fantastic meal, this time with a Spanish theme, which was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

It was an early start on Sunday with the 1st race at 10.00. The wind had dropped a bit from Saturday but was still north westerly and shifty. I think the competitors had perhaps enjoyed the bar a little too much the night before and were still in party mood crossing the line a good 10 seconds before the start with the race officer having to signal a general recall.

The fleet were much better behaved on the second attempt, if only the wind had followed suit...

At the windward mark on the 1st beat the wind dropped to almost nothing and it was slow progress around the top of the course until the wind filled in. The wind continued to fluctuate but Andrew and Catriona took another 1st in the tricky conditions. Which meant that they had won the event, which may have had a slight bearing on the final race which was their worst score in 6th place.

It was a fantastic weekend with some great feedback from the visiting boats regarding our hospitality and race management.

Overall Results: