Salcombe Yacht Club Autumn Series Race 7
by David Greening 27 Oct 2014 11:06 GMT
25 October 2014
The forecast of a Force 4 South Westerly breeze failed to materialise for the thirty two starters for the seventh race of the Salcombe Yacht Club Autumn Series. Race Officer Roger Tushingham set a course to Blackstone and Gerston, back to Blackstone, Crossways to the finish line, in what proved to be a gusty and variable wind.
Seasoned campaigner Evie Booth in her RS Tera Pro, led the RS Tera Sport of William Meek to the finish line to wrest control of the leader board in the Junior Handicap Fleet.
The Medium Handicap fleet were divided as to which side of the line to start, and it was Henry Bright in his Laser who took control of the Salcombe shore, with the Radial of Theo Harris in pursuit.
Peter Cook and Janet Exelby found the conditions to be ideal for their Merlin Rocket, splitting tacks off the start line from the National 12 of the Ballantine's and the Merlin of AJ and Sheila Squire.
Seventeen Solos made for a most competitive start, and despite the tide having started to flood, the main beneficiaries were those who made best use of the shifting wind. The wind got particularly fluky at Blackstone, which shook up the regular pecking order, with a tight group comprising Simon Dobson, Alistair Morley, Julian Meek, Ed Stephens and Malcolm Mackley breaking away from the rest of the fleet, with Simon Dobson eventually building a commanding lead whilst all the others could do was slow each other down.
The mild conditions, produced an unseasonal five Salcombe Yawls. Dan Bridger and David Jayne took command from the start, pulling sufficiently away from the Lewis's and Peter Stratton to take the win on the water and on handicap.
Race 7 Results:
Junior Handicap
1st RS Tera Pro 2146, Evie Booth
2nd RS Tera Sport 1131, William Meek
Medium Handicap
1st Laser 140043, Henry Bright
2nd Laser Radial, Theo Harris
3rd Streaker 1845, Clare Booth
Fast Handicap
1st Merlin Rocket 3616, Peter Cook and Janet Exelby
2nd National 12 3431, Simon and Karen Ballantine
3rd Merlin Rocket 3725, Andrew and Sheila Squire
Solo
1st 5313, Simon Dobson
2nd 5317, Julian Meek
3rd 5295, Alistair Morley
Salcombe Yawl
1st 159, Dan Bridger and David Jayne
2nd 150, Jon and Clare Lewis
3rd 161, Peter Stratton and Nigel Hannaford
The full results are on the club website.