RS Vareos at the South Cerney Sailing Club Asymmetric Open

RS Vareos at the South Cerney Asymmetric Open © Dave Whittle

RS Vareos at the South Cerney Asymmetric Open (l-r) Nick Crickmore 3rd, centre Jeremy Symons 1st, right Kevin Whitehead 2nd © Dave Whittle

Saturday May 7th was the Asymmetric Open Meeting at South Cerney Sailing Club with first place going to Jeremy Symons from Llandegfedd Sailing Club in his RS Vareo. We had 19 competitors; 17 RS Vareos, one RS200 and one RS400.

It was a beautiful sunny day, but by the time the first race was due to start, the light wind that was there at the start of the day had died off completely. Dave Whittle, Race Officer for the day, wisely postponed the first race, and after an early lunch, the wind picked up nicely with a fairly steady 8-12 knot Easterly breeze. Dave set an excellent windward leeward course with plenty of opportunity for making use of the kite.

The first race was dominated on the water by Pete Vincent and Pete Cruickshank in their RS400, and Jeremy Symons in his Vareo – both clear ahead of the rest of the fleet from the start. There was a hard battle for the next three places, with positions changing constantly between these 3 RS Vareos, in the end Kevin Weatherhead came in 3rd, followed closely by Andrew Appleton in 4th, and Bill Smith in 5th place. Corrected positions were Jeremy Symons 1st, Kevin Weatherhead 2nd, and Pete Vincent and Pete Cruickshank 3rd.

The second race again saw the two Petes in their RS400, lead the fleet on the water, but this time closely followed by Nick Crickmore for the first half of the race. Jeremy Symons managed to miss his toe-straps on the second leg, performing the first capsize of the day, but despite this managed to overtake Nick C on the third lap, coming in second on the water by a comfortable margin. Nick C was 3rd, closely followed by Mark Caldecourt in 4th, and Bill Smith in 5th place. Corrected positions were Jeremy 1st, Nick Crickmore 2nd, and Pete and Pete 3rd.

The third race proved a little more challenging, as half way through the race, the wind direction suddenly reversed, so we were now tacking up to the gate. The wind strengthened with some gusts up to 16 knots, and Bill Organ who was sailing a RS Vareo for the first time, performed the second capsize of the day. As the race progressed, torrential rain began and there was the roll of distant thunder. However it was deemed safe to continue, and once again the RS400 took line honours, followed by Jeremy again in 2nd place, Kevin in 3rd, Nick C in 4th, and Al Sim and Natalia Watson in their RS200 in 5th place. Corrected positions were Jeremy 1st, Pete & Pete 2nd, and Kevin 3rd.

RS Vareos at the South Cerney Asymmetric Open - photo © Dave Whittle

After relaying the course to take account of the shifting wind, the fourth race started in a second torrential downpour, but a very promising freshening breeze. Shortly after the start the rain stopped, but unfortunately as the rain died away, so did the breeze, and by the third lap the sailing had turned more into a gentle drift. 12 boats finished the race, Jeremy in first place, Nick C in second, and Kevin in 3rd place.

Once PY was applied the overall positions were as follows:

• Jeremy Symons (Llandegfedd) took first place in his RS Vareo
• Nick Crickmore (Oulton Broad) came second in his RS Vareo
• Kevin Weatherhead (South Cerney) came third also in his RS Vareo

• Jeremy Symons (Llandegfedd) took first place, winning the Magic Marine prize
• Kevin Weatherhead (South Cerney) came second
• Nick Crickmore (Oulton Broad) came third

A big thank you to all who helped make the day a success – Dave Whittle and Dean Hall as Race Officers for some fantastic courses and Dave also for some great photos, the patrol boat crews – Vernon Perkins, Alison Hall, Chris Jeffries and Paul Hennessey who certainly had their work cut out moving buoys to cope with the shifting winds. Joanne Appleton and Craig Matter in the Galley for providing excellent food and Theresa Meacham for assisting on the shore with trolleys, even in the heavy rain.

Dave Whittle's photos can be viewed at goo.gl/photos/XfZGzZ8bgYrKDAjXA

Your next RS Vareo Magic Marine Grand Prix event is the Burnham on Crouch SC Regatta on 16 July. Then it is your RS Vareo Volvo Noble Marine National Championship at Llandegfedd SC 27-29 August. Online entry will be opening shortly.

Overall Results: