Salcombe Yacht Club Winter Series - Race 3

Winds came from the North for the third Saturday in a row, a North Westerly force 2 to be precise, with a spring flood tide. Race officer Julian Meek set a perfect course for the conditions, making the most of the beat from Crossways to Gerston, by providing two circuits of the Bag.

With a change in the Notice of Race, the eight strong Handicap Fleet were first away. The Phantoms of Ian Stewart and Alistair Morley set the pace, with Stewart getting to grips and getting the better of Morley by the finish; however they were not far enough ahead to prevent the Yawls of Jon and Clare Lewis and David Jayne and Dan Bridger to make the most of the sub-planing conditions, which suit the Yawls handicap.

Although things looked good for Jayne and Bridger, the strong tidal gates allowed the fleet to compress enough to allow the Lewis's to stay sufficiently in touch to take the win based upon the Classic Yawl handicap, with the Ballantine's National 12 taking third place.

Sixteen Solos benefited from seeing the Handicap Fleet start, with the front runners favouring the strong tidal stream in the centre of the Estuary, for some it was too strong, with recalls for Dobson, Jago and Stephens.

For Simon Dobson this was of little handicap, and on the beat through the Bag he had broken into the leading group of Robin Hodges, Chris Cleaves and Phil King.

Unfortunately for Hodges he led around the wrong mark, allowing the trio of Dobson, Cleaves and King to fight the podium places on the beat back from Crossways, with Dobson showing his mastery of the light conditions to record his third win in a row, from King and Cleaves.

Handicap results:

1st Salcombe Yawl, 150, Jon and Clare Lewis
2nd Salcombe Yawl, 159, David Jayne and Dan Bridger
3rd National 12, 3431, Simon and Karen Ballantine

Solo results:

1st 5676, Simon Dobson
2nd 5568, Phil King
3rd 5573, Chris Cleaves