Garmin Hamble Winter Series - Day 7
by Peter Danby 26 Nov 2007 06:21 GMT
25 November 2007
Sparkling conditions in the Solent brought smiles to the faces of competitors and officials alike, when a 15 knot north westerly breeze allowed extra races to be sailed to make up for those lost earlier in the series when winds were either too light or too heavy.
The White Fleet boats were able to sail three races instead of their usual two, while the bigger yachts of the Black Fleet raced twice instead of just once. There was an added bonus in the form of constant sunshine, which not only brightened things up, but also raised the temperature to a comfortable level.
Several teams were so inspired by the sailing conditions that they got into the groove successfully in the first race of the day, and then went on to do the same in the following races. No fewer than four Black Fleet boats achieved doubles - Lucy Macgregor's 'Premier Flair' in IRC 1, Mike Brough's 'Steady Barker' in IRC 2, Colin Byrne's 'Xtravagance' in IRC 3, and Alex Christie's 'ASAP' in IRC 4. Two White Fleet boats were able to go one better and score hat tricks - Liz Savage's 'Savage Racing Team' in the J/80 class, and Paul Curtis's 'Sparkle' in the Hunter 707s.
The cut and thrust racing in the highly competitive Laser SB3 class was unlikely to allow any such clean sweeps, and it was Geoff Carveth's 'Earls Court Boat Show' that won the first race, while Craig Burlton ran away with the second, and Marshall King's 'Sponge Bob' won the third.
With just one more race day scheduled to take place on Sunday 2nd December, the final outcome is impossible to predict in most of the classes, especially as the discard situation will be complicated by the fact that further "lost" races might or might not be sailed. There is still a great deal to sail for, which will add plenty of excitement to the final day of racing.
Day 7 Video:
There is a video of Sunday's racing at www.malcolmdonald.com
Day 7 Results:
White Fleet Race Winners:
Laser SB3
Race 1, 'Earls Court Boat Show' Geoff Carveth
Race 2, 'Team Touareg' Craig Burlton
Race 3, 'Sponge Bob' Marshall King
J/80
Races 1, 2 and 3, 'Savage Sailing Team' Liz Savage
Hunter 707
Races 1, 2 and 3, 'Sparkle' Paul Curtis
Sportsboat
Race 1, 'Backbeat' Richard Scarff
Races 2 and 3, 'Finn M'Coul' Tom Clay
Black Fleet Race Winners:
IRC 0
Race 1, 'Jellina' Mark Lloyd
IRC 1
Races 1 and 2, 'Premier Flair' Lucy Macgregor
IRC 2
Races 1 and 2, 'Steady Barker' Mike Brough
IRC 3
Races 1 and 2, 'Xtravagance' Colin Byrne
IRC 4
Races 1 and 2, 'ASAP' Alex Christie
J/105
Race 1, 'Voador' Simon Curwen
Race 2 'Jolene' Geoff Payne
J/109
Race 1, 'Jambo' Kate Buckingham & Geoff Fry
Race 2 'Jalapeno' Nigel & Suzie Brooke
Sigma 38
Race 1, 'Festina Lente' Meakins Family
Race 2, 'With Alacrity' Chris & Vanessa Choules