Saltash Sailing Club Tamar Packaging Spring Series Overall
by Nina Lillie 30 Apr 2018 07:19 BST
April 2018
Musk Ox during the Saltash Sailing Club Tamar Packaging Spring Series © John Baldry
The Saltash Sailing Club Tamar Packaging Spring Series was held over four Saturdays in April with a series of races up river off Saltash for the J24 fleet and courses starting from a committee boat anchored in Plymouth Sound for all others. Typical April changeable weather conditions saw some sunshine and rather fickle breezes, which made for interesting racing.
The eight J24's had close racing with different winners for each race, but the overall prize for their series went to Alan Harris-Guerrero's boat, Legal Alien, which had come up from Fowey to take part in the event.
There were ten entries in each of the IRC and Port Handicap classes, together with three large multihulls, which enjoyed a variety of courses in Plymouth Sound, with racing including windward/leeward, Olympic triangles, around the cans, long distance and upriver to the club finishing line. This tested all different points of sailing and types of yacht, particularly when the wind shifted more than once through 180 degrees, allowing some lucky crews to enjoy three spinnaker legs while others suffered continual beats to windward in light airs. Credit must go to Charlie Francis' Dufour 24 Djibouti, by far the slowest boat in the Handicap fleet, which came second in the Long Distance race and completed all the courses, and to Keith Simmons who won the last race in IRC by taking a flyer on the first leg of the course from South Winter buoy to Kildare Rock buoy (just inside Plymouth Breakwater) right in to Jennycliff Bay in his Hunter 707.
The overall winners of their divisions were Neil Trathen's Laser 28 Elusive, Adam James' J80 Joie de Vivre and Bruce Sutherland's multihull Bare Necessities. One of the winners of the final Bottle race back up river to the Sailing Club finish line was Neville Devonport helming Musk Ox who was run ashore speedily in the club launch, Herbie Davy, to pick up his fiddle and join the rest of the band for the evening.
All the crews enjoyed live music as well as food and drink afterwards at the club each Saturday. The prize giving on the final evening was accompanied by lively music from the band Cornish Jam, with glassware provided by Stylus Engravers and guest beers from Skinners Brewery, making the series a most successful start to the sailing season.
The next big event for Saltash Sailing Club will be the race to Fowey and back over the weekend of 2nd and 3rd June, in conjunction with the Plym YC, part of the Ullman Sails Plymouth Race Series.
Overall Results:
IRC
1 Elusive, Laser 28, Neil Trathen
2 Waterjet, J70, Steve Northmore
3 Musk Ox, X362, Neville Devonport
NHC
1 Joie de Vivre, J80, Adam James
2 Joburg, Trapper 300, Phil Hooper
3 Sir Jasper, Sunfast 32, Bob Suggett
J24
1 Legal Alien, Alan Harris-Guerrero
2 Red Alert, David Cooper
3 Dogs Jorrocks, Steve Wassell
MOCRA
1 Bare Necessities, Bruce Sutherland
2 Hissy Fit, Simon Baker
3 Belladonna, Dominic Gooding
BOTTLE RACE
Musk Ox, X362, Neville Devonport
Last Tango, Trapper 300, Bill Pym
Bare Necessities, Bruce Sutherland