XOD Saturday Series at Royal Lymington Yacht Club - Race 11
by John Olliff-Cooper 2 Jul 2018 18:48 BST
30 June 2018
X179 wins RLymYC XOD Saturday Series race 11 © RLymYC
Congratulations to our Race Team under our new Race Officer James McGill supported by two very efficient Ladies, Diana Stewart and Sinead Joyce. A very dispiriting weather forecast - light NE to SE wind from calm to 7 knots, proved to be very accurate.
Attesting to how difficult the conditions were, only eight boats from the nineteen starters completed the course. Those able to pinch but still keep up their speed had the advantage on the windward legs; that combined with the skill of judging where to tack out into the stronger tide.
On the first leg, along the shore proved to be the right course with both Richard Field X 92 and Ado Jardine X 140 opting thataway. Alas, Ado fell foul of the mud banks on the east end of Pylewell Lake, leaving Richard to sail alone up the shore into what should have been an unassailable lead. Uncharacteristically, Richard went too far and lost it all to finish 6th with Ado finishing 8th.
The Windward mark G was where the majority of the fleet came seriously unstuck by failing to make it, and having to tack back into the punishing ebb tide. Even downwind there were positions to be made and lost - should you go back inshore out of the stronger tide but into a lighter shore breeze? At this point Stuart Jardine in Lone Star X119 gained by staying out in the stronger ebb tide thereby jumping four places.
Finally, on the spinnaker run home to the finish, James Markby in Expeditious X179 claimed first place by outwitting Phil Brewer in Zest X9. Paul Woodman was third in Ibex X32, and Stuart Jardine in Lone Star X119 finished fourth.
Full series results can be found here.