Ramsgate Week 2018 - Day 1
by Martin Law 22 Jul 2018 21:36 BST
22-27 July 2018
At breakfast few could have foreseen the excellent day's racing in variable and challenging conditions that was to follow.
The traditional start to Ramsgate Week, the Round the Goodwins race, was unable to be run this year because of an initial lack of wind coupled with unconvincing light and variable weather forecasts forced the organisers to set an inshore course which could be more easily shortened.
During the pre-start period the breeze built in strength reaching around 10kts for the start of the first upwind leg. Four staggered starts sent 50 boats south to Deal Bank by which time anemometers were reaching 18 kts. A spectacular long spinnaker run to Broadstairs saw the class leaders beginning to emerge.
Richard Matthew's Oystercatcher XXX1 from West Mersea Yacht Club built a convincing lead in IRC1 which was held until the finish, followed by RTYC Commodore, Andy Beaumont-Hope at the controls of Principessa. Third was Assassin, steered by a slightly wounded Peter Jackson. IRC Class 2 was won by Slingback, a local SJ320 helmed by Paul Woodward, followed by Foxy, Mike and Jo Brand's X-34. Third place went to Niek Spiljard from VW Arne in his X332 Vanilla.
The cruiser classes sailed the same course as IRC boats, which at around 28 NM turned out roughly the same duration as the originally planned Round the Goodwins, with some boats taking almost seven hours in conditions varying from 5 to 18 kts.
Class 5 winner by some margin was Johan Bol's A Boen!! from Wemeldinge YC, followed by Rick Elliot's Roxanne from Rye Harbour SC, and John and Michalle Stonely's Pippy from RTYC.
Class 6 cruisers was won by David Preston, a Ramsgate week regular from Rye Harbour SC in his new First Class 8 Luna. Second was Howard Bates' Mallard, a Westerly Fulmer also from Rye Harbour, closely followed by Andy Ketteringham's First 30 Miss Amelia.
All results are at www.ramsgateweek.com