RS800 European Championship at Circolo Vela Torbole - Day 2

RS800 European Championship at Lake Garda - Day 2 © Jamie Gettings

Another glorious day in Torbole. It didn't take long this morning for the heat to build up in the sun, the only respite a moderate Peler. This died off early as the Ora filled, looking promising for a spectacular day on the water.

A general reluctance in the dinghy park to leave the shade, don wetsuits or expose sails to the sun meant a 20 minute delay to the scheduled 1pm start time. The RS400s then got a little over-keen on their first start, not helped by a starboard biased line and everyone set to go right to the Riva cliffs upwind, so by the time the RS800s came to start the Ora had built nicely to 15 knots.

The first start was decidedly messy with a few boats attempting to fit into gaps that probably weren't really there in the front row. The ensuing melee left an opportunity for the slightly later boats at the committee boat to slip round, tack off and they were half way to the cliffs before the line was cleared. A few of the front runners got caught up in this while Luke McEwen and Milly Boyle led the charge up the beat.

They were chased hard by Frances and Tom Partington for the whole race but just managed to hold them off despite a conservatively early drop to gybe safely to the finish while navigating three tail-end RS700s. By now the breeze was getting lively and the finishes rather fruity with a short line to gybe through on port. Tom Morris and Guy Fillmore looked to be finding their form and made progress through the fleet to take third with Phil Walker and John Mather finishing in fourth.

Race two of the day and the breeze was up to a peachy 18-20 knots. The starboard bias on the line created a pile up of boats at the committee boat and the bunch who ended up over the line were grateful to see the general recall flag go up as it was a U-flag start. The committee boat conceded a few inches of bias by dropping back slightly and the fleet had a second go at it.

Again it was a mess for the majority but only one boat was caught over and so the fleet was off. Joe Joyner and Will Broom footed off fast to the cliffs and had an enviable 100m lead at the windward mark. Behind them Phil and John were being chased by Stevie Wilson and Rory Hunter with another bunch of boats not too far behind including Ben Clegg and Abi Embser-Kay. Further back capsize count was starting to define the pecking order.

By the second windward mark Phil and John had overhauled Joe and Will with Stevie and Rory hot on their heels. Frances and Tom, and Tom and Guy both made gains spotting bands of pressure on the run that meant banging left wasn't always the way to go downwind. By the leeward mark Stevie and Rory were through to second with Tom and Guy moving up, rounding just ahead of Will and Joe.

Lay line calls at the top of the beat where the wind was particularly shifty allowed opportunities for overtaking. Tom and Guy nailed their lay line on the final beat to pass Stevie and Rory. At the finish after a big wind run Phil and John took the win from Tom and Guy, followed by Stevie and Rory, and Luke and Millie.

Back ashore pasta was heartedly enjoyed and bruises and wipe-outs compared.

Results after day 2: