Please select your home edition
Edition
Ovington 2021 - ILCA 1 - LEADERBOARD
Product Feature
New - Barton Marine Outhaul Traveller cars
New - Barton Marine Outhaul Traveller cars

Twisted Cruiser Regatta at Salcombe Yacht Club

by Lucy Burn 13 Aug 2022 19:59 BST
Twisted Cruiser Regatta at Salcombe © Lucy Burn

A sunny day dawned with winds at Prawle point showing 20 Knots, but a fairly flat sea as nine cruisers, ranging from an RS Elite to a Boreal 47, headed out to the range for the 2022 Twisted Cruiser Regatta.

They were accompanied by a very smart 8.7m RIB, with twin 225 hp engines giving 450 hp of power and a top speed over 50 knots, which was kindly provided by Twisted (SMS), who were sponsoring the regatta. The RIB was helmed by Callum Jack from SMS and ably crewed by the race management and photography team of Ann Jones, Jane Miller and Deborah Pluck.

With the wind in the North East, a course was set, starting between the middle harbour speed buoy and the Twisted Rib, with the virtual marks set as Gara, Gammon, Prawle, Starehole, and finish over the starting line.

Given the wind conditions there was a port bias to the starting line and the boats that took advantage of starting by the speed buoy got away first with Ardea, (Dufour 365) and Zan II (RS Elite) setting the pace. At the first mark, Ardea and Zan II were round first followed by Firefly (YW Humphreys 44), Tin Tin (Boreal 47), helmed by Jo and Jerry Gurney, Jerry being the most senior helm sailing, and Starfire (Elan 31) with Blue Diamond (Sigma 38) rapidly making up lost ground at the start and overtaking Starfire on the reach to Gammon.

The remainder of the fleet were not far behind. A fast reach to Gammon was followed by a good beat in a strong breeze to Prawle, where the downwind leg to Starehole commenced. Ardea and Zan II with her spinnaker were fighting it out for the lead, with Blue Diamond, Firefly and Tin Tin Following. A close contest was also taking place between the smaller boats, Jenny T (Sadler 32) and St Anthony (Javelin 30).

The fight for the lead continued with Zan II just pipping Ardea over the line and Blue Diamond finishing shortly behind. Tin Tin was the only larger cruiser to fly her gennaker and this may have helped her make ground on Firefly and just get ahead of them at the finish. These positions were maintained after corrected times with Starfire finishing sixth, followed by St Anthony, Jenny T and Swift (Jeaneau 45 DS), hampered by problems with their jib sheets crossing the line in seventh but finishing ninth on handicap.

Following a much needed short break for refreshments, the course for the second race was set the same as for the first. Swift retired due to their jib problems, leaving 8 boats to battle it out on the second race. The start was again port bias and the boats at the speed buoy end of the line headed off first. Zan II and Blue Diamond made the running with Ardea not far behind. Starfire and Firefly followed with very tight racing between them.

Starfire still carried one reef in the main but held full jib for this race, and Blue Diamond held a reef in the main, although they shook theirs out down wind. Jenny T decided on full sails for this race, and had an ever closer tussle with St Anthony. These positions remained all the way up the beat. The down wing leg required goose winging for all except Zan II with her spinnaker and Tin Tin flying her impressive gennaker.

The wind lessened as the boats got towards Starehole, particularly after Zan II and Blue Diamond got around the mark, finishing first and second respectively, having pulled out a gap on Ardea. Firefly and Starfire were neck and neck all the way down the run with Starfire eventually managing to get clear of Firefly's wind shadow, rounding Starehole and crossing the line in fourth place followed by Firefly and Tin Tin.

Jenny T and St Anthony, however, were not far behind and although finishing over the line in seventh and eighth place respectively, on corrected time, St Anthony came third and Jenny T fifth only 14 seconds behind Ardea in fourth.

The overall results from the two races put Zan II, having won both races in first place. Perfect conditions for the RS Elite. Well done Martin and crew.

Blue Diamond was second and Ardea third only a point behind. St Anthony's storming performance in the second race brought them through to fourth and then three boats all finished on 12 points - Tin Tin, Firefly and Starfire - with Jenny T only 1 point behind.

The fleet then headed for home, but Callum took the ladies on the race committee for a very exciting 40kn ride to Hope Cove and a visit to the caves on the way back. They were extremely impressed with the Twisted RIB and the idea that you could go to Guernsey for lunch in an hour!

A very good day was had by all taking part with plenty of close racing. Many thanks to the Race Committee and Twisted for supplying the RIB. The next racing in the range is scheduled for Sunday 21st August, let's hope for good weather again.

Related Articles

Salcombe Merlin Rocket Week overall
Tom Gillard and Rachel Gray take the trophy The final day of Helly Hansen Salcombe Merlin Week dawned to another day of blue skies with a light Southwester forming in the harbour and forecast to increase. The overall result was still up for grabs with both leading protagonists in the morning race. Posted on 4 Jul
Salcombe Merlin Rocket Week Day 5
Wall to wall sunshine for the 102 teams The fifth morning dawned with wall to wall sunshine and a 5 knot SW sea breeze popped in at the surprisingly early time of 8.30, promising a good day's racing for the 102 teams. Posted on 3 Jul
Salcombe Merlin Rocket Week Day 4
Random gusts from every direction, including vertical Past the halfway stage and the weather served up another wind direction for the fourth day of Helly Hansen Salcombe Merlin Week. Posted on 2 Jul
Salcombe Merlin Rocket Week Day 3
South-Westerly establishes itself after a windless dawn The third day dawned with light cloud and absolutely no wind in the harbour. As often happens at Salcombe, by the time the fleet started to launch a South-Westerly had started to establish itself and by the 10.30 start time there was 4-5 knots. Posted on 1 Jul
Salcombe Merlin Rocket Week Day 2
First start gets away on the top of the tide With the rest of the UK cooking in 30+ degrees, Salcombe has been veiled in sea mist for the last few days. Monday was the day when this was meant to clear but competitors woke to find the race track still shrouded in mist. Posted on 30 Jun
Salcombe Merlin Rocket Week Day 1
Over 200 of the UK's top dinghy racers are in the picturesque South Devon Ria The ever popular Salcombe Merlin Week, sponsored by Helly Hansen, Craftinsure and Creation Covers, has again attracted over 200 of the UK's top dinghy racers to the picturesque South Devon Ria. Posted on 29 Jun
Delivery to Salcombe Week - Final Call!
Devon's calling, and P&B are answering This weekend finds members of our Sail Loft team at Salcombe Yacht Club, for Merlin Salcombe Week. We'll be making the most of the conditions, the surroundings and the chance to catch up with other sailors who share our passion for competitive sailing. Posted on 26 Jun
Salcombe Yacht Club Summer Series Race 1
More classic Salcombe conditions on Saturday kicked off the series in style More classic Salcombe conditions on Saturday kicked off the Summer Series in style. Plenty of sunshine and a 15-knot south-westerly saw Race Officer Simon Dobson set the course: 1-7-1-3-2-3. Posted on 16 Jun
Merlin Rocket Week runners and riders
Who's in your flight? Who's sailing when? With Helly Hansen Merlin Rocket Salcombe Week just around the corner and the sacred PDF of doom (AKA the flights list) finally released, the WhatsApp groups are already ablaze. Sails are being tweaked, excuses rehearsed... Posted on 16 Jun
Salcombe YC Sailing Club Series final race
Despite the drenching, it was a fantastic afternoon on the water With winds forecast in excess of 30mph all week, ten hardy Solo sailors made it to the starting area, and despite the conditions seeming sailable most chose to wait until the preparatory signal by using the comparative protection of Smalls Cove. Posted on 9 Jun