Another but different Thursday evening, with sun and wind, although the latter was mainly from the east and gusty at times and variable all of the time. The latter was good if gained from the gusts and shifts, bad if you didn’t. Nonetheless it was a good sail.
Eight boats came to the line, three Merlins, a couple of Lasers, Jim Hamilton and in his Firefly and two N18s.
Racing was relatively close up until Lensbury, the second mark but Charlie Morgan and crew Carolyne Vines ignored the infighting between the other two Merlins, Saltarello and Avenger, and John Redding in his Laser, kept close to the Middlesex bank and swept around the mark in clean wind and steadily pulled away to win on the water by just under 5 minutes.
Behind him John and Zoë held second for much of the race, were overtaken by John Redding and Ken Duffell and Matt Valentine in their Merlin Avenger, before a couple of fortunate wind shifts on the penultimate leg saw them come through to second on the water.
On handicap Charlie and Carolyne were far enough ahead of John Redding to keep their on the water lead, with John Redding second , John and Zoë Adams third and Ken and Matt 4th. These four had managed to round the first mark in a patch of wind and left N18s of Charles Fox and Robert Blackbrough, Alan Green and Garrie Mallen, followed by Stewart Colley in his Laser, and Jim Hamilton in his Firefly to finish a few minutes later.
The racing was followed by a good supper of a variety of quiches and salads with chocolate cake and strawberries to follow.
Results
Merlin 1978 Lady Anne Charlie Morgan CarolyneVines 1
Laser 188044 Jon Redding 2
Merlin 1602 Saltarello John Adams Zoë Adams 3
Merlin 1004 Avenger Ken Duffell Mattie Valentine 4
N18 266 Genevieve Charles Fox Robert Blakebrough 5
Firefly 3179 Fiasco Jim Hamilton 6
Laser 208470 Grebe Stewart Colley 7
N18 336 Orion AlanGreen GarrieMallen 8
Report John Adams