Frostbite 7
For the last races of the season the fleet was made up of four Bosuns, two Toppers, a Laser Radial and a Laser Full. It was a day when the sun shone, the wind was south westerly and as fluky as wind can be. Vicky Duncalf’s Topper was the first to take off from the far side start line with second Adam Hilton at the helm of his Bosun, John Dabbs crewing, a foredeck behind. Nathan Pollard, braving the monstrous gusts in his Laser Full, started fifth but was soon past them on the way to Inlet and was first from then on, despite a couple of brief capsizes, with an eight minute lead at the end. For the rest Inlet was chaotic; the wind funnelled in between the two hillsides, accentuating the gusts and making it exceptionally hard to round the buoy and tack away. Several boats got stuck in irons, boats not stuck in irons ran into boats that were; the Hilton/Dabbs Bosun emerged still second. Subsequent laps at Inlet were hardly better but at least the fleet was more strung out by then. The retirements began. Toby Tobias was single-handed in his Bosun – he withdrew. Linda Spiller capsized at the end of lap 1 – she withdrew. At Far on lap 3 Sally Wills helming the Club’s Rob Eason Bosun, with Roger Heasman crewing, found herself holding a tiller without a rudder attached. They had to be towed home.
- Jane Anderson (Topper)
- Nathan Pollard (Laser Full)
- Adam Hilton and John Dabbs (Bosun)
- Vicki Duncalf (Topper)
- Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert (Bosun)
Retired: Toby Tobias (Bosun), Linda Spiller (Laser Radial), Sally Wills and Roger Heasman (Bosun)
Icicle 7
John Dabbs, now helming the Commodore’s Bosun, started first with next Vicki Duncalf. Nathan Pollard started third but got to Inlet first and was never subsequently headed. Linda Spiller started fifth but was second by the time they rounded West. Brian Pollard started nowhere but a gust or two got him coming up fast to leeward of the rest.  He overtook John Dabbs on the way to West but by then the Lasers were well away, Nathan leading Linda by a couple of minutes at the end of lap 1 and three at the finish. This was not enough to overcome the handicap difference. Linda kept her second place but Nathan was demoted to third. Jane Anderson who’d spent the race at fifth, constantly threatening the Dabbs Bosun in front of her, got moved up to first.
- Jane Anderson (Topper)
- Linda Spiller (Laser 4.7)
- Nathan Pollard (Laser Full)
- Vicki Duncalf (Topper)
- Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert (Bosun)
- John Dabbs and Adam Hilton (Bosun)
Special thanks to Nicky and John Buckett who were Officers of the Day, to Penny Abbott and Robin Spiller who were in the tug boat and to Mandy Pollard who took the photographs.