22nd May 2022 Race Report

by Adam Hilton

Mandy Pollard 

Bosun Algae 1 (Plus)

John Dabbs and Linda Spiller led the Bosun race from start to finish, but the contest between the other Bosuns (Roger Heasman with David Perrett and Brian Pollard with Cilla Gilbert) was rather more ding-dong with the Heasman/Perrett boat eventually taking second place.

But on a day of seductively sailable winds coming over the western hills many helms chose their single-handers rather than getting into Bosuns.

Nathan Pollard, the Officer of the day, designed a beat for the first leg by using the Devon half of the Home 2 start line and a bunch of boats clustered at the far end of the line ready to tack across to West. Jane Anderson’s Laser Radial started first and retained the lead around the first buoy. However Bob Sampson’s second starting Laser Full soon took over the lead and retained it. The Dabbs/Spiller Bosun started third but, as with the other Bosuns, could not point as high as the single-handers and had to tack much earlier on the way to West allowing Adam Hilton (Solo) and Paul Anderson (Laser Full) to get away. The course was ingenious, involving a visit to West on the way back down the Lake as well as on the way up. This confused a number of helms and led to some retirements but the northwesterlies were quite capable of producing  capsize-inducing gusts; they contributed to retirements too.

Bosun Race

  1. John Dabbs and Linda Spiller (Bosun),
  2. Roger Heasman and David Perrett (Bosun)
  3. Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert (Bosun)

Plus Race

  1. Bob Sampson (Laser Full)
  2. Jane Anderson (Laser Radial)
  3. Adam Hilton (Solo)
  4. Paul Anderson (Laser Full)

Retired: Geof Floyd (Solo), Graham Joyce (Laser Full), Vicki Duncalf (Topper)

Pursuit 1

In Pursuit races the slowest boats start first and the faster boats follow at intervals set by their handicaps and try to reach the front. The lead boat after roughly an hour’s sailing wins. In somewhat stronger winds, Vicki Duncalf’s Topper started first but was caught on lap 2 of a more conventional course with a home startline  and a trip up to Pinky via West. All three Bosuns got past her; so did Bob Sampson’s Laser. But nobody put their boat in front of Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert’s Bosun. Roger Heasman and Dave Perrett’s sister dinghy followed them, with Bob Sampson’s Laser getting up to third and Jane Anderson’s Radial rising from seventh at the end of lap 1 to fourth at the finish.

 

  1. Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert (Bosun)
  2. Roger Heasman and David Perrett (Bosun)
  3. Bob Sampson (Laser Full)
  4. Jane Anderson (Laser Radial)
  5. Adam Hilton (Solo)
  6. John Dabbs and Linda Spiller (Bosun)
  7. Geoff Floyd (Solo)
  8. Ian Chatterton (Enterprise)
  9. Vicki Duncalf (Topper)

Retired: Paul Anderson (Laser Full), Graham Joyce (Laser Full)