The Kestrel gets away first on the beat to Dam Red
Boats apparently moving at reasonable speeds at this juncture as the Kestrel rounds Dam Red
But the fleet appears to have almost come to a standstill (judging by the lack of wakes) as the boats bunch up heading for the Inlet
Robin Spiller’s Streaker and Nathan’s Laser Radial close-hauled on the beat back down the lake
Back to a drift by the time of the afternoon Pursuit Race
New boat on the lake, a smart-looking Wayfarer (complete with McNamara sails) gets its spinnaker flying – in itself a relateively rare sight at the lake
Nathan Pollard on his way to victory in the afternoon Pursuit race
The safety boat heads out to help work out the positions just before the hooter sounds for the end of the Pursuit
Nathan Pollard leads the field away from Dam Green, with Paul Anderson also making a good start in second and John’s Topper just rounding the mark in third
A determined-looking Jane Anderson beating back towards the Dam,on her way to victory on handicap, with a more tranquil Jane Chadney just behind
A first-class photo of Roger Heasman and Sally Wills out in the RS200 (though they had a much more successful sail when they switched to the Bosun for the afternoon race)
Paul Anderson having to hike out in his full-rig Laser
A relatively rare outing for the club Kestrel, with Adam helming and John Dabbs as crew; in the background are the Tasar and the red-hulled Bosun (which must have been hard work for a crewless Toby, who had his work cut out to keep the boat level on the beats at times)
James Pollard goes for a starboard tack start right down by the pontoon, whilst most of the fleet goes for a port tack option
James’s starting tactic looks to be vindicated as he pulls out a good lead in the short beat to the first mark
Linda Spiller braving the cold in her Laser 4.7, with Nathan gliding downwind in the background
Relatively rarely used, Start Line 2 very often leads to a widely spread-out fleet and it’s no exception here, but James Pollard, hovering on the line on port tack, gets it just right
Mike Coulson and Viki Herbert-Coulson get the ‘Rob Eason’ going nicely, despite a day of some erratic and vicious gusts
Sue Murray looks for the wind shifts on the beat back from Middle to Dam Green
A day to opt for the Topper: Jane Chadney downsizes to good effect on another blustery Sunday
Reverting to Start Line 1 for the second race, James Pollard still gets away well in the foreground, with Jane Anderson being the only helm to go for a port start in the background
Jane Anderson’s Topper travelling at speed, whilst James Pollard and Bob Sampson are moving more slowly as they strive to make their potential starboard tack advantage tell
Despite capsizing to windward as the wind just died on him, Bob Sampson is quickly up and heading over onto the centreboard, whilst Steve Axford has to go the long way round
Steve Axford and Bob Sampson race for the finishing line on the final beat back from Middle
Linda Spiller gets away first in her new Laser in the second of the Icicle series, with Nathan Pollard and Jane Chadney just behind
Around Dam Green and heading to West Red, Jane Chadney already has the RS 200’s pink asymmetric spinnaker pulling, but Rachel Pomeroy is just behind in club Bosun the ‘Rob Eason’
It’s presumably an optical illusion, but it looks uncannily as if the Bosun (and also Linda Spiller’s Laser) both have seagulls taking a ride on their dinghies (and no, nobody has been fiddling with Photoshop….)
Elliot Pomeroy, with Kian Downes as crew, looking comfortable in the ‘Mike Ford’
Jane Anderson is showing ahead of the fleet, but is slightly down to leeward as the whole fleet forms a procession at the upwind end of the start line in Frostbite 2, but Vicki’s Topper seems to be well placed to windward
With a 15-strong fleet and only a short beat to Dam Green, there’s lots of pressure to get in the right place to squeeze round the mark; here, Paul Whybrow’s Solo heads a tightly-packed group of eight boats as they head for Home 2
Geoff Floyd gliding along in his Solo, just in front of new member Mike Coulson, who is testing out his new sail in the Laser Pico and is apparently the only one of this trio to have found a temporary gust of wind
If they ever invent a new sport of synchronised sailing, it looks as though Rachael and Vicki would be naturals at it
Linda Spiller gets away first in her new Laser on Start Line 2
Lots of two-way traffic as the fleet tacks in front of the Dam and then heads downwind, with boats running on Starboard tack confronting helms heading for the mark on Port
Nathan Pollard and Jane Chadney head this group of four boats but Elliot Pomeroy in the Bosun is well placed with faster boats
Still time for a chat: Linda and Robin Spiller gliding downwind
The view from the Dam walkway: quite a reasonable amount of wind at this point in the race, but further up the lake towards Pinky, there were numerous dead spots to be negotiated
A tightly packed fleet just after the start of the afternoon’s race in the Icicle series
A nice composition of criss-crossing masts as the leading boats vie to be first around Dam Red: eventual winner James Pollard gets to the lay line for an approach on starboard
Helms and crews wearing dry suits and a grey misty background suggests that winter is getting close: James Pollard still managing to keep ahead of Sue Murray and Bob Sampson in the RS200
A sunny late October day brings out a 16-strong fleet, starting with a beat into the southerly wind to Dam Green
Tight at Dam Green as helms take various strategies to getting round the mark and off downwind
Annie Quartermain looking comfortable at the helm of her new Laser, with Nicky Buckett in the Bosun and Allan Comber in the Enterprise upwind of her
Although the predicted windspeeds suggested a gentle sail, at times there were patches that had boats heeled hard over, with helms and crews having to work hard: here Sue Murray and Bob Sampson in the RS200 are leading Adam Hilton in the distinctive yellow-hulled Sollo
Jane Anderson and James Pollard already leading the fleet away for the start of the afternoon’s Icicle Series race
Once more, very tight at the first mark as the bulk of the fleet arrive at Dam Green almost together
The fleet disappear into the distance at Far; Bosun 101, with Rachael Pomeroy and Cilla Gilbert, are well up towards the front of the fleet, on their way to the second of their day’s victories on handicap
Adam Hilton leading Linda and Robin Spiller in the Laser Radial and Streaker respectively
