Catapult returned to Bassenthwaite as a favourite Bank Holiday event for three days of close racing. Bass remained nothing if not challenging, and after the hard blow of last year, the event started in light and fading breezes, but with the promise of more to follow, delivered in force on Monday.

   The courses too followed the Bass tradition of complex patterns around the upper lake (but with careful help from a lead safety RIB, and it was only the one simpler course which brought a series-changing error.) In spite of these challenges, the same sailors rose to the top, worked hard, with Gareth Ede able to count five 1^st places, and John Terry gaining a clear second slot. Behind them, racing was tight: four points covered the next four places, and of the eleven-strong fleet, seven helms had second or third individual race places.

  In Race 1 in a light NW breeze Gareth Ede and Stuart Ede (electing a midline start) and John Terry (at the starboard end)  gained clean air to pull away from the pack, with Stuart  leading at the windward mark, and all three were then neck and neck as they finished the long down-wind leg.

 Meanwhile, the big chasing fleet closed up in the decreasing breeze down the run, and approaching the port-rounding mark, six boats were in line, not predicting the foreseeable catastrophe, each too late to give the next boat room. In the resulting five-boat collision, Nigel Harrison (the innocent party on the inside) was pushed to slew across the bows of the others. Only Nigel, and George Evans (correctly taking a wide sweep around the mess) escaped 360’ turns. In front, Gareth built a lead in gentle air down the remaining two legs of the shortened race until way out in front, while John Terry finally caught Stuart (who had elected not to raise the dagger-boards on the last long run, and had a top batten not popping through) Behind, Cliff Antill had climbed out of the chaos best, to move out to a clear third.

    (Below: rigging on the Bass ramp in front of Scafell looming above the lake.)

   In the big bunch start for Race 2,  Gareth again moved out by starting halfway down the line to get clean air, but John T on a delayed port tack start went far right to better breeze, getting to the windward mark first, then unable to hold off Gareth. These two moved away from the chasing fleet, and in the ensuing battle, John gained ground on the beats, seeming able to point higher, but Gareth reasserted his advantage on the reaches. On the final lap, John tried an early tack onto port but was betrayed by a wind shift, and Gareth then gained unassailable lead of a whole leg after picking up a final long gust on the reach back as the wind was dying.

  Sunday  dawned with the lake a millpond (photo below) until ruffles showed the returning light NW, due to be unstable with a front coming through. 

 
Race 3 got underway with enough breeze to move briskly, with Paul and Stuart leading up the first beat after good starts, but they tacked for the mark too late, allowing Gareth and Cliff to come through. This pack then entered the second burst of mayhem in the event, as Gareth rounded the wrong way, having to unwind back round behind the rest of the fleet, and then hitting the mark. His penalty and Paul’s 360’ after being helpless on port in front of Stuart were negociated in dying breeze.

  Stuart had a healthy lead on the downwind leg but was left drifting in a wind hole, visibly moving backwards, and the fleet caught up to create a flotilla of drifting boats. Justin Evans edged into the lead---standing up to catch whispers of pressure, he could look back to where the 2010 TT Champion and the 2010 Nationals Champion were becalmed far far behind. The club saw that no more legs could be completed and the fleet crept to the line at the next mark, John Terry picking up the slightest breeze on the left to come in ahead of Stuart, with Nigel taking third from Alastair Forrest by six inches of bowboard.

   (Below: Gareth, Alastair and John Peperell prepare for Monday's racing, or perhaps a polar expedition.)

  Race 4 was delayed until a light breeze came back, and Paul, seeming stung by the last race, was well away leading up the first beat, pursued by Gareth. They took time to locate the next mark on the complex course, and the fleet closed up until a bit of breeze took Gareth away, building a good lead. The breeze died again, with huge speed differences between boats inching along and any able to get in the groove during any slight increase, with places changing back and forth. Cliff managed to break from the fleet on the start of the second lap, and he held on to the gap to come second.

  Monday showed itself a very different day, wind under cloud coming straight up the lake from SE and promising more in the dark water away from the shelter at the club, confirmed by a hectic morning in Force 5-6 gusts (but with only one capsize in the fleet.) John Peperall elected a cut down Roundhead sail, almost full height but without the high curved roach,  finding it as fast upwind and reaching but predictably slower downwind.

 In Race 5, Stuart and Cliff stormed a successful port start across the fleet, heading to the right into strong steady breeze which Cliff, trapezing from the off, used to build a big lead. Cliff could dare think he had it in the bag until he missed a mark in the series of fast reaches and the run in lap 2, gifting the lead to Gareth, whose light weight hadn’t held him back, coming through the fleet upwind on trapeze. The hard race for third became a hard race for second, with places changing hands over four demanding laps, until John Terry emerged and held second. Alastair and Stuart alternated until Stuart sailed a tauter race for third, with George Evans pulling up behind took fifth, again electing to sail off trapeze.

    (Below: a typical sight at Bass Bank Holiday TT---Gareth Ede looks back at the chasing pack)

 By Race 6, stronger gusts were shaking the boats, although the right tactic upwind was still to stay in the full breeze in the middle. Downwind, control wasn’t threatened, and the club set a course zigzagging with reaches across the lake. This time, Stuart and Cliff as the port end starters were just caught by Alastair starting on the button at the starboard end, so the fleet streamed away as a pack.

  John Terry just led Stuart at the windward mark, until they headed down towards the wrong mark (from the previous race) and Gareth (taking second) and Alastair chased them in a pack at the gybe mark. Gareth and John Terry were neck and neck across the fast reaches, bur Gareth took the next beat and then extended away for the win. Behind John, a battle for third saw changing places, with Paul battered in the gusts, and Stuart not trapezing  but both fast and comfortable downwind. Paul caught Alastair in the final reaches, but a hesitant early tack for the line when in control let Alastair take back third on the line with quicker final tack.

                                                               RESULTS

                                                       Sailed: 6, Discards: 1, To count: 5, Entries: 11,

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