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The
NE coast at Bridlington gives the Catapult
2018 racing Programme
its true open water sea sailing (along with
the traditional hospitality offered by the Dinghy section of the Royal
Yorkshire YC) and Brid delivered again across the B/H weekend.
With
strong winds looming across the weekend, three races back-to-back were
scheduled on Saturday, with a stiff NE breeze kicking
up a steep chop although blowing with the incoming tide. The RO set
port-rounding rectangular courses, with the Dart fleet starting five
minutes after the Catapults
(Right: Stuart Ede lifts in
the steep chop, Saturday, and below right, Alastair crashes over
a wave. Photos Syd Gage' on-board camera)
In
Race 1
nobody
spotted that the committee boat was drifting so all started on starboard
but needed to tack onto port to get across the line. Gareth Ede tacked
but didn't have time to get across in front of Alastair Forrest, so sat
head to wind watching John Terry lead the rest of
the fleet
away up the beat.
However, Gareth could trapeze and he clawed up
through the fleet to be first at the
windward mark. On the reach he delayed fully powering up, getting accustomed to the sea state, and John closed the gap. By the second reach, Gareth was back up to full speed
(and
surprised a seal that popped it's head out of the water as he swept
past.)
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On the next two laps Gareth extended his lead over John, and the pair
finished a good 15 minutes ahead of the chasing fleet! Behind George Evans pulled up
to third, able to keep speed pointing high, but was caught by Mike
Gough, while Stuart Ede and Syd
Gage chose to bear away upwind for speed through the chop. Stuart
went left to reduce tide opposition, catching Alastair at the windward
mark (and so revealing that he and others ahead had gone round a
more-distant mark, see photos further below)
For Race 2, the fleet all
decided on a starboard end start,
given the lumpy sea and gusty breeze, but the port bias was still so extreme
that only boats tacking onto port could cross. John gained by tacking
early out to sea,
gaining from stronger breeze at the expense of more tidal flow
and the steep chop (followed by all the local Darts).
With the breeze a little lighter, the priority was getting boat
speed in the steep chop, particularly in the final approach to
the top mark, where any extra tacks against the tide could give
a big loss (as Syd experienced!)
Again, trapezing gave Gareth the advantage over the rest of the
fleet, getting through the short sharp chop on the beat.
Rounding the windward mark first, Gareth held this lead for both
laps. George Evans pulled up to
third, held around the course (shortened to two laps) ahead of Mike Gough
who caught Alastair on lap two. Syd powered by Alastair on the final reach for 5th.
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Race 3
followed back-to-back,
setting only two laps
with late afternoon drawing in. Again the fleet started tightly on starboard in spite of the
port bias.
With the wind strength dropping, Gareth was able to trapeze less, and
the fleet was more closely bunched on the first beat, helped by
slack water. John had a good lead at the windward mark, but threw this
away as he hesitated about which mark he needed to round next, gifting Gareth
the lead which he held it to
the finish for a third straight win. George again had the boat speed to
hold third comfortably, ahead of Stuart.
(Below: Characterisic start, Saturday (Race 3) John Terry, event winner
(centre) is well away, with Gareth Ede powering up on trapeze, left.
Photo Syd Gage.)
Sunday
had
a brisk SW wind,
coming unobstructed by any land, and so
bringing a steep sea It was forecast to rise, and so two races
were booked with a 0930 start (!) to get racing in before conditions
became unmanageable.
Two lighter helms tested the conditions
and
withdrew leaving a fleet of
five.
In the steep chop the priorities were keeping boat speed and attempting
quick tacks, not at all easy or successful.
The RO set
courses not too far offshore,
windward/leeward (to protect the Darts from risking diving on tight reaches)
. However, the
beat had a distinct starboard bias and the downwind leg was a broad
reach rather than a run. Race 4
had the boats scrambling across the line in the strong breeze, then
finding the beat heavily skewed, so that John pulling out to windward
just missed laying the top mark in one starboard board, keeping a short
lead. The fleet stayed close with Mike Gough using the stronger breeze
well to push John, with Stuart Ede holding third around the second
lap
(Below:
The fleet jockeying in the strong westerly on Sunday.
Photo Mike Gough)
Stuart won the
Race 5
start with a well-timed run up
to the committee boat end, with George and Mike cheek-by-jowl a couple
of boats lengths to leeward. It was an exciting beat, with hulls flying
as they crashed through and over the waves. Stuart was the first to tack
inshore to find the layline for the windward mark, but Mike, who was by
now drawing ahead of George, gained an advantage by tacking later, and
rounded just ahead of Stuart.
John had recovered from a poor start to overtake George, and rounded
third. Stuart was on Mike’s heels as they rounded the leeward mark, but
then fluffed a tack in the tricky conditions allowing Mike to get away
and John to close the gap behind. John tried trapezing in the bumpy
conditions and commented afterwards that it made things feel “much
calmer”. He was right behind Stuart up the beat of Lap 2, and a tighter
turn and gybe at the top mark, as Stuart went wide to avoid a Dart, gave
him a couple of boat lengths edge over Stuart which he held to the
finish to claim second place behind Mike.
.(Below:
Brief Encounter, Race 1 on Saturday. Left, Stuart (yellow hulls) tacks
for the upwind mark, ahead of Alastair who was reaching down from a different
"upwind mark". Right: they go their different ways after rounding,
Stuart begining the reach, and Alastair sure that he is on the third
leg, running. They can't both be right! Alastair withdrew.)
(Photos RYYC Rib, with thanks.)
On Monday, the building westerly, whistling in the
rigging, was off the land, giving a flat sea. With the wind due
to rise, Joe Franks as RO (and Commodore) took his Dart out to test the
conditions, and came back to say it was manageable. So the fleet pulled the
boats across the sand to the water's edge in rising breeze, where more
Darts and two Catapults went out, speeding upwind in the flat water but
returning to report that downwind was precarious, and unsafe for racing.
So the fleet pulled the boats back across the sand, disappointed but quietly
relieved that racing was cancelled.
Although Gareth had three straight wins, counting a DNS gave John a
clear win as Northern Champion, and Mike Gough's places in the strong
Sunday breeze lifted him to second. Handicap wins on Sunday gave Mike
the countback decision over John with tied scores.
Alastair Forrest, Gareth Ede, and Stuart Ede
RESULTS
Rank |
Helm |
R1
|
R2
|
R3
|
R4 |
R5 |
Total |
Nett |
1st |
John Terry |
(2) |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
9 |
7 |
2nd |
Mike Gough |
3 |
4 |
(7) |
2 |
1 |
17 |
10 |
3rd |
Gareth Ede |
1 |
1 |
1 |
9 |
(9) |
21 |
12 |
4th |
George Evans |
4 |
3 |
3 |
(5) |
4 |
19 |
14 |
5th |
Stuart Ede |
(5) |
5 |
4 |
3 |
3 |
20 |
15 |
6th |
Alastair Forrest |
(9) |
7 |
6 |
4 |
5 |
31 |
22 |
7th |
Syd Gage |
6 |
6 |
5 |
(9) |
9 |
35 |
26 |
8th |
Damien Cooney |
(9) |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
45 |
36 |
HANDICAP RESULTS
Rank |
Helm |
R1
|
R2
|
R3
|
R4 |
R5 |
Total |
Nett |
1st |
Mike Gough |
3 |
(4) |
4 |
1 |
1 |
13 |
9 |
2nd |
John Terry |
1 |
3 |
(6) |
2 |
3 |
15 |
9 |
3rd |
George Evans
|
(5) |
2 |
1 |
5 |
4 |
17 |
12 |
4th |
Stuart Ede |
(6) |
6 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
20 |
14 |
5th |
Gareth Ede |
2 |
1 |
5 |
(9) |
9 |
21 |
17 |
6th |
Syd Gage |
4 |
5 |
2 |
(9) |
9 |
29 |
20 |
7th |
Alastair Forrest |
(9) |
7 |
6 |
4 |
5 |
31 |
22 |
8th |
Damien Cooney |
(9) |
9 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
45 |
36 |
(Below: Start, Race 1. It was much
lumpier than it looks here!) (Photo RYYC Rib, with thanks.)
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