Holy Loch Sailing Club – race 4 (the sailing of the postponed race due to the heavy rain and wind on Wednesday 21st August) Series 3.
The last Wednesday night race of the season was yet again sailed with very little wind.
Pipers- The three competing Pipers crossed the starting line side by side eking out what they could of a dying breeze as they headed down the Loch. Aided by a strong current they spread out as they reached the first mark at Hafton, which, as conditions dictated, also became the penultimate turning mark, as the fleet set about the long struggle back with, of course, the current now firmly against them. Tom Piper, which had established a good lead, looked set to hold off a dwindling fight back by Billie with Stay Puff struggling at the back but Robert Towart’s hallmark attributes of patience and persistence rose to the challenge at this point, and with Charmaine Russell and guest good luck charm Ellie Judd providing competent support, Stay Puff began her trademark remorseless recovery. Reaching the final mark with a narrow lead they held off the opposition on the last short fetch to the finish ahead of Tom Piper, which nevertheless snatched the overall honours in the Series, under the regular command of Fergus Campbell, Stuart Brown and Ally Gordon.
White Sail- The rivals Judicious and Moonlight set up for their start but the steady breeze lasted until the last half minute. A lull left Moonlight metres short at the start signal, while Judicious was able to keep momentum and gain an early lead. The patchy wind allowed Judicious to extend this lead to the first mark at Hafton, but with Moonlight not too far behind. Judicious left the mark on the next leg in a fading breeze towards Graham's Point, while Moonlight found the tide was the only energy prevailing as they reached the mark and then drifted on towards the firth of Clyde. Judicious made slow progress in the right direction while Moonlight drifted backwards in the wrong direction. Eventually the breeze materialised sufficiently to allow sailing to resume, with Judicious rounding the last mark a whole leg ahead of Moonlight. The returning breeze looked to carry Judicious to the finish line, but just metres short, the wind vanished bringing them up painfully short. On the other side of the loch the breeze was at last carrying Moonlight at brisk pace. While Judicious was able to reach the finish well before Moonlight had even rounded the last mark, would it be enough of a gap before Moonlight crossed the line? Once the handicap was applied, the gap was 24 seconds in favour of Judicious, improbably close after the huge gap in the middle of the race. This gave Judicious her second first of the series, but the series went to Moonlight with three first places from previous races.
Dinghies and Flying Fifteen- The dinghies and Flying Fifteen – The RS400, Albacore, 2 Lasers and a Flying Fifteen led the way around the course but just like the Pipers and White Sail , they too were at times being pushed backwards by the tide but they persevered to complete a lap and finish before the light faded.
Meanwhile, Jim and Joan Campbell stayed ashore preparing an excellent barbecue to reward the tired sailors at the end of, not just the Series, but also the end of the domestic season with only the annual Polaris Regatta to compete for this weekend against visiting sailors from around the Clyde.
Results –
Pipers 1st Stay Puff 2nd Tom Piper 3rd Billie Piper
White Sail 1st Judicious J30, 2nd Moonlight Sonata
Flying Fifteen 1st Efficacious
Dinghies 1st The Great Gonzo RS400, 2nd Home Brew Albacore
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