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Strebor IOM Open 2024

Although there was only the hint of a breeze on the lake as the club was opened up at 8:00, by the time the first boats went on the water for practice, there was a good mid top suit ESE/SE breeze pretty well straight down the lake.

After a short welcome and briefing, the first race got underway soon after 10:00, but not before three general recalls and a start under I Flag.  Brad Gibson took wins in the first four races before a short break, with Peter Baldwin, Rob Walsh, Simon Fairman and Rob Radbourne all making it onto the podium. After race 1 Martin extended the start line for more room and most starts then got away cleanly on the first attempt.

Fortified after the break and with the breeze holding up in strength and direction, Rob W won three of the next four races, with Brad picking up the other one.  Podium spots this time were taken by Brad, Rob W, Robbie Mac, Roger Crates and John Brierley.

Racing was close all morning though with tight windward mark roundings on the first time around.  The breeze did however have shifts and holes producing a variety of snakes and ladders for the fleet, affecting most but seemingly not everyone, when you review the full results.

Post lunch and the breeze looked set fair another couple of races, but then started to veer more towards the South and reduce in strength.  You sometimes needed a good lead when in the front, as the fleet could bear down on you from behind on the next gust.  This led to some interesting roundings at the gate with 6 or 8 boats trying to fit through a relatively narrow gap.  Brad dominated the next four races winning each of them, one by such a margin it seemed as if he had been given a 30 second head start on everyone else!  Martin Roberts had a better session with a couple of podium places along with John Brierley, Paul Middleton, Rob Radbourne, Rob W and Simon Fairman.

With the breeze seeming to fade and races taking longer, the intended break after Race 12 was shelved and we continued on in an attempt to complete 16 races by 15:30.  In this final session the breeze did increase slightly and saw two more wins for Rob W plus one each for Martin and Brad.  Podium spots were shared between Brad, John Brierley, Rob W and Robbie Mac.

Brad won the event with ten race wins (discarding two seconds and a third) from Rob W with five wins.  This pair were well clear of Martin Roberts in third (36 points behind) and Peter Baldwin in fourth.

A great days racing, with many thanks to the race team of Sharon Plested, Judith Baldwin and Neil Westbrook and to Neil for running the galley for us.

The IOM Winter Open Series starts with the first event on Saturday 16th November followed by the Xmas Open on Saturday 14th December.  Club racing during the Winter Series starts at 12:00, with the Xmas Open starting at around 10:15 (NoR to be issued shortly).  Entry for all club events via the links “Upcoming Events”.

 

DF65 Social Racing 2024 – 30/8/24

Today’s DF65 racing saw eight sailors attend but only seven took the first two races. Due to the extremely light wind the RO decided on a short course, starting at the Clubhouse end a beat up to the windward mark which was the outer finish mark to starboard, down to the gate beyond the start line and then finish half way up the lake as normal. Each race taking approximately fifteen minutes.

Richard R. put the marker down taking the first three races, a slight lapse and then the final two. The beat to the finish was extremely difficult to predict with boats coming up the middle of the lake looking certain to get good positions and then the boats near the wall finding a good lift. This resulted in several close finishes.

After sitting out the first two races John C. decided to sail taking two firsts and a couple of seconds with the other contender James having two miss the last three races. Seven races were held before a halt was called to the mornings racing. Thanks go to Dave Williams for acting as RO.

  1. Richard Robinson           7pts 5wins
  2. John Carlin                       16pts 2wins
  3. Neil Westbrook               24pts
  4. Don MacKinnon              25pts
  5. James Douglas                 27pts
  6. Richard Walker               30pts 1 x 3rd
  7. Charles Legg                    30pts
  8. David White                      41pts

RG65 TT Round 9 – 27/10/24

Once again the breeze hardly failed to materialise all day and when it did it was never stable in direction for more than 30 seconds.  Primarily from over the houses, it proved troublesome to decide on an appropriate course to setup, with the Southern Bank in the Lee of the houses.  We therefore ended up with courses that were often a fetch followed by a reach back, although that could be a run followed in quick succession by another fetch.

As is usually the case, the cream rose to the top with Graham Elliott (Electronica) winning five races, Tobi Laux and Alan Bennett two each and John Brierley one.  After Graham, the next four boats were all Ivy designs followed by two Uno’s.

At the prizegiving, Graham thanked everyone for coming and the Race Team of Paul and Sharon Plested, Malcolm Harvey and Neil Westbrook along with Chris having another stint in the galley.

The photos from Malcolm don’t seem to show much wind, but there was some at times, but perhaps in the excitement and being absorbed in the racing Malcolm forgot to take photos with wind!

RG65 TT Round 8 – 26/10/24

The day started with little or no breeze as competitors arrived along with some mist drifting across the water.  However, by the time of the first start, a light breeze had filled in from the clubhouse end.

Tobi Laux stamped his mark from the start with two early wins, before Peter Baldwin managed to catch the right shifts and take the win in Race 3.  Martin Roberts then was the winner in Race 4 before a break was taken in racing.

After the break, another 3 races were sailed before lunch, with wins for John Brierley, Graham Elliott and another for Martin.  Lunch was earlier than expected at this point as the breeze seemed to be swinging more towards the West but had also dropped.

As is often the case, the breeze confounded us and after lunch we had another three races using the original course before another drinks break and allow for the course to be reset.  Winners in this session were Graham, followed by Dorian Crease and then Tobi with his third win.

We were then into the final session, with a revised course starting at the clubhouse end.  The wind was primarily from the SW, but could easily come from the West or South at any time along with big lulls.  The winners in this final session were Martin (twice) and John Tushingham.

So the final results saw Tobi with a good win by 10 points from Graham and then Martin picking up third place.

Thanks to our RO John Carlin assisted by Malcolm Harvey and Neil Westbrook and for Chris who kept us “fed and watered” in the galley.

Round9 takes place tomorrow.

 

 

IOM World Championships

The IOM World Championships 2024 started in Gladstone Australia yesterday (22/10/24) and continues until next Monday.  For the Results and a Free Live Stream (via Youtube) please head to the event page

https://www.iomworlds.com/

After each day of racing streamed live, a video of the racing with commentary is posted that can be reviewed at your leisure.

Do enjoy when you have some time.

DF65 Social Racing – 23/10/24

There was only the merest hint of a breeze arriving at 10am, but by 10:30 it was shaping up to be a decent breeze down the length of the lake from the clubhouse end.  Peter donned the waders and shifted a few marks to provide a decent windward leg for the first couple of races.

The fleet of 12 boats started in a light A+ rig breeze with the usual Gautby Rd holes and shifts to catch people out and pose the usual “shall I tack or not” question.  Andrew Potter started well and led for most of the first race, until Peter covered him on the run and overtook at the gate to take the win.  Race 2 and Peter made some new friends at the back of the fleet with a jib sheeting problem, leaving Paul Plested and Mike De St Paer to battle out for line honours, which went to Paul in this instance.

Race 3 was won by Peter after a battle with Clive and Richard Robinson who made a welcome return to Wednesday mornings.  Clive made a great start in Race 4 and led for a good part of the race and through the final gate.  However, Gautby Road decided not to favour him with the win and allowed both Peter and Paul to creep up the bank leaving him stranded in the middle of the lake with or no wind and a resultant third.

By now the wind was definitely across the lake, with starts being sometimes a beat and at other times a broad reach.  The main requirement was to keep your boat moving both off the line and continue to the windward mark.  Peter, Andrew and Clive were all vying for top spot all the way to the finish of Race 5, with a nail biting win for Peter as the other pair got a gust from behind.  In the final race Clive finally managed the win that he had been so close to achieving all morning.

A slightly early finish was called with tidying work to do in readiness for the RG65 TT weekend, although nobody complained with the wind being less than perfect.  Thanks must go to Liz Potter and Sharon Plested for acting as our Race Committee this morning and Paul Plested for the quick photo whilst we were temporarily parked up.

  1. Peter Baldwin           63   6pts  4 wins
  2. Clive Warren             53  12pts  1 win
  3. Paul Plested             154  15pts 1 win
  4. Mike De St Paer        35  19pts
  5. Andrew Potter         194  20pts
  6. Richard Robinson  901  24pts
  7. Richard Walker        39  31pts
  8. Dave Williams          33  36pts
  9. David White              94  42pts
  10. Sally Collings         829  49pts
  11. Charles Legg              21  50pts
  12. Malcolm Harvey  1019  59pts