May Bank Holiday Report
Published 18:32 on 3 May 2022
Over the 3-day weekend the Club was very busy. This is a summary of all the action.
Saturday Sailing
10 Rusty Sailors met on the Hard for our first session of 2022 with the support of senior instructors Finn Western and Anna Turner. To everyone's relief by the time boats were ready to launch there was some wind although tacking back up the creek against the ebb tide was a real test of determination - a special mention for Cathy Barrett who reported afterwards it took 300 tacks!
In the first Early Points Race it was only Class 1 that turned out - the (as it turned out) false forecasts of poor wind clearly deterring Class 2 sailors. Kevan Watkins and Jim Robertson set a fiendish course posing racers the challenge of how best to use or avoid the tidal streams. In the end Peter McKerchar won the race comfortably in his Lightning with Jeremy Haynes 2nd and Jolyon Western 3rd.
Start of Season Party
The Memorial Hall was packed for our first Start of Season Party since 2019. It was great to see so many members, old and new, enjoying each others' company aided by the free drink and plentiful supply of canapé s provided by those attending. Roger Mavity's much delayed presentation to his predecessor Ivan Western was a tour de force and was a fitting tribute to someone who had served WWSC for so many years. Those who missed it can view the video here. The kid's room was also clearly a great hit. Many thanks to everyone who worked so hard to make this such a success.
Sunday's Sailing
Oppie & Topper Club, meeting for the first time in 2022 (see photo below), got off to a great start and it was tremendously encouraging to see the large turn out and high level of enthusiasm to get back on the water despite grey, drizzly weather with a very light and gradually fading wind. 8 junior Toppers and 1 Feva joined 5 adult racers in the 3 Sprints races which were exceptionally challenging with the Race Team ( Jem & Nancy Western and Judy Chilton) reducing an already short course in each successive race. Peter McKerchar, the Club's light wind maestro, took 1st place in all 3 adult races with Isla Edward currently leading the junior sprints. You can see the full results here for both the adult Early Sprints and Junior Sprints (scored separately due to juniors sailing one less lap).
Monday Safety Boat Refresher
Ann Carnegie, Race Officer for the day, wisely cancelled the planned Early Points Race. As the Chimet plot below shows, even outside the Harbour, winds peaked at just 3 knots. Not much good if the tide is running against you at 4! It was certainly a good day for our powerboats and so it was great to see 11 members receiving a full refresher on the many aspects of Safety Boat duty - including driving both a RIB and tiller outboard, righting techniques and a run-through of all the equipment provided to the safety crew. Having 3 RIBs and both Lima and Lisette available due to the cancelled race was a bonus. Many thanks to Chris Gorton, Anna Turner and Finn Western for running this event.
Last updated 11:01 on 28 March 2024