Author: David Houghton

Nick wins both races today

22nd September Autumn series

Despite being just over halfway through the Autumn series the weather was as good as many days during the Summer series. A reasonably steady F2-3 from the east made for a pleasant days sailing. There was quite a mix of classes ranging from a RS700 to a Solution.

With HW at 13.00 there was still some flood tide at the start of race one and a flat sea. Curtis (RS700) and Dave & John (RS400) led after lap one with Phantom Nick and Solution Paul close behind. Following a slow first lap Contender Phil managed to pick up time on the next three, almost catching Nick. Vareo Richard and Phil & Lorna managed to find a big light patch on lap one putting them on the back foot early in the race. After four laps Dave & John crossed the line just ahead of Curtis with Nick third.

Race two – by now there was very little flood tide inshore but still noticeable offshore. The wind eased a little during the race resulting in the longest race of the day. Curtis took an early lead and was looking good with a big lead until lap three when he missed the trapeze hook resulting in a swim. Dave & John took line honours with Nick not far behind. Paul and Phil had a close race with the former crossing the line two seconds ahead.

Race three- by this time the tide had started to turn, the sea state lumpy and the wind up to F3, allowing some opportunities to plane off wind for the asymmetrics. Curtis led from start to finish. Dave & John slowly opened up a good lead of the rest of the fleet which was led by Nick. After lap one Phil, Paul and Richard rounded the leeward gate within a few seconds. Phil then managed to open up a small lead on Paul.

On corrected time Paul and his Solution proved quick, winning the first two races and almost making it a clean sweep but Dave & John won the final race by just six seconds. Nick enjoyed three podium places with a second and two thirds. Vareo Richard proved to be the most consistent finishing fourth in all three races.

Many thanks to the Race team for organising unseasonably good weather and good courses, providing a great day on the water.

Full results are on the club web site

Paul and Dave & John, todays race winners

15th September – Autumn series

A warm sunny start to the day and it was great to be back on the water after last week’s ‘surfing’ conditions. With LW at 14.00 all racing would be in the ebb tide. In full flow in race one but gradually eased with little tide by the end of racing.

F2 wind, gusting F3 from the SW to begin but shifting to WSW at times, lots of shifts throughout the day providing testing conditions which saw many gains and losses.

Lovely sunny start to the day although it did cloud over by the time we returned to shore.

Race One – Ed, sailing his A-Class soon led the fleet opening up a big lead, in fact after two laps he started lapping the fleet. Things were a bit closer for the rest of the fleet with Dave & John (RS400) leading after lap one, just ahead of Phantom Nick and Contender Phil. On the second beat Dave & John hooked onto a couple of good lifts opening up a three minute plus lead which they extended on lap three. After lap two Phil led Nick by over a minute, only to fall victim of the shifts on the final lap with Nick crossing the line two minutes ahead.

Pre-start milling and ‘we’re off’.

Race two – the wind eased during the race and at times nearer a F1, but still just as shifty, perhaps more so. Ed again did another horizon job and proceeded to lap half the fleet. There were many place changes on the first beat, with some big gains and losses. Phil played the shifts well and led after lap one, two seconds ahead of Dave & John, with Nick just ahead of Phil & Lorna and James. The second beat wasn’t so kind to Phil with both Dave & John and Nick sneaking past. Positions remained unchanged on the final lap.

Race three. Let’s just say Ed had another lonely race out in front. By his stage most were working the left hand side of the beat where the wind appeared to be more favourable. Dave & John held a small lead over a tightly packed fleet after lap one, with eight seconds separating the main pack led by OK James. After three laps Phil had crept ahead of James, crossing the line nearly two minutes ahead.

Fast ‘Eddy’ enjoying the cat friendly conditions.

On corrected time Dave & John had a comfortable win in race one with James second. James then won the next two races, beating Nick by under a minute in race two and a comfortable win over Dave & John in the final race.

Many thanks to Darell and Curtis who volunteered at late notice to assist Richard on line duty. Between them we enjoyed a good day on the water with shifty, testing conditions.

Full results are on the club web site

Dave & John and James, todays race winners

The Thursday Finale

Conditions were near perfect, unfortunately enthusiasm appeared to have waned as only the very keen decided to venture out for the final Thursday sailing of the year. There was a warm F2 from the NE and HW at 19.00.

Racing starts, a tad more wind would had been nice – seems an odd thing to say after the past Thursday evenings !

View from the committee boat – thanks to Lorna and Chris for volunteering to run the racing.

It was getting dark by the time we returned to shore. Beautiful sunset though.

Big thanks goes to Hugh and his Quad bike, without which we would not have been able to sail

Thursday Finale results

25th August – it’s the Autumn series

It was the first Act of the Autumn series, thankfully the weather had improved over the previous few days, the temperature was up and the wind starting with a manageable F2 from the SW.

Another rarity recently was the tide assisting the beat providing some extended off wind legs for everyone. Ten boats started the day but only three finishing the final race.

RS400’s head for the leeward gate

The three RS400’s quickly led the fleet in race one. After lap one only eight seconds separated them as they rounded the leeward gate. Team Custard slowly pulled away during the next three laps. Phil & Roger led Richard & Robyn by two seconds on the penultimate lap and again on the finish line. Behind the singlehanders had their own battle with Contender Phil just ahead of Vareo Dave and Solution Paul. A boom failure on the final lap meant an early trip back ashore for Dave. Paul managing to overtake Phil on the final lap.

The wind and sea state slowly built during the day

The forecasted increase in wind turned out to be correct and with a building sea state resulted in a much depleted fleet for race two with only four starters, one of which retired. Just two seconds separated the first two RS400’s after lap one with Phil & Roger two seconds ahead of Team Custard and Richard & Robyn a few seconds further behind. Over the next three laps Phil & Roger extended their lead to forty seconds. Solution Paul flew the flag for the singlehanders finishing third.

Some returned to shore earlier than others

On corrected time there were two different race winners with Team Custard winning the first by just seven seconds and Paul the second race. Phil & Roger, sailing the club RS400 to a third and second place.

Thanks to the race team for a great but if not challenging days sailing. Special thanks to ‘young’ Ed for assisting on the RIB which was needed as at one point there were two capsizes and a ‘broken boat’ to deal with.

Full results are on the club web site

Team Custard and Paul, todays race winners

Passage Race – part 2

After careful considerable it was decided to skip the trip to Hopton and sail extended windward leeward courses instead.

Eleven boats joined in with all bar one singlehanders.

Phantom Mark led race one from start to finish with D-One Steve in hot pursuit. D-One Adrian managed to close the gap after lap two. On the final lap, Solution Richard, Contender Phil and Laser Harry made best use of the light winds nearly catching Steve at the line.

Sailing gets the seal of approval

Race two, Mark led again this time followed by Phil. These two opened up a good lead on the rest of the fleet resulting in an extra lap for them. After lap one less than a minute separated the next four boats with Solution Richard just ahead of Contender Darell and Laser Michael just ahead of Vareo Richard. On the final lap, Solution Richard managed to pull ahead of the others but now followed by Vareo Richard.

The colourful sight of beach huts and spinnakers

A slightly reduced fleet for the final race. Mark once again leading the fleet round the course taking line honours again. Eleven seconds separated the next four boats led by Contender Phil. After lap two Contender Phil has opened up a small lead on the group with Laser Harry just ahead of the others. On the final lap, Solution Richard managed to slip pass Harry to cross the line third.

On corrected times Richard and Harry shared race wins with Harry winning race one and race three.

Big thanks to the race team, especially Sarah and Ed who stepped in to help.

Next week sees the start of the Autumn series – my, how time flies.

Full results are on the club web site

Hopton race results

Richard and Harry, todays race winners

11 th August Summer Act 8

It was a beautiful day at Costa del Gorleston, another cloudless sky and a warm F2 from the NE. The beach was surprisingly empty first thing but gradually filled during the morning and was packed when we returned to shore.

12 boats enjoyed a rare four race Sunday which was almost dominated by Team Jarvis, with James taking the first two races in his OK and Paul the third in his Solution. Richard and Rosie managed to save some pride for the two-person boats taking the final race in their RS400.

Costa del Gorleston…..early morning

The tide was in full flood at the beginning of the racing so most were mindful of venturing out to the windward mark too early. As race three started the wind veered to East and also increased a tad. The race team finished the race after lap one and quickly reset the course, hence the extra race.

It was the final Act of the Summer series which saw a change at the top with Richard & Rosie jumping up the leader board to win the series with Paul second and Nick third.

Next week is the second part of the Hopton Passage races, so remember your onboard provisions.

Full results are on the club web site

4th August Summer Act 7

A few weeks ago we may have said it was a warm start to the day but after the past few hot days it felt a bit chilly. This may have been the reason there were very few people on the beach, although the Gorleston cliff top festival may have also contributed to this.

Eleven boats were rigged and launched and apart from the two RS400’s all were single handers.

The offshore wind was patchy and variable, initially from the west but gradually moving to the SW, and wind strength anything from very little to a F2.

And the most travelled visitor award goes to……………… Paul, visiting from NZ

Race 1 – With HW just before the start there was little tide to deal with. Dave & John, sailing their RS400 led the fleet, closely followed by Phantom Nick and Richard, who was going solo, swapping his RS400 for his RS300. These three opened up a good lead on the rest of the fleet after two laps earning themselves an extra lap to the others. Behind them, Solution Richard led after lap one and new member Mark, sailing a Phantom leading on lap two. Vareo Richard put in a fast second lap finishing one second behind Richard.

A day for concentration

Race 2 – the patchy and shifty wind was a test for everyone’s patience! By now the ebb tide was flowing, particularly noticeably inshore. Dave & John led the slow moving fleet, eventually opening up a good lead. Phantom Mark worked the shifts well moving into second spot nearly three minutes ahead of the next boat, Phantom Nick. The two Solutions were enjoying a close tussle with Richard just a few seconds ahead of Paul. Thankfully the race team took sympathy on the fleet and finished the race after one, very long lap.

Little Phantom, big Phantom !

Despite the light conditions there was still some appetite for a third race. The race team thoughtfully moved the windward mark a little closer, also taking into consideration the wind had shifted more to the south. Things looks good during the countdown but just before the start the wind died, and slowly but surely everyone gradually drifted further away from the start line. After several minutes everyone decided to head for home, which itself proved difficult. Eventually the two Safety boats towed boats back to shore

Race three- trying to get to the line

On corrected time Dave & John won both races with Phantom Nick second in race one and Phantom Mark second in race two. Third place in both races went to Solution Richard. With just one week to go, Phantom Nick is looking well positioned to win the Summer series, holding a six point lead over Solution Paul

Dave & John, winners of race 1 & 2

Ironically just as we had got all the boats back ashore a decent Southerly breeze filled in. Many thanks to the race team for a testing and mentally tiring (frustrating!) days sailing and for making the most of the conditions.

Full results are on the club web site

https://www.flickr.com/photos/gygsc/albums/

Photos on the club Flickr site

28th July Summer series Act 6

It’s beginning to feel like summer !

It was a warm cloudless day at Gorleston and also windless when we first arrived. The sea was super flat, glistening in the sunshine. A few decided not to hang around but the forecast suggested a sea breeze would fill in late morning and sure enough just after 10.30 the wind begun to shift from NW to N and finally a F2 from the east arrived.

By this time there were many people on the beach and the first task was finding a route to the shoreline to launch the boats.

All close, heading back to the leeward gate

The race team were quick to set course although racIng was delayed a tad whilst a certain 400 crew had to be recovered from their SUP having paddled a little too far down tide !

By the time racing started the sea breeze was still a steady F2 from the east, with the occasional gust just sufficient for Ed to get one hull of his A-Class out of the water.

Race one honours went to the RS400 of Richard, with stand in crew Dave, who just beat Paul, sailing his Solution. However, Paul made amends by winning the next three races, yes we had four races as conditions were so nice.

RS400 ‘s at the leeward gate

Many thanks to the race team of Tamsin and Phil, who made the extra effort of moving the start line for the fourth race as the wind had shifted to the ESE.

Full results are on the club web site

https://www.flickr.com/photos/gygsc/albums/

Photos on the club Flickr site

14th July Summer series Act 4

Despite it being Act 4 of the Summer series we still await the arrival of summer!

However, there was a decent offshore wind and a relatively flat sea so sailing conditions were pretty good.

Thirteen boats joined in the fun. The single handers continue to prove more popular with just Phil & Lorna in their RS400 representing the two-man fleet. The RS Vareos mustered the largest fleet with four. The two RS700’s managed to synchronise their diaries with both turning up to sail.

With LW at 08.30 the flood tide had kicked in…just. With the wind across the tide, the race team opted to test a new course format, placing a ‘spacer’ mark a few hundred metres up tide, creating a triangular course and providing a reach for the non asymmetrics to enjoy.

What’s happened to summer

The offshore wind provided testing conditions with many shifts and gusts, ranging from F2-F4.

Race one – the left hand side of the course appeared to be the best route to the windward mark, with Phantom Nick just behind A-Class Ed after lap one with RS Vareo Dave in third.

The gusts seemed to time their appearance as boats approached the spacer mark making bearing off for the run tricky for some of the fleet. At the line the A-Class crossed first with Nick holding off the RS700’s of Curtis and Phil, who had both gone right on the right beat.

Racing starts

Race two – flood tide now in full flow. The gusts now were a good F4. Most kept left on the beat. The latter half of the beat proved very shifty with much to lose or gain. Ed led again with Nick once again demonstrating great upwind boat speed in second. These two opened up a good lead and were awarded an extra lap. RS700 Curtis led the rest until he opted to retire. Solution Paul then led the chase followed by Europe Steve. RS Vareo Richard was the only one brave enough to fly his spinnaker on all three downwind legs.

The testing conditions took their toll on both boats and bodies with four boats retiring, either with gear fatigue or body fatigue.

The RS700’s get into gear

On corrected time there were two different race winners, Nick winning race one with Steve second. Race two proved very close with just 17 seconds separating the first four boats, Minisail Carl winning and Nick second. Race wins are proving hard this series with only Carl managing to get more than one win in a single outing so far in the series.

It’s not often we have an Etchell in the fleet

During the racing the fleet were joined by 505 sailor Tom, on this occasion sailing his Etchell, who had sailed up from RNSYC on a day cruise with some friends, perhaps next time he will join in the racing!

Thanks to the race team of Robyn, Richard and Don. And also to guest AOOD Steve who volunteered to help. Trying something a little different proved very popular and provided a great but tiring days sailing.

Full results are on the club web site