Bay Series Race 1 – Race Report
Bay Series Race 1 - Race Report
The first race in the new Flushing Bay Race series went down in a weekend of perfect sailing weather and was very well supported. The breeze for most of the race was better than the complicated forecast suggested, and 21 yachts took off from the Black Rock start line for Zone in about 8 knots of steady pressure.
Race officer John Brown opted to keep the fleet in the area from St Anthony’s Head to Helford which proved to be a very smart call with a complicated forecast for both wind strength and direction, that made it unclear how much wind there would be close inshore. The race officer also read the runes brilliantly over where the wind would swing.
In the YTC class, after a hotly contested start by nine boats, the wind built over the first beat to Zone and across to Rosemullion. The downwind leg to Hine Downing brought the spinnakers out before a fast beat back to Rosemullion and what should have been a straightforward run down to Pendennis and on to the finish off Flushing’s clubhouse – except for a sudden hole in the wind around the Point and the docks before some sharp squalls in the river mouth required some rapid crew action!
Fot the IRC boats, the first beat to Zone was initiallly followed by a fetch to Rosemullion. But halfway there the first wind transition came through with the breeze veering suddenly and jumping in strength requiring a rapid change of settings to de-power. This turned the course into a giant windward leeward from Helford back to Hine Downing. A lively run, down to Hine Downing with a jibe, was followed by a second beat back to Rosemullion and the strong tide made for interesting tactics.
The second big transition came through on the final leg back to the Carrick Roads. For the fast boats at the front there was frustration as they sailed off the edge of the wind map into nothing. Meanwhile back down the fleet a ribbon of breeze ran up the middle of the course. Yachts inshore and further off found themselves stuck in the same frustrating wind hole as the fast boats ahead. The Sigmas sailed steadily up the band of breeze and on Afrita we found ourselves in the surreal situation of sailing up to and round some of the faster boats on the approach to Carrick Nath. After a brief bit of bobbing and a third wind transition that forced a hasty spinnaker gibe at the docks we enjoyed a nice reach to the line leaving many much faster boats drifting behind. Special mention to the crew of Sueno for coming second on their new to them Sigma 33 that they only bought a few weeks ago.
Our thanks go especially to Flushing SC as race organisers and hosts for the prize giving and for the excellent complimentary pasties from Pip’s Café Penryn. Thanks to Paul Clark and Seaware for sponsoring of the race and the whole new Bay Series. This new series is a very welcome addition to the COGS calendar and we look forward to race two of the three race series on May 26.
(Thanks to Tim Rowley and Andrew Laming for this report as I was unable to take part in this race – AN)
