Results / Gul Scottish National Championships Chanonry SC - 02/08/2003
The RS 300 Scottish Championships were held over the weekend of the 2/3
August at Chanonry Sailing Club, situated on the Moray Firth near
Inverness. The event was sponsored by GUL and Caley Marina and we are
very grateful for their assistance.
There was no racing on the Saturday as the strong wind made sailing a bit
marginal and had kicked up a very short steep sea which had the rescue
crews struggling to control their boats. But when the tide turned we were
let off the leash for a race, however the wind increased again and
stretched the rescue cover beyond what was safe, so racing was abandoned
before it started. While the wreckage on the shore was cleared up, some
of us stayed out a bit longer to practice our gybes and the standing
waves by the harbour wall as we came in were very interesting.
Early on Sunday morning it looked like the same again, but gradually the
wind decreased and four races were held.
Race 1 was the windiest at around 20 knots, with tricky short steep waves
to make things more interesting. Ian Baillie got clean away at the start
on port tack and had a 100-metre lead by the windward mark, which he
improved upon as the race progressed. Ben Yates was second and Mark
Henman third. Steve McDonald spent too much time getting acquainted with
his centreboard and Andrew Grant, attending his first 300 event found the
conditions very challenging but managed to finish.
Race 2 was won by Ian after he had he picked the better shifts up the
first beat, with Mark and Ben having a close tussle for second. Mark came
out on top thanks to some great down wind speed, with Steve close behind.
The wind was steadily decreasing as race 3 started and the sea was much
smoother, but it was still Ian in the lead by the first mark. Ben was
close behind so Ian had to keep a close watch on him all the way round.
It was Mark and Steve who had the closest race though and at the finish
Steve had done just enough to edge through.
The final race was very tight with Ben taking the lead off the start line
and Ian right on his transom. Ben kept a tight cover on Ian upwind and
although Ian nearly broke through on several occasions down wind, he
could not get past, giving Ben a deserved win. Steve and Mark were very
close behind as the leaders slowed each other down.
So after an exhausting days sailing, Ian Baillie emerged as the RS300
Scottish champion for 2003, with Ben Yates second and Mark Henman third.
1 Ian Baillie 445 Dalgety Bay 3 pts
2 Ben Yates 352 Chanonry 5 pts
3 Mark Henman 450 Sunderland 9 pts
4 Steve McDonald 474 Port Edgar 10 pts
5 Andrew Grant 403 Pentland Firth 17 pts