Results / RS Racing Circuit Filey SC - 18/07/2009

RS300 Racing Circuit Event at Filey

Some quite extreme conditions, which produced some spectacular sailing, greeted the RS300 fleet at the Craftinsure-sponsored Filey Regatta over the weekend of 18/19 July. Onshore the conditions looked benign but once in the racing area it soon became apparent that they were anything but, with a force 4-5 and  a large swell running almost against the wind.

In race 1 both Sam Sutton and Steve Bolland footed off on starboard tack from the start to surf the waves heading upwind, reaching speeds of over 12 knots and contending with nosedives to boot. However, a slightly higher course taken by Ian Smith saw him lead narrowly at the first mark.

The first reach was relatively uneventful except for the large gusts coming off the shore but the second reach was rather more dramatic as the fleet headed on a flat out reach into the 6 foot waves coming in the opposite direction, boats becoming almost airborne as they launched themselves off the wave tops (then to be met with a shuddering thud as they landed in the trough).

Then came the scary bit! A long run with the swell coming perpendicular to the direction of travel with the waves and wind increasing the further the fleet headed out to sea. As Smith myopically attempted to find the leeward mark he was hit by a particularly roguish wave which caused him to gybe but he nevertheless managed to stay upright. Sutton was not so lucky and the sound of carbon hitting the water was unmistakeable.

All these shenanigans left Bolland with a clear lead which he extended over the next hour to win comfortably. In fact, much to his chagrin, he was sent on another lap by the race officer while the remainder of the fleet put their feet up awaiting the next race. Second was Smith with son, Stephen, in third place.

For race 2 the conditions had got even more boisterous if anything. Sutton picked up a nice lift on the right on the first beat to lead narrowly from Bolland, Tim Keen and Smith senior.  A furious reach saw Sutton and Bolland overlapped at the gybe mark. Bolland stuffed it in and Sutton tacked round before haring off into the lead. The run was his undoing again though allowing Bolland briefly into the lead until he went for a swim while trying to steer a course through the Fireballs coming upwind.

A quick look back at this point revealed the entire fleet having a wash, but Keen was up and running quickest and by steering carefully through the carnage and executing a neat gybe at the bottom mark he had engineered a 50 yard lead on the rest of the fleet.

As the second beat progressed and the wave configurations became more confused, Bolland cut into his lead and the two were only separated by a handful of boatlengths as the downwind legs began. By now the breeze had softened to no more than a force 2-3 and Keen maintained his advantage until the bottom mark when Bolland managed to sneak in on the inside. Some careful covering up the final beat saw Bolland win narrowly from Keen with Sutton in third.

After an excellent barbeque on Saturday night the conditions were somewhat more conventional for the Sunday racing (wind and waves in the same direction). The sun was out and with a force 3, albeit with holes and shifts, conditions were perfect.

After a tactical first beat in race three, Bolland picked up a left hand shift approaching the windward mark to lead by a couple of lengths from Keen and Stephen Smith. The positions were the same at the leeward mark despite Smith junior showing great speed down the run to close the gap on the leaders.

Over the next couple of laps Bolland stretched his legs upwind only to see Keen reduce the deficit downwind by steering a better course through the traffic of the other classes. At the finish it was Bolland followed by Keen. Unfortunately, Smith junior dropped back as the race progressed caused by a close call with Smith senior on the opening leg and the distress at being called something that no son should ever be called by his father! Smith senior, clearly not being averse to such psychological techniques, happily took third.

After a break for lunch race 4 saw the best conditions of the weekend. By the windward mark Keen had already pulled out a race winning lead but there was a ding dong battle for second place going on between Andy Flitcroft and Smith senior which lasted the entire race. Smith won this particular battle to take second place ahead of Flitcroft.

All in all an entertaining weekend’s racing then. Many thanks to Filey SC for organising a fantastic event both on and off the water, and to regatta sponsors Craftinsure.