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{"ID":1778,"SpaceID":1,"PageID":24,"HasCommentsThread":false,"SeoTags":{"OpenGraphTags":[{"ID":"og:title","Name":"Racing Reports"},{"ID":"og:type","Name":"website"},{"ID":"og:url","Name":"https://www.dittishamsc.org.uk/Cms/Spaces/DEFAULT/Racing+Reports"}],"NonOpenGraphTags":[]},"Path":"Racing+Reports","Title":"Racing Reports","Author":{"ID":375,"Name":"Christine Carmichael","CompanyName":null,"HasEmail":true},"Version":35,"IsDraft":false,"IsOldVersion":false,"PublicationDate":"20/07/2025 16:41","VersionDescription":"v35 - Christine Carmichael","HideHeader":false,"IsFullWidth":false,"ThemeCode":null,"BackgroundColour":null,"JumpLinks":[],"Blocks":[{"Columns":[{"Width":12,"WidthClasses":"col-md-12 col-sm-12 col-xs-12","Elements":[{"ID":5384,"Type":"HTML","Content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 18px; color: rgb(23, 54, 93);\u0022\u003eRacing Reports\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 18px; color: rgb(23, 54, 93);\u0022\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 18px; color: rgb(23, 54, 93);\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 20px;\u0022\u003e2025 Laser Championships\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 20px;\u0022\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnother lovely sunny day with a gentle breeze at Dittisham Sailing Club and the 2025 Laser\u0026nbsp;Dinghy Championships was underway with the first use of our new Nikita. Her name is “Sorena”,and she performed magnificently for the race team who were all delighted with her.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis was to be a more fun type of event this year rather than the gnarly racing we’re used to!\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;With just 14 sailors, Jon Clarke (DSC’s highly imaginative Laser Championships PRO), set a\u0026nbsp;triangular course with two different windward marks set apart with a distance precisely calculated\u0026nbsp;by Jon. The nearer windward mark, initially set for those less accustomed to the more shouty type\u0026nbsp;of racing, and the further one for those who are more used to carrying a pack of Strepsils on board.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;Because of the nature of this championship, only the final positions of the boats at the end of each\u0026nbsp;race were recorded regardless of the number of laps. And in his race briefing Jon said there would\u0026nbsp;be as many short races as he could fit in, in the time allowed, bearing in mind the light and fluffy\u0026nbsp;wind conditions.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo just as racing was about to start he announced, “It’s 3, 2, 1 go for the start!”\u0026nbsp;It was confirmed by one bright spark who shall remain nameless, that this was in minutes and not\u003cbr\u003ejust Jon shouting “3, 2, 1 go!”\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs it turned out, five races were run. As a consequence of all of the above and in the interest of just\u0026nbsp;having a fun day, the second by second, lap by lap commentary for each race is only anecdotal,\u0026nbsp;highly subjective and hopefully occasionally biased!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach race presented its own unique challenges where sailors had to decide on complex issues such\u0026nbsp;as, \u0022can I lean out holding my piece of iced melon and still steer?\u0022, or deciding \u0022have I lapped\u0026nbsp;everyone or am I just last?\u0022, or even \u0022is that Sam capsizing and does that mean I can be Dittisham\u0026nbsp;Laser Champion of the world?”\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo for the racing!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace one\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo with sailors either feigning confusion or indeed very cleverly, not feigning their confusion,\u0026nbsp;Lasers in the perfect formation of flying ducks (or swimming ducks?) crossed the start line for the\u0026nbsp;first race, with Peter Morley joining in behind as this was his first ever race and first ever sail in a\u0026nbsp;Laser!\u0026nbsp;It was great to welcome back Paul Honey to the Lasers after his long absence. He must have\u0026nbsp;thought (seeing how things are done now) \u0022Wow, have I really been gone that long\u0022.\u0026nbsp;At the end of the first race it was Chris Tamlyn (short course) who magnificently navigated his\u0026nbsp;Laser Radial into first place. Colleen Pope (short course) came in a very respectable second place,\u0026nbsp;Sam Mogridge (long course) in third place and Catherine Johns (short course) managing to talk her\u0026nbsp;Laser Radial into fourth place. It must be said that this was not just any Laser Radial Sail, it was\u0026nbsp;very carefully selected for it’s “spinnaker like qualities” out of the vast wardrobe of Laser sails and\u0026nbsp;paraphernalia from the deepest darkest depths of the garage of Paul Johns!\u0026nbsp;Ideal sail for the “sausage” part of a “triangle and sausage” course.\u0026nbsp;They obviously hoped the post race BBQ wouldn’t be the only place “sausages” would appear.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace two\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the second race Colleen Pope (last years overall winner) stormed in for a magnificent first, Nicky\u0026nbsp;Sheppard a lightning quick second, Catherine Johns third and Theresa Ballard Yardy forth.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace three\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDavid Bomby won the third race, with an already race hardened Pete Morley second, Catherine\u0026nbsp;Johns third and Stephen Black fourth. It is believed that it was this race where Steven Black sailed\u0026nbsp;between David Bomby\u0027s mainsheets right on the pin-end at the start, causing “untold mayhem and\u0026nbsp;readjustments” in the words of string theory maestro himself!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace four\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRace four was a triangle sausage setup. However, the instruction to not sail through the start line\u0026nbsp;downwind was not fully heard by everyone. Having pulled off an ambitious port-flyer start,\u0026nbsp;crossing the fleet and leading by half a leg, Nick Barnett discovered a little too late that the start line\u0026nbsp;had to be avoided. Hurriedly back-tracking allowed Sam Mogridge to slip past and take second\u0026nbsp;place. The removal of the wing mark in the middle of the fourth race so that the sailors would sail\u0026nbsp;the sausage and not the triangle was for some, another unique and surprising feature of this fun\u0026nbsp;event.\u0026nbsp;So Nicky Sheppard, finding her mojo won the fourth race with Sam Mogridge coming second, Nick\u0026nbsp;Barnett third and Pete Morley fourth.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace five\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGraham Buckel, having worked out the QI style scoring system, won the fifth race!\u0026nbsp;Sam Mogridge was second again, Nicky Sheppard third and Pete Morley fourth.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u0026nbsp;Now for a few amusing observations by some sailors…\u0026nbsp;One sailor spotted the “classy port-tack flyer bang on the pin-end by Nick Barnett for one race, and\u0026nbsp;then complete shut out when he tried it in the next… “\u0026nbsp;At one point in this race Sam Mogridge was practising some extreme kiting whilst ahead of Martin\u0026nbsp;Ely and very kindly but dramatically, capsized (not an activity Sam normally takes part in!). This\u0026nbsp;gave Martin a brief moment of glory opportunity but magnanimously chose not to take it!\u0026nbsp;Steven Black observed the power of the DSC Laser fleet to put the Dartmouth ferry into emergency\u0026nbsp;reverse as a line of Lasers gently and slowly beat up to their respective windward marks to the\u0026nbsp;sound of loud hoots and amused passengers on board!!\u0026nbsp;It was noted by some amused sailors, that they could be ruthlessly demoted to the shorter course\u0026nbsp;after a poor race, regardless of their experience and self-esteem or indeed promoted to the longer\u0026nbsp;course if they did too well! And some were surprised when there was a change of the course for\u0026nbsp;their boats after one lap to give others a chance!\u0026nbsp;Sam Mogridge also commented that the most fiercely contested race of the day was between race 3\u0026nbsp;and 4 when watermelon was on offer and somehow at that very moment some of the sailors boats\u0026nbsp;showed a remarkable speed and performance increase...noting particularly Graham who developed\u0026nbsp;the ability to sail directly head to wind!\u003cbr\u003ePaul Honey noted that having not sailed for over 18 months, he was very rusty and his knees were\u0026nbsp;screaming at him by the end. There were a few highlights where he found himself ahead of the likes\u0026nbsp;of Sam on a few occasions, but he was so shocked by his unexpected position that he promptly\u0026nbsp;threw it away by causing an infringement. He was pretty dizzy by the end of the afternoon from all\u0026nbsp;the penalty turns he had to do!\u0026nbsp;Catherine Johns said that she had amused herself by crossing the line on the last race and was\u0026nbsp;pootling about there only to discover that the race had in fact not finished and she had to\u0026nbsp;reinvigorate herself and carry on sailing.\u0026nbsp;Apparently, Jon had asked Catherine to “stop chatting and focus on the race”, and then she came\u0026nbsp;third!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConclusion?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo racing over, the laser fleet sailed back to shore and all the boats de-rigged and put away.\u0026nbsp;Sorena was returned to her mooring and the safety boats all washed down and also put away.\u0026nbsp;The Laser sailors and Jon’s race team were now presented with a fabulous BBQ and prize giving.\u0026nbsp;The BBQ was thanks to Anne Ely assisted again by Susi Stockbridge.\u003cbr\u003eThis was a lovely sunny Dittisham Sailing Club event where any previous ideas you had about\u0026nbsp;racing were non-essential items, and where sailors needed to think outside the box but sail inside it!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e AND THE WINNERS WERE !\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNicky Sheppard took first place for the overall winner\u0027s prize. (Fabulous sailing and lateral thinking!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSam Mogridge took second place. (Almost perfect knowledge of how fast he needed to sail to win this event!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCatherine Johns took third place (she has the knowledge of hopscotch and is not afraid to use it!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNick Barnett was in fourth place. (King of port end flyers!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDavid Bomby was in fifth place. (If ever you get randomly stuck in some mainsheets…. He’s the man to call!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePete Morley was in sixth place. (First time in a Laser, first dinghy race!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGraham Buckel was in seventh place. (Kept out of trouble and sailed well…..didn’t he attend the briefing?)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eColleen Pope was in eighth place. (2024 winner!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChris Tamlyn was in ninth place. (2024 runner up!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTheresa Yardy was in tenth place. (Not normally a racer but came came 4th in second race!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePaul Mogridge was in eleventh place. (Sailed well and stuck to the rules….obviously didn’t get the memo!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSteven Black was in twelfth place. (Head of port end flyer policing and entanglement!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMartin Ely was in thirteenth place. (Used all the rules but in the wrong order!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePaul Honey was in fourteenth place. (King of turns! That’s what 18 months out of Lasers does to you. Be\u0026nbsp;warned!)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo oodles of thanks to everyone who attended, including of course Jon’s amazing race team. A\u0026nbsp;special thanks to Sheila for making sense of everything and recording the results and of course to\u0026nbsp;Anne and Susi for organising the BBQ, drinks and prizes. And……….another special thank you\u0026nbsp;to Ged Yardy for donning his chefs hat and helping to cook it all!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eMartin Ely (Laser fleet captain)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLASER CHAMPIONSHIPS 2024 REPORT\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnother lovely sunny morning at Dittisham Sailing Club with a gentle (very gentle) Westerly breeze\u0026nbsp;blowing. Hang on a minute, this is the Laser Championships..... Lasers need more wind!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOur intrepid race officer Jon Clarke was eyeing the ripples created by the mere zephyr of a wind and d\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eecided this calls for some admin!\u0026nbsp;So admin done,\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003ewe had Bronze Radial (BR), Bronze Full (BF), Silver Full (SF), and Gold Full (GF) sail\u0026nbsp;fleets. This was to be a pursuit race with 2 minutes separating the starts of each fleet Bronze goingfirst and Gold last.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFIRST RACE\u003cbr\u003eWith the wind now just about strong enough to start a race the Bronze radial fleet was awa yfollowed by the other fleets at the prescribed 2 minute intervals.\u003cbr\u003eAt the end of the first lap it was Jon Avery (BF) in the lead hotly pursued by Colleen Pope (BR) then\u0026nbsp;Christine Carmichael (BR) and Chris Tamlyn (BF) close behind.\u0026nbsp;By the end of the second lap Chris Tamlyn (BF) was now leading and after some ferocious dicing\u0026nbsp;between Christine and Colleen, it was still Colleen second, Christine third and Jon Avery now fourth.\u0026nbsp;Remember though, this is a pursuit race and there are hungry wolves chasing behind and closing in\u0026nbsp;fast! Today was Lisa Statham’s (BR) first ever race and was putting up a valiant fight to keep going in\u0026nbsp;spite of capsizing!\u0026nbsp;The Gold Full rigs were having trouble catching up, having started a full six minutes after the first\u0026nbsp;start. The racing in this fleet was close and competitive to say the least. They were all arriving at the\u0026nbsp;marks on the course at the same time and each of these Gold fleet sailors took the lead at least\u0026nbsp;once. And there was much calling of “starboard” and “water” and other perhaps one or two less\u0026nbsp;well-known technical racing terms.\u0026nbsp;But their positional jostlings and their nautical wailings were ultimately to be in vain. What with the\u0026nbsp;Gold Full sail fleet handicaps and the light wind conditions, the odds were too great to allow any of\u0026nbsp;them to finish in the top 5 in this race. In the middle of the pack in Silver Full rig “fleet” were Kevin\u0026nbsp;Ruff and Martin Ely battling it out with Kevin ahead at the final whistle.\u0026nbsp;But the Bronze fleet were the big winners in this race.\u0026nbsp;In first place was Chris Tamlyn (BF), second place was Colleen Pope (BR) and third place was\u0026nbsp;Christine Carmichael (BR) after some very tight racing between Colleen and Christine.\u0026nbsp;Unfortunately, Lisa Stathum (BR) had to retire after 2 capsizes but we hope she is not put off by this\u003cbr\u003eand continues racing after her valiant first ever race, and in the Laser Championships!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSECOND RACE\u003cbr\u003eBy the second race the wind had whipped up quite a bit and so the racing was faster and tighter than b\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eefore. At the end of the first lap, it was Colleen (BR) first, Christine (BR) second and Denise (BR)\u0026nbsp;third through the line with the Bronze Full sails chasing in their wake. At that point it was Kevin\u0026nbsp;Gilbraith (BF) then Chris Tamlyn (BF) and Jon Avery (BF) with Silver fleet and Gold fleet still in order.\u0026nbsp;By the second lap Christine had taken first place hotly pursued by Colleen second and Denise in third\u0026nbsp;place. Behind them were Kevin Gilbraith (BF), Chris Tamlyn (BF), Martin Ely (SF), Jon Avery (BF),\u0026nbsp;Kevin Ruff (SF) and still trying to overcome their tough handicaps were the Gold Full rigs. The fight\u0026nbsp;between these 5 guys was so intense with such gnarly battles at the marks, it was probably as well\u0026nbsp;that they were not too close to the more civilised parts of the fleet! Unfortunately, the excitement of\u0026nbsp;it all became too much for Martin Ely (SF) and Alex Johns (GF) who decided to go off and have their\u0026nbsp;own little race, which used the correct marks of the course, but in a different order! (At least that\u003cbr\u003eway they were able to get a first and second place!)\u0026nbsp;So, by the third lap things had changed somewhat. We now had Chris Tamlyn (BF) and Graham\u0026nbsp;Buckle (GF) right up at the front. Christine Carmichael (BR) was unfortunately having connection\u0026nbsp;problems between her tiller extension and her rudder, and this definitely cramped her style and up\u0026nbsp;till now, rapid progress!\u0026nbsp;The final positions for the second race were first Colleen Pope (BR), second Chris Tamlyn (BF) and\u0026nbsp;third Graham Buckel (GF)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHIRD RACE\u003cbr\u003eBy now the wind had whipped up even more and there were some quite gusty conditions.\u0026nbsp;Our great leader Jon Clarke decided to reduce the start delays from 2 minutes to one minute\u0026nbsp;between fleets (obviously also to try to get more positive social interaction between fleets!)\u0026nbsp;With the stronger wind conditions and the late start to racing today, this was to be a shorter race.\u0026nbsp;So, by the end of the first lap Collen (BR) was in the lead followed by Chris Tamlyn (BF) and then\u003cbr\u003eDenise (BR) but things were changing quickly. On the second lap Colleen was still in the lead but\u0026nbsp;Chris Tamlyn was now in second place with Alex Johns fighting through the field into third place.\u0026nbsp;Martin Ely (SF) successfully attempted a slow elegant downwind death roll culminating in a capsize,\u0026nbsp;however this disappointingly did not help his position in the fleet!\u0026nbsp;The results for the third race were in a magnificent first place Colleen Pope (BR), second place\u0026nbsp;have fought his way through the entire fleet was Alex Johns (GF) and third place was Chris Tamlyn\u0026nbsp;(BF).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSo, racing over the laser fleets sailed back to shore and the boats de-rigged and put away. Nikita was\u0026nbsp;safely back on her mooring and the safety boats packed away. The competitors and Jon’s race team\u0026nbsp;went upstairs to the conference room for cottage pie and prize giving. This was thanks to Anne Ely\u003cbr\u003eassisted by Susi Stockbridge.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eTHE WINNERS!\u003cbr\u003eLisa Statham won the “This is the first time I have raced and in a Laser Championships no\u0026nbsp;less!” prize.\u003cbr\u003eColleen Pope (BR) took the overall winner\u0027s prize.\u003cbr\u003eChris Tamlyn (BF) took second place.\u003cbr\u003eKevin Ruff (SF) took third place overall.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eS UMMARY\u003cbr\u003eThis was another fabulous Dittisham Sailing Club event with lots of happy (Laser!) sailors and\u0026nbsp;race crew lead by our intrepid Jon Clarke. And all finished with a lovely prize giving lunch\u0026nbsp;and drinks upstairs in our ergonomically designed multi-tasking “conference room”.\u0026nbsp;So a big thanks to all who came today including of course Jon’s fantastic race team, to Sheila\u0026nbsp;for recording all the results and to Anne and Susi for organising food, drinks and prizes.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMartin Ely (Laser fleet captain)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 18px; color: rgb(23, 54, 93);\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 18px; color: rgb(23, 54, 93);\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 18px; color: rgb(23, 54, 93);\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cfigure\u003e\u003cimg src=\u0022https://dsc.myclubhouse.co.uk//Client/Images/Cms/Spinnakers2%20small.jpg\u0022 data-image=\u00221\u0022 width=\u0022273\u0022 height=\u0022182\u0022\u003e\u003c/figure\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eDSC Laser Championship Report, Saturday 24th July 2023\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eby Martin Ely\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eWhat a glorious Dittisham sunny morning it was, with a lovely gentle Southerly breeze as well.\u003cbr\u003eArthur was there with his junior sailors rigging Toppers and grown ups (a relative term at DSC)\u003cbr\u003erigging Lasers. An absolutely idyllic setting for the 2023 DSC Laser Championships.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace One\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOur excellent and skilful race officer Tim Littler set a port rounding, triangular course, with the\u003cbr\u003ewindward mark up near Owers and a wing mark at the Red Lion buoy plus an unusual starboard\u003cbr\u003erounding leeward mark at Waddeton.\u003cbr\u003eTim had decided that the results of the first race were to be used to split the intrepid Laser gladiators\u003cbr\u003einto two fleets, gold and silver.\u003cbr\u003eAfter a clean start in light winds, taking an early lead in the Full rigs were Graham Buckel, Paul\u003cbr\u003eHoney and Ian Wakeling. Whilst the pecking order in the Radials was Nicky Sheppard hotly\u003cbr\u003epursued by Liz Lee and Chrissy Carmichael.\u003cbr\u003eBy the second lap the the wind had increased somewhat to make the sailing more exciting with Paul\u003cbr\u003eHoney taking first place in the full rigs, Nick Barnett second, Ian Wakeling third and Graham\u003cbr\u003eBuckel fourth. This was neck and neck stuff with only 6 seconds separating second, third and fourth\u003cbr\u003eplaces. After finishing in fifth place, Chris Tamlyn unfortunately had a mast with a broken\u003cbr\u003egooseneck, so had to go ashore to search for some borrowed lower and upper mast sections that\u003cbr\u003ewould actually fit together without the need for a hydraulic ram or teflon based grease.\u003cbr\u003eAll this time Paul Honey had been sailing with a jury rigged boom as the new boom he had ordered\u003cbr\u003efor the Laser Championships had not yet arrived. The first race had inflicted sufficient punishment\u003cbr\u003eon his old boom as to need urgent Laser Boom Therapy (LBT - that\u0027s the correct technical term)\u003cbr\u003eashore.\u003cbr\u003eThe Radial fleet were more adept at avoiding trouble. Nicky Sheppard took the lead with Liz Lee in\u003cbr\u003ehot pursuit and Chrissy Carmichael just seconds behind. But in an epic battle on the second lap,\u003cbr\u003eChrissy managed to overtake Liz Lee (apologising to Liz as she did so for showing such audacity!).\u003cbr\u003eAnd so it was that Nicky Sheppard took an early victory, with Chrissy Carmichael only 8 seconds\u003cbr\u003ebehind to take second place, Liz Lee third and Tony Westcott fourth.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace Two\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlthough Paul Honey was still ashore with his injured boom, racing in the full rigs was still very\u003cbr\u003etight with Alex Dobson leading, closely followed by Nick Barnett, Martin Ely and Stephen Black\u003cbr\u003ewith only seconds between them.\u003cbr\u003eBut the relative tranquillity of this beautiful Dittisham summer\u0027s day was to be momentarily broken\u003cbr\u003eby something on the not too distant horizon. Was that the chilling cry (and flash of aluminium\u003cbr\u003eglinting in the sunlight) of some unfortunate soul slipping, Zimmer frame and all, haplessly into the\u003cbr\u003ewater? No it was actually Peter Symons demonstrating the art of a perfect capsize drill, so that\u003cbr\u003eshould it happen during a race he would be able to perform this technique seamlessly, which he did!\u003cbr\u003eIn a final dice of the Titans, Steven Black managed to pass all the leading boats to take first place.\u003cbr\u003eHe was followed by Nick Barnett and Ian Wakeling. But the Race for the finish line had been a\u003cbr\u003efrantic one with Graham Buckel coming in three seconds after Ian Wakeling and Martin Ely two\u003cbr\u003eseconds after that!\u003cbr\u003eUnfortunately Kevin Gilbraith\u0027s boom now suffered a similar fate as Paul Honey\u0027s boom and thus\u003cbr\u003ealso needed urgent LBT ashore forcing Kevin to retire. (What is it about us Laser sailors?)\u003cbr\u003eMeanwhile back in the Radial fleet it was Chrissy Carmichael who was leading, followed closely by\u003cbr\u003eNicky Sheppard. In third place fighting gallantly on was Tony Westcott.\u003cbr\u003eChrissy Carmichael went on to take first place followed by Nicky Sheppard in second place but\u003cbr\u003eunfortunately both Liz Lee and Tony Westcott had to retire.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace Three\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter a quick comfort break ashore the Lasers were back out for another duel.\u003cbr\u003eFor the third race, our ever resourceful race officer Tim Littler, decided to move Nikita and reset the\u003cbr\u003ecourse due to the shifting wind direction, which had now moved more Easterly. This was also a\u003cbr\u003etriangular course with the Red Lion as the windward mark, Galmpton as the wing mark and\u003cbr\u003eWaddeton as the leeward mark. In spite of the relatively short start line all boats got away cleanly,\u003cbr\u003ealthough there was considerable wind shadow near the back of the fleet from the lead boats. Paul\u003cbr\u003eHoney was now fully back in the race with a fixed boom (LBT or sorcery?) and was up near the\u003cbr\u003efront of the fleet with Ian Wakeling and Nick Barnett. Again the racing was very tight, beating hard\u003cbr\u003eup to the windward mark and then a run to the Red Lion. (Isn\u0027t it great to include a pub as part of a\u003cbr\u003esailing course!).\u003cbr\u003eThe Red Lion for most boats was a gybe mark but Martin Ely in his immense wisdom, decided not\u003cbr\u003eto gybe but to remain on starboard sailing by the lee. This seemed to be working for a while,\u003cbr\u003egaining an advantage on the run over the other boats who were on a port tack. However, when it\u003cbr\u003ecame to his boat being the only one that had to gybe at Waddeton, several other boats (most of\u003cbr\u003ethem!) shot straight through him after the mark. This was only because Martin did not have a\u003cbr\u003esufficiently large number of arms available to retrieve the miles of main sheet after his gybe!\u003cbr\u003eAnyway, back with the no nonsense Radials, Chrissy Carmichael was now dominating in style and\u003cbr\u003efinished first with Nicky Sheppard in second place, Liz Lee third and Tony Westcott in fourth place.\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHome Time!\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSo finally the laser fleets returned to shore and the boats were all put away. Nikita was put back on\u003cbr\u003eher mooring. Safety boats packed away and all competitors and the race team went upstairs to the\u003cbr\u003econference room to feast on lasagne, salad, puddings wine and beer for the prize giving. This was\u003cbr\u003eall organised by Anne Ely more than ably assisted by Sue Evans who volunteered to help at very\u003cbr\u003eshort notice. (Hooray!!)\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Winners\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIan Wakeling took first prize in the Gold Fleet and was overall Laser Champion. \u003cbr\u003eChrissy\u0026nbsp;Carmichael took first prize in the Silver Fleet and first prize in the Radials\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eThe Results were as follows:\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOverall Positions\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eFirst-Ian Wakeling\u003cbr\u003eSecond-Paul Honey\u003cbr\u003eThird-Nick Buckel\u003cbr\u003eFourth-Chrissy\u0026nbsp;Carmichael\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGold Fleet\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst-Ian Wakeling\u003cbr\u003eSecond-Paul Honey\u003cbr\u003eThird-Nick Buckel\u003cbr\u003eFourth-Steven Black\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSilver Fleet\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst-Chrissy Carmichael\u003cbr\u003eSecond-Nicky Sheppard\u003cbr\u003eThird-Alex Dobson\u003cbr\u003eFourth-Kevin\u0026nbsp;Gilbraith\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRadial Fleet\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst-Chrissy Carmichael\u003cbr\u003eSecond-Nicky Sheppard\u003cbr\u003eThird-Liz Lee\u003cbr\u003eFourth-Tony\u0026nbsp;Westcott\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSummary\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis was a fabulous event with smiling happy faces all around in the perfect setting of sunny\u003cbr\u003eDittisham at the friendliest Club in the South West and anyone who says it\u0027s not is in for an\u003cbr\u003eargument!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eDSC Castle Ledge Race, Sunday 31 July 2022\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eby Martin Thomas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eWelcome home the Prodigal Son. The downriver race from DSC to the distinctive starboard fairway buoy – the eponymous ‘Castle Ledge’ – at the entrance of the River Dart, and then back upriver to Dittisham was once an annual fixture in the racing calendar. That was more than a decade ago. You might remember that ASBOs were still in use back then. You might not know that the Castle Ledge Race got one. Accused of wreaking havoc, destroying rigs, and separating sailors from upturned boats, ‘Castle Ledge’ – the race, not the buoy – was, well, cast aside. But everyone deserves a second chance. DSC’s parole board, in the guise of Steven Black’s sailing committee, issued a reprieve earlier this year. The Castle Ledge race would run again but its rehabilitation would depend on playing nicely, avoiding those anti-social behaviours of old.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eBearing in mind this race’s chequered past, we owe a special debt to Mike Bennett. As race officer last Sunday, he shouldered the heavy responsibility of ensuring that Castle Ledge concealed its troublemaking past and didn’t reoffend. He had good lookouts to help him. The safety crews monitored the progress of the DSC convoy, a tougher job than usual because it required the safety boats to put themselves between dinghies in trouble and oncoming traffic, a sacrifice much appreciated by competitors coping with capsizes or, as we’ll see later, a marked change in conditions. Further downstream, Mike Bennett, Neil Drew and Susi Stockbridge led the way in committee boat \u003cem\u003eNikita\u003c/em\u003e. They weighed options as the river twisted and grew more cluttered on the approach to Dartmouth. Wind, tide, and, of course, ferries: all were tools that this particular race might turn against us.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eAt least the course was simple: beginning with a Club Line start, it was a straightforward progress downriver by a single mixed fleet, either to the Castle Ledge buoy or, alternatively, to wherever Mike and team told us to turn our boats around. An 11am start, conditions good – a ‘very westerly, south-westerly’ predicted to peak around 15 knots and an ebb tide to help us on our way. Sixteen boats set off – and quite a menagerie they were. Alongside familiar faces in single-handers, the Solo, Laser, RS Aero and D Zero, were less familiar, but very welcome double-hander additions: Michael and Christopher Chadwick’s Wayfarer, Mark Darley’s Swallow Bayraider (this one, a ‘triple-hander’ on the day), plus Roger and Pete Morley’s Devon Yawl.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e­Committee boat \u003cem\u003eNikita\u003c/em\u003e got the show on the estuarine road, hooting the starting signal before high-tailing it downriver. She was hard pressed to keep up with the leading duo, Stuart Hydon’s Solo and Tim Littler’s RS Aero. Each put considerable distance between themselves and the chasers by the time the fleet rounded Greenway Quay making for the Anchorstone. One might reasonably expect a race with such a naughty streak to yield surprises. Not so with the line honours at least. At the risk of destroying all sense of narrative suspense, Stuart Hydon and Tim Littler kept their early lead, securing a richly deserved first and second at the end of proceedings. Congratulations, as well, to the Chadwicks who took third place in their Wayfarer.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe surprises lay elsewhere - in the sailing skills required to assure success. Early capsizes among the Laser fleet suggested a wild ride ahead as competitors worked their way closer to Dartmouth where stronger winds were expected. In the event, most of the sailor-from-boat spillages happened early. Admittedly, a few gusts lay in ambush at the head of Old Mill Creek and the wind nudged itself up a knot or two in the narrower stretch below Higher Ferry slipway. But there was nothing dramatic, nothing to suggest that ASBO had been warranted. So what was so tough? Actually, it was weak, not strong wind that nearly did for us.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eTo explain: aboard \u003cem\u003eNikita\u003c/em\u003e, Mike Bennett and Neil Drew, veterans of Dartmouth racing in a Devon Yawl, knew that fine judgements had to be made about harbour racing. Could they risk sending the fleet all the way to the river entrance Shangri-La? There’d be decent breeze, probably some wave sailing in the more open water of The Range. But it would be harder for the safety boats to keep tabs on a fleet sure to be strung out over some pretty big distances by then. More to the point, would everyone get back to Dittisham? The ebb tide that had helped us all down would, just as surely, hinder us all the way back. That was perhaps the critical factor. Mike had warned us he might shorten the course to ensure a race, not just of decent distance but of reasonable time. So it was – \u003cem\u003eNikita\u003c/em\u003e tied up downstream, not of the Castle Ledge marker but of the last in the string of large iron buoys that punctuate mid-channel between Higher and Lower Ferry.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eIt was a wise move. For the sailors involved, the return trip to Dittisham was anything but the relaxing jaunt of the pleasure boat passengers who watched us struggle uptide in a dying wind. Tactics counted for something: shallower water at the river’s edges promised less adverse tide. And there were powerful eddies to be avoided, particularly in Maypool and around the Anchorstone. But staying focused probably counted for more. What wind there was refused to blow consistently or in the same direction. This was more than the usual story of lifts and headers. Upwind beats turned to fetches, brief reaches, and back to beats. Windless holes engulfed the unsuspecting or those unable to escape their widening grip. Adding insult to injury, even those who played the shifts found themselves heading backwards once the wind fell away. Making it back over the Greenway-Dittisham pontoon finish line brought whoops of joy from sailors who’d spent much of the previous hour inching their way upstream through Maypool and beyond the Anchorstone moorings.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eCastle Ledge is back but its roguish reputation isn’t quite laid to rest. \u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eDSC Laser Championships, Sunday 24 July 2022\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eby Martin Thomas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhat an exciting day.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe short walk along the bramble-strewn path from The Ham car park to the DSC entrance gave warning. Those brambles, plus nettles and thistle heads, whipped at the ankles of the Laser sailors hauling kit to their boats. It was windy.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eTim Littler, our race officer, had kindly accepted the job of running three races. A heavier responsibility was to avoid losing any competitors in the process. Brow furrowed, his eyes fixed on the Galmpton shore – a source of ‘ferocious gusts’ his briefing would later tell us. But that was still to come. For now, Tim had other, more urgent concerns. Could we race? If so, where? On – or in - the open water towards Galmpton where, even from the clubhouse, we could see spume spitting from the tops of angry white horses galloping in our direction? Or in the comparative sanctuary of the Dittisham bank? There, the south-westerly was less intense but the prospect of capsized boats piling into moorings was a real concern. Tim pondered these options, assisted by his Assistant Race Officer John Milsom, a veteran of the previous day’s Solo Open extravaganza. Their zen-like calm was infectious. But their horizon scanning was telling. These were solicitous shepherds, wary of releasing their flock for a munching by those wolfish gusts.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eWhere did this leave us? Their shepherding instincts intact, the race team reprieved the fleet from the foaming waters of Galmpton and set a rhomboid course closer to Dittisham. A Club-line start followed by a short beat to a windward mark off The Ham. Then two tasty reaches, the first to a laid mark on the Greenway side, the second back to the ‘Weeks’ fixed mark. Finally, a longer beat back towards Dittisham and that Club line. Twelve competitors began the first race, eleven the second and third.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eMeanwhile, among the competitors themselves a black market had emerged. Followers of Karl Marx among you will recall that he traced the origins of capitalism to individualist materialism, surplus accumulation and the profit motive. Followers of strong-wind sailing at DSC saw a simpler logic at work: not the profit motive but the survival motive. Or, less dramatically, the search for a smaller rig likely to keep boat and sailor upright. For some, the market paid dividends. Deals were done, swaps were agreed. Others resorted to scavenging. The dormant ‘club Laser’ was raided for anything resembling a smaller sail. The majority, including seasoned competitors, Ian Wakeling, Nick Barnett, Graeme Montgomery, Paul Mogridge, and Martin Ely, selected the mid-size Radial. Normally a cautious choice, it was more than enough on the day to tax tummy muscles, stretch sinews and dunk bodies upwind before the reward of off-wind planing. A lucky few, Denise Winks, Ged Yardy, Sue Thomas, and your correspondent, had access to the new gold standard: the smallest rig of them all - a 4.7 metre sail. Not so for Peter Symons and Graham Buckle, their sail-bags looked worryingly thin: no surplus to draw on, no choices to be made, for them it was full-rig or nothing.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eA quick aside. Lasers are mischievous boats. Their rudders are tiny, their ‘grip’ diminishes if the boat isn’t kept flat. And their hulls are just curvy enough to accelerate into the infamous ‘death roll’ if disgruntled by their owner’s performance. They’re only too willing to let their owners know their unhappiness when forced to work in tough conditions. Sometimes this comes at a cost. Think of those leggy spiders that cling in ceiling corners, prepared to shed a limb or two rather than be grabbed by human hand for eviction to the wild outdoors. For limbs, think rivets. Thus did a couple of Lasers break off essential gear to assure themselves a hasty return to the beach.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eRace 1, start sequence under way, boats jockeying back and forth. Among them, Martin Ely, fleet captain and principal organizer of the day’s event (thank you Martin). He flew past, sail full but boom skying: the metal bracket that fixes kicker to boom sheared off. Wind strength, maybe? Laser mischief more likely. Back to shore and the urgent hunt for a replacement boom. Race 2, another countdown: this time from one minute to the start signal, Paul Mogridge in great position edging towards the line. The seconds tick away. Sheet in, kicker on, power up and go. Not on this occasion, at least not entirely. Sheet in, kicker on, power up and bang! Boom-end mainsheet block broken, sail flogging, race over. With spider-like self-sacrifice, another Laser had saved itself the effort of racing.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eTony Westcott was surely the bravest. Venturing out for only his eighth-ever sail, a vicious gust forced him to reconsider. Martin Ely, as mentioned above, would soon join Tony ashore. The challenges facing those remaining were not quite as expected. To be sure, conditions weren’t as ferocious amidst the moored boats off Dittisham. A neap tide, usually less of a concern in strong wind, still favoured those who tacked inshore. And gybing after that initial reach was not yet the alarming prospect that it later became. Instead, other trials awaited. Foremost among them were the gusts. Salvo after salvo rained down from behind the village hillside. Failure to see them coming, to ease sheets or feather up to windward, promised the certainty of a swim. Between the bombardments, the lulls: one after another those still hiking out for the gusts were ‘tea-bagged’ to windward, dunked like a wet-suited Hobnob. Some recovered (a special word of praise for Graeme Montgomery’s submarine athleticism); others did not. Further obstacles lay in store for the runners and riders still with the windward mark in their sights. Panicky shouts for room to pass moored boats were uniformly respected, allowing everyone to thread their way upwind. But at least one mainsheet entangled itself with an outstretched bowsprit as Laser mischief resurfaced again.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eGusts depending, the first reach towards Greenway veered somewhere between beam and broad. Things began quietly, competitors taking their opportunity to get their breath back after the thrills and so very many spills of the upwind leg. A backward glance dispelled any complacency. Gusts sometimes appear as dark, patchy zephyrs, other times as creeping fingers fanning outward. This day they came as a phalanx, an advancing wall of wind that lifted boats instantly onto the plane before dumping them unceremoniously as they blew through. The trick, then, was to stay on the wall, not to be flattened by it. Those with smaller rigs had the advantage here. Spared the ignominy of being knocked over upwind, Radials and, even more so, 4.7s flew downwind with some semblance of control. Peter Symons and Graham Buckel in their full rigs worked extra hard to do the same but would complete Race 1 that bit more exhausted than the rest. As it was, the same ‘rule of gusts’ applied on the second reach back to the ‘Weeks’ mark. Boats rounded on the plane at which point nifty pulling in of sail, kicker, and downhaul was demanded to ready yourself for the lengthy beat back upwind towards Dittisham. Those quickest to reset their sail might trace a diagonal path more or less direct to the Club line. But the combination of gust explosions, intimate tacking encounters, and capsized Lasers turned the 500 yards or so from ‘Weeks’ to Club line into an aquatic minefield. The safety boat teams did sterling work, standing by as, one after another, sailors struggled to lever their boat back upright.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eAnd so it would be in the two races that followed. Again, the gusts tried to unseat us. Again, the reaches thrilled us. Again, the final beat wearied us. There was tragedy: Martin Ely who’d managed to find a different boom for the second race, fell victim to one of those difficult capsizes that defy easy rectification. There was comedy: Peter Symons ‘stopping for a rest’ astride the finish line midway through Race 3 before resuming his progress upwind for the third and final lap. There was tragicomedy: Graham Buckel’s full rig deciding on one last dip as he capsized two metres short of the finish line. And there was reward: a magnificent tea generously provided by Anne Ely and her team. The results? Expertly collated by Susi Stockbridge, these saw Sue Thomas take first place in the ‘gold fleet’ (and overall), with Ged Yardy first in the silver. Martin Thomas and Nick Barnett took second and third in gold, Graham Buckel and Alex Dobson in silver. By the end of it all, everyone had stories to tell of what will surely go down as one of DSC’s most memorable events.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 16px;\u0022\u003eDSC Solo Open Meeting 2022\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eby Will Loy\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eAn incredible 39 Solo sailors entered the Dittisham S.C. Open Meeting which took place on upper reaches of the River Dart on a very windy Saturday 23rd July. Competitors from the east coast at Leigh on Sea had made the journey with their vintage Solos strapped to a VW camper bought for just one hundred quid, there is a story right there. Torpoint Mosquitos, a current hotbed of Solo interest and some talent was represented as was Salcombe Yacht Club who had sent three very capable sailors who were just pleased to be able to park close to the club. As for the home team, well, Dittisham’s Solo fleet has grown exponentially over the last five years and fortunately, the beam of a Solo is 1512mm max at station 3, so even allowing a bit extra for the projection of the gunwales, and you can still pack them quite close together in the dinghy park. We also have a strong female demographic at Dittisham and Jane Morris, Anne Marie Coyle, Sam Westcott and Ann Biglin were out on the water and showing they are as brave as the boys.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe forecast, always taken with a large portion of salt where Dittisham is concerned, promised a fresh breeze and this proved an understatement of biblical proportions. They did get the direction right though, a south westerly blowing from over the Ferry Boat Inn.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003ePRO for the day would be James Dodd who briefed the competitors on the course, tidal impact and wind bend, though tips on swimming technique would have also been of some value.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe fleet launched with the breeze building and the water beginning to actually resemble a proper sea, and that was with the tide still coming in.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe triangle, sausage course was simple in its composition but with local topographical factors and a crap load of moored boats to avoid, the sailors needed to be on their toes as well as out on them.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace 1\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eA pretty short line but away cleanly, the left side of the course already looking much nicer than the committee end, and that was after 15 seconds. The gusts were already causing problems for the fleet, the over-canvassed fully battened mainsail needs some pretty violent manipulation via kicker, outhaul and most importantly, Cunningham control and mine was not co-operating. Every time I wrenched on the excel 4mm luminous control line the sail just pulled down a few inches from the mast top. The result, a sail with the fullness of Raquel Welsh. On further investigation the halyard, a rope of some non exotic ethnicity was found wanting. I crabbed up the first beat, legs already two inches longer than when I stepped out of bed and set off down the reach. The leaders were already well ahead, Stuart Hyden (Dittisham) 5504, was in the mix with Ian Bartlett 5902 and Malcolm Davies (TCYC) in his vintage Solo 4654. Jon Clarke (Dittisham) of Edge Sails was fourth which was amazing since he had recently undergone some serious surgery which has left him even lighter than he normally is, not ideal in these conditions. By the bottom mark of the second lap, Hydon, ex Inland Champion circa 2005 had powered into the lead, hard left upwind was the only way to go and he led for the remainder of the race with South Cerney’s Bartlett and Salcombe’s Roger Guess completing the top three. Davies was a valiant fourth with a fast finishing Paul Jacobs (Starcross) 6003 fifth. There were some excellent capsizes during race 1, Shaun Welsh particularly stood out for a dismount still to be named by the World Gymnastics governing body.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe fleet disengaged and headed in to shore where they enjoyed a lunch which would not have looked out of place at a Hogwart’s function. The pasties were very popular and the egg sandwiches, my particular favourite, mainly because they were lighter and my arms were knackered.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace 2\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe wind had not abated and indeed, as the seconds ticked down to the start, it was clear this would be a brutal race on bodies and equipment. The cat was out of the bag and the fleet set off towards the left, the race arena got bumpy and the smell of beer from the FBI confirmed it was indeed a sea breeze. Jacobs and Hydon led into the top mark with Davies third and they set off down the reach to the gybe mark which was positioned just in the lee of the land. There was place changing through the fleet, mainly due to capsizes, errant tacking and a few penalty turns. The race was reduced to three laps and the finishing order was Jacobs, Hydon and Loy who benefitted from some bad luck for Davies who tacked just as a huge lift hit us both, leaving him in irons and me smelling of roses. Such is the Wind God of Dart.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRace 3\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eBack to back and the fleet barely had time to remember how hard the previous race had been, clever PRO tactic. Still, only 19 competitors made the start line and with the left still favoured, the fleet set off to see who would be first to the corner. Jacobs judged the lay line perfectly and took a handy lead over Bartlett, Hydon, Chris Meredith (Chew Valley) and Giles Bradford (Dittisham) who was looking very athletic compared with the usual Solo sailor. He normally races an Aero so that makes sense. Behind there was much whooping, Sam Westcott was showing blistering downwind pace, alas, she would later go for a swim but great enthusiasm none the less.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eBy the end of lap 2 Jacobs had asserted his position and had one hand on the title but Hydon was keeping him honest and Bartlett was also still in the mix.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eGusts continued to wreak havoc on the fleet and with plenty of safety boat experience being gained by the very keen rescue teams, this event would be remembered for a long time.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eQuotes from some of the competitors:\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnne Marie Coyle 5304\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003e“It was with the greatest of trepidation that I looked at the F4-6 forecast on XC Weather.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eI started planning how I could add a strop to the halyard and hoist my B-plan sail.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eWe drove to DSC and it didn\u0027t seem quite as howling as I\u0027d feared.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eDelighted and slightly overwhelmed by the amazing turnout with visitors having driven as much as 7 hours from Leigh-on-Sea for the delights of the Red Lion PO / pub / village shop and the stunning waters of Dittisham.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eI\u0027ve never been on a start line with so many super confident and bargey Solos so it was a happy surprise that I ended up with a middling start and hoiked my way uphill to the yellow pillar buoy with a pink sock. After 20 mins of the triangle and sausage ...I thought \u0022that\u0027s only 20 minutes... James said an hour!!\u0022.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eI think the race was about 3 laps (I can\u0027t really remember) and I saw a range of capsizes, near capsizes, scary gybes, flotilla gentle collisions, some very excellent self policing of mark skimmings in the strong tides and many people rightfully doing their turns due to infringements.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eI\u0027m not sure if it\u0027s my lack of experience, fitness or stamina but as the forecast was predicting more wind later in the day, I cravenly bowed out and manned an extra safety boat (which entailed retrieving two mud stuck masts and jumping in to right a turtled Solo!) but I can honestly say I was pleased that I got round without a major drama and I can only aspire to look as slick in my tacks as the lead chaps I watched from the safety boat!\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eThanks to Nicky and Val for a fabulous lunch and post race homemade cakes - a proper traditional day\u0027s racing with some lovely visitors.”\u003c/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eGiles Bradford 5304/5157\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003e“The usual Dittisham welcome! I maintain it is the friendliest club around, the cheering at the race briefing said it all. A treat of a course with a steadily building south westerly, our bit of the Dart at it’s best and with some great competition to boot from locals and visitors alike. Legendary hosting, a superb spread and conditions to bring a smile to the face. I was definitely holding on in some of the gusts!”\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eSam Westcott 5157\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003e“My Solo Open experience - what a bloody marvellous training experience, if anything is going to give me confidence it’s competing and surviving in those sorts of conditions.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eFantastic to raise against so many class boats.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003e\u003cem\u003eBest bits, a cracking start in race 3, being right behind you (Will) and planing the boat as fast as I have ever been. Gybing fully and no capsizes, on other parts of the course - a serious amount of capsize practice. I am dreading going through the airport tomorrow as I look like a battered wife! “\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOverall\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eAt the finish, Jacobs held for the bullet and overall win with Guess showing his stamina to finish second and third overall from Bartlett and Bradford with Hydon demoted to fifth but still second overall.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe leading lady was Jane Morris in 20th and Malcolm Davies was first Vintage Solo in 5th.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eSpecial mention to our 16 visitors who made the journey to this beautiful corner of Devon and to our fleet captain, Trevor Kirkin, who managed to get nearly every Solo member on the water.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe race team were exemplary, James Dodd was concise and did not dilly dally, keeping the races moving and ensuring safety at all times.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp style=\u0022text-align: justify;\u0022\u003eThe food on shore was superb and hopefully we will have another great event in 2023 so please do come and join us at ‘Ditsum’ next year or even sooner if you want to become part of the next hotbed of Solo Sailing.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePics: Chris Carmichael \u0026 Chris Taylor\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eResults: Chris Carmichael\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\u0022https://halsail.com/Result/Public/62075\u0022 rel=\u0022nofollow\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 data-saferedirecturl=\u0022https://www.google.com/url?q=https://halsail.com/Result/Public/62075\u0026source=gmail\u0026ust=1659159027332000\u0026usg=AOvVaw26URgB3drZMuNrV3vD-Qem\u0022\u003ehttps://halsail.com/Result/Public/62075\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003e\u003cspan style=\u0022font-size: 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