Results / Open Island Barn SC - 17/03/2012

FIRST SEAS RS200 OPEN 2012, ISLAND BARN           



The race team were a little worried that they had advertised 5 races on a day when the wind was forecast to hover in the Light to Gentle breeze area for the whole day.   Race 1 started cleanly and on time. The wind had enough shifts and strength variation across the reservoir to make correct lane choice difficult to make. Andrew and Geraldine Peters chose well and rounded the first mark in the lead. Peters then managed to stay in a private puff for the entire downwind leg and build up an unassailable lead by the first gate. Popular racing coach Pete Vincent, with Charlotte Cotton, led the chasers in second, with Phil and Ollie White from Papercourt scoring a third.  

Race 2 brought the first general recall and the I flag appeared for the restart. This still did not deter 4 boats from starting early. No horizon job from Andrew Peters this time. Pete Vincent again proved his credentials by leading down the last leg. Island Barn’s Julie Harrison and Fiona Fardon had made steady progress through the fleet into close second and as the two boats approached the finish, the timing of the penultimate gybe would be crucial. Vincent gybed too early, Harrison’s patience and delayed gybe paid off, she gained water on Vincent at the Gate and won the short drag-race to the finish.  

At the tasty meat ball lunch (thank you Sue and team), Vincent led on 4 points, Harrison was second on 6, the Whites third on 10, with another Papercourt boat, Sam Tozer and Kirsty Corcoran, fourth on 12. Peters was fifth with 13.  

The meat balls were obviously laced with an adrenalin additive, as half the fleet started early on Race 3. Out came the black flag, the pin end was moved up wind a little, the adrenalin rush slowed and Rob Janering with Hugh Meta, popular visitors from Wembley, executed a perfect pin end start at full speed and sped up the port side of the course. Those that chose the right side, including lunchtime leaders Vincent and Harrison, sailed into the first of the afternoon lull and suffered badly. Janering won with ease, with Tom Morris and Emma Porteous, who have sailed at the same events since their Topper days, taking second and Island Barn’s Peter Curtis and Chris Golding third. The Peters regained some form with a fourth.  

The wind returned for Race 4, helping Pete Vincent (with, let’s be honest, a physique not totally suited to the very light stuff) to regain his full competitiveness. He played the shifts expertly on all the beats, with the Peters hauling him back on the downwind legs with their expert low, soaking, downwind technique – (great to see marital harmony being put to such a good cause). Vincent held on to win, with Peters and Morris second and third.  

So, with one race to go, who was favourite to win. With one discard applied, the scoring was: Vincent 5, Peters 7, Morris 11, White 13. The Peters therefore needed to beat Vincent by 3 places to win. At that end of lap 1 it was Island Barn’s Carl Mayhew and Tim Chandler leading the Whites and Morris. Peters was fourth and Vincent was where Peters needed him to be, back in fourteenth. White passed Mayhew on lap 2 and Andrew and Jeraldine Peters came through on the final downwind leg to finish like champions with a win to taking the Open. With a disappointing tenth in the final race Pete Vincent and Charlotte Cotton surrendered second place to super consistant Tom Morris and Emma Porteous.    

Five 3-lap races completed and all off the water by 3.45 pm. Why did we worry?  

Mike Jones
Race Officer