Results / Open Bough Beech SC - 05/05/2012

Nineteen hardy RS200 sailors ignored the rain & the cold to compete at the second SEAS event of the year at Bough Beech Sailing Club on 5^th May. The wind was force 3-4 & straight down the lake, but coming from the north which meant shifts, holes & gusts galore. None of this bothered Andy & Geraldine Peters in race 1 as they rounded the first mark in the lead & then proceeded to sail off into the distance, pursued for a while by Robert Gullan & Jack Holden. A big lift just before the start of race 2 sent most of the fleet over early & caused a general recall. The race officer dispatched a rescue boat to the windward mark to shift it but when they got there they found it tangled in a 30 foot tree that was floating down the lake. When the race did get underway it was local sailors Mike Warwicker & Kate Fitzsimmons who picked their way through the shifts on the first beat to take a big lead. Behind them Dave & Nicky Derby, the Peters, Mike Chapman & Lynne Ratcliffe and Dave Giles & Fiona Clark had a close tussle swapping places on every leg. At the finish Mike Warwicker took the gun ahead of the Derby’s & Dave Giles. The sun almost came out in the afternoon but the wind was still playing snakes & ladders. Dave Giles rounded first in race 3 and proceeded to sail away with the Derby’s, the Peters & Mike Chapman fighting it out for second. Going into race 4 any one of four boats could still win the event. Dave Giles had another storming first beat to round in front from Mike Warwicker and Mike Chapman. This time though he didn’t manage to sail away & eventually got swallowed up as the chasing boats, including the Derby’s & the Peters, planed through downwind. At the final gate the Peters & Mike Chapman were neck & neck opting for opposite buoys. It was touch & go all the way to the finish with the Peters taking the race by a foot and with it the open meeting.