An afternoon of good wind, especially welcome after the forecast had spoken of 2 and 3 knots. On the water Race Officer Roger Kinns sent us on a beat to A, off the club, thence to Clynder and back.
The shore end of the line was favoured but there was little room for error. Teal and Catriona (Rebekah Choules on the helm) were a bit early and had to slow. To the detriment of both. Catriona was ahead, Teal to windward but not far enough to avoid disturbed air. She fell back eventually.
Catriona rounded the windward mark first. Teal was a little slicker under spinnaker and pulled ahead to windward. She never got away, though, and Catriona had the inside position at the leeward mark.
Hermes, meanwhile, was under the command of a Nelsonian Carol Rowe. She had an arm in a sling after an incident in the garden. Sailing is preferable to horticulture. Anyway, Hermes’s spinnaker hoist incorporated a rinse of the third sail. They went backwards for a while but soon recovered their third place.
On the fetch back to the starting area, the fleet was met by Halcyone. Newly afloat and looking superb with light green top sides. She had come round from the marina and not made the start but she sailed with us. There was time for three rounds. Wind veered by more than 90 degrees so that all legs became fetches, restricting the opportunities for overtaking.
Catriona eked out enough of a lead from Teal to avoid concern over overlaps at marks. Athene was battling with Ceres. She had the advantage but lost momentum at the start of the final leg.
1 Catriona, 2 Teal, 3 Hermes, 4 Thalia, 5 Zephyrus, 6 Thia, 7 Ceres, 8 Athene.
President: