Category Archives: Race Reports

The Gareloch was at its most attractive.  Scenically at least, a little more wind would have been perfect.

On the water Race Officer Peter Proctor was faced with a direction of wind which made it difficult to find a leg to windward.  He selected a course which began with a fetch to A, off the club.  Catriona chose the shore end of the starting line.  Teal chose the pin end which was to leeward, thinking to benefit from slightly better wind and advantageous tide.  She was right and rounded first with Thalia, who had followed her, second.

Catriona drew level with Thalia offwind to C but could make no impression on Teal.  Thalia was caught by the fleet following a penalty arising from not giving Mark room to Catriona.  This group suffered from dying wind on the Clynder shore and dropped back.

On the fetch back to the starting area, lightening air at the front gave encouragement to Catriona, but it was not to be.  At the beginning of the second round, Gareloch air reverted to form.  It was possible to do well or badly by sailing inshore or by staying out. At the start of the second round, Thalia lost several places on the leg to A for no particular reason.  Zephyrus and Ceres prospered in the loch, Hermes on the shore.   We finished at A.

1 Teal, 2 Catriona, 3 Zephyrus, 4 Ceres, 5 Halcyone, 6 Hermes, 7 Thalia, 8 Thia

Report kindly provided by Jens Sutter

It was a blustery afternoon.  The Qualifier for the British Keelboat League, sailed in Sonars on the east patch, had been canned at lunch time because of high wind.

Three boats turned out, Halcyone, Teal and Catriona.  One of the longer courses was set, zig-zagging across the loch to E, near Rahane.  With wind from the Shandon shore, the start was downwind.  Lack of practice and very changeable wind led to no one starting well.  Teal was the best of the bunch.  Catriona tried all she knew to get a favourable inside overlap at the next mark, ready for the beat back across the loch.  None of it was fruitful but she did make a fair rounding and steadily worked to windward of Teal thereafter.  By the windward mark both Halcyone and Teal had had enough and retired.  Catriona, benefiting from a crew of three, carried on and finished the round.

1 Catriona, Teal and Halcyone DNF

An evening when events conspired against us.  At the key moment when people wanted to get out to the boats, it was low water of a large spring tide so that we had to wait before the launch could come in to the jetty.  Meanwhile, the rowing dinghy used to get to the launch had been swamped in the large waves being blown down the Gareloch.  The upshot, everyone was late.  Hermes, Thalia and Zoe all suffered from those teething problems which characterise the start of the season and did not race.  That left Halcyone and Catriona with guest helm Thad Burr.

A fitting end to the season. The Gareloch class flew to Germany to compete against the Freundeskreis Klassische Yachten. The Friday flight to Hamburg is well known for stag parties. For once, the Garelochs were not the worst behaved.

There was team racing on the Schlei in Nordic Folkboats. The Folkboats had been chartered by our hosts. In the past we have raced in Knarrs but one has been sold and a fleet of six was not available.

The two owners of the Folkboats watched the racing with interest. It is not clear whether of not our hosts had mentioned that the boats were to be used for racing. Let alone team racing. Despite a few anxious moments, the owners must have enjoyed the event, photographs are to appear in one of their calendars.

There were four races on the Saturday, which were split between the two teams. Crack German helm Sven Foerst taught us how to make the best of the starting line and then sailed into the distance. We were left to concentrate on his team mates.

Three shorter races were planned for Sunday morning so as to break the tie and allow time for a fleet race where crews could helm. We have come, over the years, to realise that the stereotype of ruthless German efficiency is not necessarily accurate. Different instructions had been given to the two teams regarding the course. It was only fair to abandon the first race and we shared the other two. The match was declared a tie.

The fleet race was sailed in dying air. Eventually a result was declared at a rounding mark. Race Officer Klaus Birkhoff (who had no hand in the dichotomy of sailing instructions) awarded the prize of a bottle of rather over proof rum to Eric Boinard. A surprise to Iain Macfarlane who led the race. After some of the rum, he was past caring.

It would be remiss not to mention the entertainment of Saturday evening. Oliver Berking of top line Silversmiths Robbe and Berking opened the Yachting Heritage Centre in Flensburg which bears their name. The opening exhibition was of Royal Yachting. The Royal Northern and Clyde Yacht Club has lent various exhibits, including our fine silver model of Britannia and one of her racing flags. One of three thought to exist. We were able to swing an invitation.

Wow.

It is not possible to list all the delights of the exhibition and of the Heritage Centre. Curator Eva Nielsen has done superb work. The workshop, where 12 metres can be built, had treasures wherever you looked. A 6 metre and a 12 with immaculate varnish. Charming clinker dinghies. My favourite, a Skerry Cruiser. Out of the water, her ends look unfeasibly slender.

The star of the evening, for me, the 6 metre which had belonged to the King of Norway. Her keel was set into a pit in the floor so the deck was at a convenient height. Champagne was served from the cockpit.

The last race in the Series of the Ancient Mariner.  There was an autumnal feel to the air.  It had been blowing hard during the day which put off some.

A lovely evening on the Gareloch, especially after Sunday when it was too windy to race.

On the water Race Officer Peter Proctor chose a course up and down the Shandon shore.   It suited the direction of wind and kept us out of the way of a submarine which was returning to Faslane.

Zoe got the best start at the outer end of the line.  Hermes and Catriona close behind.   Zoe was comfortably in control of the first windward leg but took an injudicious tack into the shore where tide was less favourable and wind lighter.   Catriona and Hermes profited.  Thalia, perhaps suffering from growth below the waterline, was not on the pace.

Later, Hermes made a wide rounding of the leeward mark and allowed Zoe past.

1 Catriona, 2 Zoe, 3 Hermes, 4 Ceres, 5 Thalia