(Report from Charles Darley on Catriona)
A good turnout of Garelochs. Race Officer Stewart Gibb, assisted by Ollie Thompson, Reay and Jean Mackay had not just Gareloch wind to struggle with but also the absence of the Z mark. The pin end of tonight’s favoured starting line. The mooring buoy of a yacht was nominated instead. Not ideal because the yacht was there too but needs must.
There was the added novelty of instructing Garelochs to sail the Sonar course. Sonar courses are designed to avoid reaching legs, so not a bad idea.
Three Garelochs were over anxious at the start and obliged to return. Ceres took some time to realise and suffered in the returning, Catriona knew at once. By the time she had started correctly, Catriona was in air so bad, (as Dave Perry puts it in Winning in One Designs) that oxygen masks dropped automatically from the boom. She had to wait to be rolled by Thalia before she could tack away.
The first leg to B, off Silvers. The B mark has been out of position. Lately next to the port hand channel marker. It was replaced in position at the weekend. Those who knew were at an advantage.
Catriona found good air away from the rest and was behind only Circe at B, after her appalling start. Off wind to G, near Gully Bridge, it was a bit fine for spinnakers. Circe thought to start high so that she could bear away and hoist. It did not pay. Catriona, on the rhumb line, was at G first. A curiosity, G would logically be left to starboard for the reach back to the starting area. The course card had G left to port (the Gareloch course added a visit to C at Clynder so port rounding would be natural) which meant boats leaving crossing the path of boats approaching and a tack instead of a gybe. Dione was the only one to manage a spinnaker tack at the mark.
There was time for a second round, but it was not ideal. Wind had veered, so that B was now a fetch, and lightened. Those towards the back got the worst of it. A final leg from Clynder to the finish was fine, but called for spinnakers. Circe had new crew (Mairi McLean). She was on the helm whilst the skipper operated her complex arrangement for the spinnaker. He did not do well and let Dione pass. Similar trouble on Athene promoted Ceres.
1 Catriona, 2 Dione, 3 Circe, 4 Ceres, 5 Athene, 6 Thalia, 7 Zephyrus. Arke DNF.
