Albacore Open at South Cerney Sailing Club
by Norman Halstead 8 May 2007 13:28 BST
6 May 2007
Well we’d all read the weather forecast but hadn’t realised that the wind strength listed was an average – so 18 knots actually meant anything between 8 and 28. Everyone therefore had considerably more entertainment than had originally been anticipated, and unfortunately it proved too much for many of the 13 boats.
The wind didn’t really arrive until just after the first start. Neville Herbert was first at the first mark, sailed away from the fleet and did exactly the same thing in all three races. Behind him things were much closer with local helm Emma Johnson getting there second and Mike Banner 3rd. Jean Simmons and Norman Halstead were not so well placed in 9th and 10th but pulled through to 3rd and 4th by the end of the next reach. By the end of lap 2 Halstead had pulled through to 2nd but celebrated the fact by capsizing to windward in spectacular fashion on the run. Simmons continued to fight with Banner for second place but had the upper hand by the end.
The start line was not anywhere near as busy after lunch since the wind strength had increased and the gusts were quite vicious. Even so, race 2 saw fewer capsizes as a result of a course change to avoid the dead run. Herbert won with Halstead 2nd and Simmons 3rd.
That left a three-way fight for second overall between Simmons, Banner, and Halstead, but Herbert had already won the event. Even so he started again and once again sailed away from what remained of the fleet. In the fight for second place Banner took the advantage followed by Simmons and then Halstead. The second reach saw Halstead plane past Simmons to 3rd which became second place when Banner decided to do some dredging with the top of his mast at the gybe mark. A close contest for second place effectively ended when Simmons also fell in at a gybe, and although Halstead did later get laid flat on the beat he recovered with plenty of distance to spare.
It was certainly a shame that some of the competitors found the conditions too difficult – especially one who had travelled from Scotland. However, those that were able to compete had a great deal of fun and are not short of bruises to show off!
Overall Results:
1st 6825 Neville Herbert and Steven Penfold (Tamesis SC) 2pts
2nd 6403 Norman Halstead and Ruth Birkett (South Cerney SC) 4pts
3rd 6439 Jean Simmons and Derek Simmons (South Cerney SC) 5pts
4th 8067 Mike Banner and Pippa Mitchell (Windsford Flash SC) 7pts
5th 6413 Emma Johnson and Paul Kimmens (South Cerney SC) 11pts