Contenders at the Weymouth Dinghy Regatta

131 boats race in Weymouth Dinghy Regatta 2014 © Richard White

23 Contenders lined up at Castle Cove SC with a separate start within Weymouth Dinghy Regatta on 12th and 13th July. The conditions were sparkling in Portland Harbour throughout the weekend, warm sunshine and a nice force 4, all be it a touch patchy and shifty.

These conditions and a lot of running, with the pumping flag up, caused nice close racing with many ladders for the unwary to fall down and the odd splashy roll to windward.

Mike Murley was the first to show but was caught Gary Langdown, now back up to speed after Laser sailing for a while. Murley was followed home by the larger than life Simon Mussell, probably more than 30 kilos different between them! Our host, Nick Grace was showing impressive running speed to snatch fourth, no doubt gained from his not-as-yet-troubling-the-leaders Musto Skiff sailing.

The wind had set in fully for the next race and Mussell made easy work of the beats to see off an improved Stuart Jones. Grace and Langdown came in next.

The third race was a two horse duel between the fast upwind Mussell and Jones who had now worked out how to move on a pumping run. Luckily for Jones the finish was at the end of the downwind trapezoid. Grace again was quick on the runs to the point where he could roll in to windward and still finish third. Young and tall came in next with Iain Horlock. Langdown had been sent home early due to shoddy boat maintenance.

Food, beer, sleep and good value bacon rolls preceded the next starts with the wind slightly stronger and a bit more off the land to add to the vagaries.

You could tell that the wind was up as another perfect days racing started with Mussell stomping off in a reaching type manner up the first beat to take the race from the more pointy Langdown. Ed 'rules are for guidence' Presley grabbed a third with Jones close behind.

The next race saw the Highcliffe duo again go off for a private duel with the finishing order reversed due to Mussells confidence in his boatspeed only being matched by his inability to have a look around and to do something tactical. Jones and Presley were likewise reversed.

So Langdown could still win it but only by winning and with Mussell worse than second. Suspense over, it didn't happen, Mussell picked the right way and with his speed that was the end of it. He was followed home by local knowledge Grace with Landown comfortable in third. Carl Tagoe, with by far the oldest, but well maintained, boat in the fleet snatched a fourth despite one of those rolls in to windward. It must be the way to go.

Overall Mussell won fairly comfortably, despite himself, with club mate Langdown safe in second. Grace squeezed into third, with some impressive sailing having not been in the boat for some time, ahead of two discards, one to count Jones. It could be argued that a little finishing line port and starboard incident in the first race that Jones had with Ed 'I don't tack for no one' Presley made a difference.

Being gentlemanly it was all sorted with some on-the-water gentle verbal abuse. The one point gained by Jones then came back to haunt him, ironically for Presley that race was a discard. A small bit of revenge then for Bristol Rovers over Wycombe after the events of the last couple of seasons...you'll have to look it up...or not.

Overall Results: