Mad March Regatta at Sutton-In-Ashfield Sailing Club

British Moth takes honours at season-opener

The sailing season started at Sutton-In-Ashfield Sailing Club on Sunday 5 March with the Mad March Regatta. Light winds and rain failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the seven crews plus rescue and race teams to get the year's sailing underway. One visitor, the familiar faces of Matthew and Emma Metcalfe-Smith in their Albacore joined a home fleet to make a regatta where every boat was a different class.

The first race started in a reasonable, if a little light, wind, but with relentless rain. Jonathan Twite sailing the British Moth "Painted Lady" was first off the start line pursued by Matthew and Emma in the Albacore "It Wasn't Me" and Jon Lee and Karen Brailsford in their Flying Fifteen. The two double-handers quickly opened up a lead from the rest of the fleet which they held to the end of the race. The rain was starting to cause a few issues with Martin Warner and Kevin Barry having to bail rain-water out of their Sailfish and Lewis Brailsford, single-handed in a RS Vision, seen using his jammed spinnaker to shelter from the elements. Matthew and Emma took the line-honours by two seconds from Jon and Karen, however Jonathan had closed the gap sufficiently to split them after handicaps.

Race two started with Jon and Karen opening up a lead over the fleet whilst a tacking battle between the Jonathan in the British Moth and the Matthew and Emma's Albacore lasted all the way round the first lap. This brought Jamie Marshall, deserted by his crew for this race, into contention in his Enterprise. With the wind dying, the Flying Fifteen was caught and passed, and as it died completely, Matthew and Emma had not built up enough of a lead over Jonathan's British Moth to overcome the handicap difference.

Over lunch the wind disappeared completely, but the race crew managed to find enough patches to set a course for the final race of the day. Finally the rain had stopped and so the surviving sailors set out with the simple equation – Matthew and Emma's Albacore had to beat Jonathan's British Moth by exactly five minutes over the 45 minute race to take the series. At the end of the first lap, the Albacore's lead stood at nearly two minutes and the victory seemed possible. However the British Moth managed to keep the gap from getting any larger and Jonathan took the victory and the series. A third place for Jamie, with crew Rebecca Mayo back on-board this time, was enough to pip Jon and Karen to third place in the series.

A special mention must go to the rescue crews who had the horrendous job of watching over seven boats drifting around the lake while themselves getting completely soaked.

Overall Results: