UK Double Handed Offshore Series

UK Double Handed Offshore Series - Race 5

by Kate Cope 26 Jul 2021 16:15 BST 9-10 July 2021

The UK Doublehanded Offshore Series is a new race series providing a challenge for all double-handed offshore boats. It includes professional and amateur sailors as well as nurturing young talent.

Saturday 24th July was Race 5 of the series: RORC Channel Race and the forecast was for another light wind race. The course was an extended anticlockwise round the Isle of Wight with two lines of longitude to be crossed West and East. These can be crossed at any point on them making it a tougher navigational challenge than a rounding mark. The Westerly line of longitude was South of Bournemouth and the Easterly one South of Littlehampton.

Wind at the start was a light south-westerly breeze and it was against the last of the tide so most boats chose to tack close into the island shore.

The first navigation challenge came after Hurst Narrows where some boats chose to head West immediately through the North Channel, others peeled away from the fleet half way down over the Shingles Bank and the rest took the longer route but more tide down the whole Needles Channel. Wind had shifted SE so it was a mix of jibs and Code Zeros as some boats chose to go higher and get further South on the jib and others to sail lower on a code zero.

Swell and Chilli Pepper during race 5 of the UK Double Handed Offshore Series - photo © John Green

On the leg into St Cats the Wind went East so everyone needed to tack but, with a strong spring tide running SE, nature was lending a helping hand. Then came the Easterly line again with choice to be made on how tight to stay on the wind and the hazard of the shallow patches off Selsey Bill. Last two legs were a downwind run in in light winds round Nab tower to end in Stokes Bay. It was a pretty dark night with the clouds obscuring the moon but despite that all the boats managed to avoid each other.

www.doublehandedoffshore.com

Race 5 Results:

SEA VENTURES RACE YACHTS OVERALL: It was another win for Cora (Tim Goodhew and Kelvin Matthews) who now move into Overall Series lead. 2nd was Just So (Will McGough / Christian Jeffery) and 3rd was Swell (Henry Bomby/ Sam Matson)

RYA MIXED (Male and Female co-skippers) The winner was Gentoo (James Harayda / Dee Caffari), 2nd was Bellino (Rob Craigie / Deb Fish) and 3rd Purple Mist (Kate Cope/ Matt Beecher)

NORTH SAILS MASTERS (Combined age 90+ years) The winner was Jago (Mike Yates and Eivind Bøymo-Malm), 2nd was Jangada (Richard Palmer / Jeremy Waitt) and 3rd Bellino

B&G YOUTH (Co-skipper under 25yrs) Winner was Gentoo with 2nd Purple Mist and 3rd New Normal (Tom Fenemore/ Jack Hanslope)

MUSTO CORINTHIAN: 1st Just So, 2nd Mzungu (Sam White / Sam North), 3rd Diablo (Nick Martin/ Calanach Finlayson)

BEST JEANNEAU: 1st Cora, 2nd Swell, 3rd Mzungu