Zippy Zero's Week of Naughtiness at West Kirby Sailing Club
by Zippy Zero 9 Apr 11:27 BST
Spring Lake Series race at West Kirby SC © Alan Jenkins
Hello folks from Zippy the D-Zero, reporting from the WKSC boat park after a long winter of hibernation and boredom. The week has involved a series of outings, with which my Owner was Not Pleased. Let me explain, your honour.
Last Wednesday was the start of evening racing for the handicap fleet. We were blessed with wind, but it was a very frisky Easterly, which gusted from 8-20 knots and spun randomly through 45 degrees as it flipped to a South-Easterly.
Race Officer Michelle Noronha and Judith Carter had the tricky job of setting a course and watching mayhem unfold. There were a limited number of takers. Between the spray and gusts, I recognised the Lasers of Steve and Wendy Shalcroft, Gill Hall in her Lightning, plus last year's Novice Racer Pasi Hayrynen racing for the first time in his newly-acquired Laser, with a full rig!
We started on a run, or a reach, or a run, depending where you were on the lake. I was first to mark 7 at the other end of the lake. Then the fun started as we reached off to 8 and then started numerous small beats made towards the dreaded prom where wind shifts increased to 60 degrees, or no wind at all.
After one of these laps, most of my fellow dinghy park inhabitants had done some serious mud work on their upper bodies, and/or taken their Owners home for a hot shower and beer. The RO team sent us on for another round.
By the end of Lap two, only the Pasi Laser and me were still upright and I had one more buoy to round before the finish. Mark Number 1 was snuggled in a nasty little wind eddy, close to the rocks and prom wall and the wind veered unpleasantly as we approached. "I've got this, Mum," I mumbled optimistically.
Most of me made it, but my mainsheet dropped in the water in a sudden lull, and I scooped up Number 1 in my arms to cart home across the finish line.
Owner was frantic and a bit Tourettey with her language. It was amusing to experience her attempts to reverse me out of the problem, but the wind swung through 180 degrees at one point, pushing my nose towards the prom and rocks. The spectators gasped and took a step backwards.
Owner managed to un-knot my mainsheet and let it go, so releasing my grip on the mark. She then spun me around through 360 degrees by my boom for my penalty turn, catching my mainsheet as we swung through the gybe. The crowd swooned and stepped back up to the railings.
A huge gust caught us from the South-East and blew us through the line to finish a full 10 minutes on corrected time ahead of Pasi, who was the only other finisher in second place! Well survived us both! When Owner saw the state of the other mud-encased boats back at home, I think she realised how much naughtier I could have been!
My next race was the start of the Spring Lake Series on Sunday. The Beasterly Easterly was still with us and looking for more mud victims.
RO Stu Dawson gave us a special made up course, as my Number 1 Buoyfriend was still sulking out of position on the prom wall. Fourteen boats made the start line for at least one of the two races.
After three laps of a square course, with wind blowing in every direction, twelve boats finished, with me leading the way home. I hoped to have appeased her Ownership by my steady performance, but she seemed in a super-alert state of fright and panic by the challenging conditions, even though I had done nothing wrong. Yet.
RO Stu changed the course for Race 2. As Owner tried to memorise the five numbers and direction of rounding of each mark, there was a data error in her small brain, with the four numbers of the previous course still occupying the limited brain capacity used for this activity.
Two of the far end lake numbers stayed in situ in one brain cell, leaving the other brain cell to retain three mark numbers, balance me, deal with my sheet and the squalling windshifts, plus respond to the query from a flying yellow IC helmed by Steve Fleming as we were approaching the windward mark. "Is it number 2 next?" he yelled, "and 9, or 4,8,7,6,1,3,5,10?"
Yes folks, the two-buoy brain cell stepped in and directed Steve and myself to the same wing mark I had rounded in Race 1. It was a glorious reach in plumes of spray and my daggerboard hummed a dinky tune. The Laser helmed by Mike Betteridge followed us.
RO Stu was laughing too much to mention our small error as we passed the line, so we completed another lap of the same course with same brain cell still firmly in control. Another boat was having a course error moment; John Carlin's Albacore omitted mark 3 on the second lap to join us in the DSQ roster.
So, Owner is not pleased. I'm lying low under my cover for a while. Berth A20. Please bring cookies and cuddles.
Love Zippy D'Zero 333