Sailing is underway again

Sunday saw the resumption of racing after the enforced lay off due to the weed situation which thanks to the efforts of the Environment Agency is all but gone.

The wind was quite strong for the first race in the Commodores Cup series of six and this led to some sailors choosing not to sail.
The wind was blowing straight down the clubhouse straight.
There were seven boats that started the race, tacking into an increasing wind making the start line a busy place to be.
It was Andy Prior in the Laser Radial rig away first followed by Mark Scourfield in the Solo, who had managed to free himself from the reeds before the start.
Then followed Andy Agar in the OK, Alan Cox and Mark Holland, both in Laser Radials, Neil Tack and Rebecca Slator in the Grad, and Eric Murray singlehanded in the Mirror.
The tacking up to Chilvers Corner saw Prior pull clear from Scourfield and the chasing bunch.
Once around the corner off the wind the group bunched up with Cox, Agar and Holland quite close.
The course meant it was a sail round four buoy to the relief of the sailors in the gusty wind but the turn at Chilvers led to the trickiest point of sailing in a strong wind.
This was to be the undoing for Scourfield who caught a gust, broached up and capsized allowing Cox, Holland and Agar through.
He righted the boat but went under again before the gybe on one buoy and subsequently retired.
The second lap was incident free and Prior finished first across the line and on handicap, with Cox in second and Agar in third, Holland fourth, Murray in fifth and Tack and Slator in sixth.
The wind was still strong for race two and the course changed giving the boats a longer sail on the mile buoy straight.
Again it was Prior who judged the start well followed by Cox, Agar, Holland and Scourfield, all in close quarters, cross tacking with right of way.
They were followed by Tack and Slator and Murray.
A shifty, gusty wind allowed planing in places and less wind pockets but in a shorter race there was less incident.
It was Prior again who led everyone home from Scourfield, Cox, Holland, Tack and Slator, Agar and Murray.
For race three only six boats came to the line for the first of the Personal Handicap series, with Agar suffering some equipment issues.
This series allows for the helms to have the boat handicap amended as the series progresses.
The wind was still strong in gusts and after a few near misses on the start line, the fleet was underway on the same course.
Again Prior sailed away at the start followed by Scourfield, Cox, Holland, Tack and Slator and Murray and this order of boats was the same until Cox took a swim on the run just past number two buoy which allowed Holland to get through to finish third across the line.
This wasn’t the only swimmer in the race as the unusual site of Murray in the Mirror rounding boy one.
After the new handicaps had been worked out the order was Prior, Scourfield, Holland, Cox Tack and Slator with Murray completing the finishers.