Championship Race 4  – Friday 8th August 2014

Course:

Start West

CH P

Col S

F S

H S

CH P

Col S

F S

H S

Finish West

Conditions:

SW -W  Strong breeze 12 – 18 knots with gusts of up to 20 knots

Good visibility and no precipitation

Comments:

An exhilarating and demanding sail was had by the 17 boats which completed the 4th championship race. 3 of the 4 lasers came out to have a look but retired before the start leaving Sacha Tchen the only laser who made a credible rounding of the course with four capsizes. A delayed start gave the opportunity for several boats to make some last minute crew changes. Extra weight and strength were exchanged in Seans boat as he seized the chance to take Jerome onboard and William Wallis was able to obtain a 3rd crew which was a good call for the gusty conditions. The girls teams suffered from the lack of having some extra weighty muscles on board and Rachel and Fiona retired after being overpowered in a gust which resulted in a capsize out near flea in the second lap. With the strongest winds of the series so far, many of the boats were able to plane with Sean reporting over 10 knots from his GPS. It was a winning day for William Wallis in the wayfarer who appeared to have his boat planing on every available gust with Sean in 2nd place. A superb day for the Ettes also as James Gartside took his first victory in Roulette and an overall 5th on corrected time.