With 20 competitors sailing 11 boats this was the best turnout of 2019 for the SAMM Race Day on May 12th and this was matched by good weather at last.
The morning race started in East 4.5 to 6 knot winds and the boats straggled crossing the start line with Ginetta 8 minutes late because of a jammed furling line so she soon retired. The race progressed without incident but often with close battles rounding marks. It was great to see some boats employing tactics within the rules to gain the advantage. The corrected times showed Shoestring Cuatro the winner just 2.35 seconds in front of the Shoestring Omega.
The wind had veered to ESE 5 to 7 knots for the second race start which was fiercely contest by the whole fleet. With the wind gradually increasing to 11 knots, this highly competitive spirit continued throughout the whole 75 minutes of the race. At one point 8 boats rounded a mark within 6 seconds of each other. Although the Balaton Mistral was a clear winner by 16.15 seconds, only 32.27 seconds separated the first five boats and only 0.24 seconds separated the third and forth places.
Excellent, tight and competitive racing by all boats to confirm this as “The Best Day This Season”.
For full information and contact details for SAMM go to www.sailingmarmenor.com
Winners photo, left to right. First race Shoestring Cuatro, Vernon O’Byrne, Paulo Johnstone, Colin Craven. Second race Balaton Mistral, Sue Marlow, Ian Sinclair.
