Final round

Mary McBride describes the last weekend of racing in the Red Funnel Cowes Keelboat championship

The final set of races in the Red Funnel Cowes Keelboats championship series was run by the Royal Thames Yacht Club in the Solent off Cowes at the weekend.

Saturday's racing enjoyed excellent wind conditions once the sea breeze had settled and in the Etchells class Mahem sailed by Keith Tippell enjoyed two firsts along with Excalibur sailed by Paul Potenall in the Dragon Class.

The very competitive Daring Clsss featured two different winners, Decanter in Race 1 and Dreamer in Race 2.

First race on Sunday was abandoned after the wind went 40 degrees right just as the Dragons, last away, were approaching their leeward mark. Principal race officer Malcolm McKeag, of the RoyalThames YC, said the change in wind direction had rendered the race on the original track fairly meaningless as a windward/leeward race for all boats would have wasted 40 minutes on a procession with little or no hope of place changes.

"We had already shortened the Etchells at the leeward mark, their race having lost all meaning as one of the two boats had made a course error and was a quarter mile behind the other, and decided to get on with the next race as quickly as possible," he
said.

Results

Etchells
Saturday, Race 1: Mayhem, 2 1039, 3 975.
Race 2: 1 1039, 2 Mayhem, 3 773.
Sunday, Race 1:
1 1039, 2 Mayhem. Race 2: 1 Mayhem, 2 1039.

Dragons
Saturday, Race 1: 1 Excalibur, 2 Stampede, 3 Jerboa IV.
Race 2: 1 Excalibur, 2 Asa, 3 Caramba.
Sunday: Race 1 (scored on rounding order at leeward mark, race abandoned): 1 Excalibur, 2 Caramba, 3 Apalala.
Race 4: 1 Jerboa IV, 2 Caramba, 3 Stampede.

Darings
Saturday, Race 1: 1 Decanter, 2 Dreamer, 3 Devius.
Race 2: 1 Dreamer, 2 Double Knot, 3 Destroyer.
Sunday: Race 1 (scored on rounding order at leeward mark, race abandoned due to wind change): 1 Dauntless, 2 Finesse, 3 Streak.
Race 2: 1 Streak, 2 Decanter, 3 Dauntless.