Two Sundays

Dave Cheyne gives his personal account of the first two Sundays in the Laser SB3 series

First Sunday

After a three month lay off which seemed more like an eternity, the anonymous ship returned to Hamble. Our vessel had the pleasure of a luxury spa and tender Lovering care in its final weeks following a spell in a rural retreat so was well prepared for the onslaught of the season to come.If only the same could be said of the crew!

The first day of the spring series will be remembered most for a rare (and first in the case of yours truly!) experience of sailing whilst it was snowing. I'm not sure what Stretch will remember it for, apart for what must have been a tragic hangover, a world of pain and encouragement. It would be remiss of me not to mention that our fine forard hand thought the tide a little low between races and decided to top up the Solent with a tactical technicolour yawn.

With all the distractions the racing now seems unimportant, however having put Stretch in charge of nav it seemed he forgot to read the fine-print and we found ourselves lost on the second beat. In his defence the course was anything but clear. We weren't the only ones though and messers Bedford and Howells had done the same letting the omnipresent Dukey and hopalong Jerry through to second and first for the season opener.

In race two there was less navigational chaos but no shortage of carnage with shutes left in the tide and a number of spreader dips in the building breeze. A newcomer in the form of Calum Smeaton took the honours from Monex and Dukey. Our team probably wins the consistent results by accident award with two fourths despite the mayhem.

After such joy afloat like most the B's moved on to watch a splendid game of rah-rah with the anglo representatives showing exactly why they're the world champions. Never mind folks, you've the ashes to look forward to yet.

Second Sunday

A relative heat wave for week two of the spring series. After the grey murk, chill and snow of week one, summer seemed to edge closer with sun and relatively mild conditions prevailing.

After the course chaos of week one, it appeared that all competitors had learnt from the errors of the previous week. A North-Easterly of around 15 knots with the usual holes and puffs under the hill head shore made for an interesting time and a multitude of place changes with a tide change during the second race adding to the fun and games.

First race of the day saw what looked like a general recall start let go by the race committee and the fleet splitting across the course. Mike Budd and Co overcame a rusty start in week one with a handsome first from Geoff and Nick in the Small Steamy ship and the Rigging Gurus third. I’d like to let Mini off the hook but stopping off up the first beat for a spot of Lobster fishing cannot go unreported – was this an engagement present for CC or really a case of misadventure?

Second lap of the buoys saw similar conditions but a different victor in the form of Loco. Rumour has it that the scrutineer may scupper the new boys impressive start to the series though – a lesson to all with class rules being toughened and spot checks equally likely during class events this season. Geoff and Nick scored another second with the class sponsors darlings in third.

If my report seems a little less detailed than normal, I’d like to point out it has nothing to do with mass consumption on Friday and Saturday, well maybe a little, as the after effects possibly contributed to our lack-lustre performance for the day and lack of presence near the front.