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Race Report Day 1 Glorious sunshine and a perfect 10 knot breeze welcomed the 51 competitors for the 2007 Gul RS700 National Championship at Royal Torbay Yacht Club. Mark Nicholson led the fleet up the first beat first going hard left and then sailing to the port layline with Andy White playing the shifts up the middle in second. Mark gybed off at the top mark whilst Andy followed by Pete Purkiss, Paul Bayliss and Steve Butcher sailed on to what was the favoured side of the run and made some big gains. Andy White then proceeded to build a comprehensive lead and was never challenged with Paul Bayliss taking Steve Butcher for second and Pete Purkiss 4th. Steve Butcher spotted a shift in the line and took advantage of a gap at the pin end to port tack the fleet and led out to the favoured right hand side of the course. He continued to lead at the windward mark followed by Tim Johnson, Andy White and Paul Bayliss. Steve played the right hand side of the run and held the lead but it was Dave Smithwhite who made the biggest gains by going left down the run. Steve led Dave by 4-5 boat lengths at the final windward mark and although Dave managed to sneak through at one stage in the dying breeze, it was Steve who pulled through to take gun. The fleet gathered in the evening for a rules seminar by our RYA judge Peter Fitt and the class meeting before presenting the Seasure golden rudder stocks to the overnight leaders, Steve Butcher in the gold and Ed Reeves in the silver fleet. Everyone then enjoyed a hearty supper provided by Harken before seeking alternative amusement on the English Riviera. Race Report Day 2 A quite depressing scene greeted the fleet with a flat calm in In race 4 it was again Steve Butcher showing some excellent form in the light conditions to lead at the windward mark from Dave Smithwhite and Andy Irons. Steve and Andy went for the gybe set allowing Dave to go for the straight hoist to sail into clearer air. Up the next beat Dave went right which allowed Andy to take the lead on a big shift only to lose it again as the wind shifted back. Andy closed again on the beat but couldn’t quite take the win. Carl Vining sailed through to take a well deserved third place. The final race of the day was started in very light conditions. The right hand side of the course paid and it was Harvey Hillary who tacked first onto the layline. However Tim Johnson sailing in from the left took the lead whilst Paul Bayliss had deliberately overstood and sailing freer took second place at the windward mark. Tim immediately gybed off and was covered by the fleet which allowed Paul to take the lead and put The overnight holders of the Seasure golden stocks were Paul Bayliss in the gold fleet and Ollie page in the silver. The fleet then enjoyed a pasta supper followed by some very competitive go-carting all generously provided by Seasure.
Race Report Day 3 Another day, another dollar… out with the fickle Southerly breezes and in with a fitful Northerly. With bright sunshine, the fleet were keenly anticipating a great day on the water. Come race time, the sea breeze was battling the gradient wind however, and the first race of the day started in just 5 knots of wind. Decision time. Go right for the emerging sea breeze or left for the fighting Northerly. The majority of the fleet elected to go left, with Andy Irons leading the charge for the cliffs. Halfway up the beat, what little wind there was started to shut off, and at the top mark it was Paul Bayliss going round the mark first, followed by Tim Johnson and Matt Humphries. The wind remained light down the run with the sea breeze threatening to re-emerge, giving Bayliss a huge lead. The new windward mark saw Humphries overtaking Johnson to second place in the shortened race. The second race and the wind was up, with The third race was just as idyllic albeit with just a little less wind, and Bayliss was again in front at the top mark, obviously enjoying the conditions. Leading the chase was Andy White and Steve Butcher, and a battle ensued downwind between these three. Despite all the antics, Bayliss remained just in front of White, with these two extending for a significant margin over the chasing boats of Dave Smithwhite, Matt Humphries and Tim Johnson. A perfect Day 3 score line therefore leaves Paul Bayliss with an unassailable lead, with only the minor placing to be fought over in the remaining two races. Tim Johnson looks set to take the runners up position, but only 2 points separate 3rd to 5th positions. Who will secure the final podium slot? Tune in tomorrow to find out what happened.
Day 4
The final day of the 2007 Gul RS700 National Chamionships started with glorious sunshine and a Force 4 Northeasterly. With the windward mark under the cliffs of Torquay, the fleet could expect some testing conditions, with shifts and holes to be expected. For the first race of the day Andy Irons led at the first mark, with Tim Johnston closing him down on the first downwind leg, closely followed by Andy White and Matt Humphreys. The rest of the chasing pack was lead by Alex Southon and Steve Butcher until Butcher tacked too close to Southon and took both out for a swim. At the end of the second lap Tim Johnson and Andy Irons had a coming together, allowing Andy White through to lead to the finish followed by Andy Irons and Matt Humphreys.
With the wind increasingly gusty and the sun beating down the stage was set for race 10 of 10. First to show out of the gate was Andy Irons who led at the windward mark followed by Andy White, Matt Humphreys and Steve Butcher. With Irons capsizing at the first gybe, the order stayed the same with the left handside of the course continuing to pay. At the finish line it was White, Humphreys, Butcher, Southon.
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