Light & Fickle Conditions at North Berwick

Day four of the Noble Marine Rooster RS200 National Championships started with the fleet of sailors excited for a day of something new. After the past three days of ‘bang left sail fast’, a promising light easterly was forecast which could shake things up a little.

Eager sailors popped jibs up early; whilst others chose to go for a stroll around North Berwick, or even run up Berwick Law to prepare for the day. The fickle wind & slight haunt of fog in the distance, left some feeling pessimistic. The cracking race team were confident & launched the fleet on time.

The fleet arrived at the race area at the same time as a family of dolphins. The wind, however, decided to disappear. After a brief postponement Andrew Brown & Alex Sutcliffe (pathfinder) set off to open the gate in 6-8 knots. With most of the current top ten eager to get out early it was local sailors Brendan & Ellen who shot out the gate first. This was the place to be to gain a tide advantage, & the result was a 90 second lead at the first mark. Next round was Alex & Callum, closely followed by Arran & James with Henry & Ash in 4^th.

Throughout the fleet there were many gains & losses depending on whether you sailed into a calm patch or were blanketed by the fleet. At the front, with overall placings on the line, a brief dispute at the leeward gate, followed by a tacking battle, resulted in Ian & Arran meeting in the protest room later! The protest was dismissed & results stand.

With the left still paying it was back to the usual tactical decision, how soon to tack for the lay? The final downwind did cause a few place changes with leaders Brendan & Ellen taking the hard decision to place themselves between the leeward mark & the fleet. Alex & Callum gybed away at the windward mark found clear air & flew downwind to win race 7 in style. Brendan & Ellen held onto 2^nd, Henry & Ash overtook Arran & James to complete the podium.

Following another brief postponement the decision was made to raise AP over A, & the fleet were sent home.

The class AGM was held in the evening with important matters discussed regarding future nationals, open meetings & training plus the 2024 Eurocup. A huge thank you has to go out to all the ‘200’ committee for their continuous hard work behind the scenes.