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Message for Previous Owners, Crews and Associates

Tuesday 9th June

There was a little bias on the starting line with the shore end favoured. Iris has always been best at tacking close in shore and coming out on starboard at just the right moment. Catriona was a little further along the line. Teal started with good boat speed at the pin.
There was wind everywhere for the beat to D, north of Clynder. Some parts of the loch were better than others, though. When Catriona tacked to go up the loch, Iris was able to tack and cover. Catriona tacked away to go further in to the Clynder shore and later saw Iris lifted above her from further out. Teal and Zoe avoided the shore and were second and third at D.
Offwind across the loch, Catriona got an inside overlap on Zoe at G mark and took a place. She kept it for the reach back to the line and on to A, off the club.
Iris and Teal had headed towards Clynder for the second beat to D. Catriona and Zoe tacked early and started up the Shandon shore. Catriona, now chasing Teal, tacked across whilst Zoe stood on. When they crossed again, Catriona was only just ahead of Zoe. She tacked to cover, fluffed it and dropped behind. She made ground slowly and by the time the two were near the Clynder shore, Zoe was prevented from tacking. A moored boat helped Catriona get on top.
Thalia spent much of the race alone. She did not challenge the four at the front and kept away from Ceres, Hermes and Thia at the back. Hermes does better offwind and gained places on the final run. Ceres was concentrating too hard on keeping her spinnaker full and lost out.

1 Iris, 2 Teal, 3 Catriona, 4 Zoe, 5 Thalia, 6 Hermes, 7 Thia, 8 Ceres.

Pipers, 1 Suilven, 2 Pompous, 3 Curlew, 4 Mealista, 5 Piccolino.
Sonars, 1 Grouse, 2 Nona.

Sunday 7th June

On the water Race Officer Carol Rowe set a short course in light and changeable wind. She had been irritated by the longer course, set in similar conditions, last Sunday.
As is the way with The Gareloch, the wind changed and strengthened. There was still a good beat from C at Clynder back to the starting area.
On the first leg, to A, off the club, Iris went inshore. She found no pressure and was well back at the mark. Catriona had done well and led from Hermes and Thalia.
Offwind to C ought to have been suitable for spinnakers but the wind was variable and there were occasional gusts from forward of the mast. Iris made little impression. Catriona had tacked back down the loch at C. Iris, determined to go a different way, hardened up into a wind which headed her badly.She was still in third place at the end of the round.
The wind had veered for the next leg to C. Catriona and Iris profited from their spinnakers. This time Catriona stood on. The tack was lifted a lot from the previous round. Iris took to the Clynder shore which did not pay. Hermes let boats past.

1 Catriona, 2 Iris, 3 Thalia, 4 Hermes, 5 Ceres.

Tuesday 2nd June

What a superb evening. Bright sun and plenty of wind. It would be churlish to complain that its direction was variable.
Race Officer Tim Henderson set a course beginning with a beat up the Shandon shore. By the time we started, it was a run. There were holes and strong gusts from behind brought up the back markers. An opportunity at the G mark to put into practice the new three boat length zone. There were many boats overlapped.
For the fine reach to C, at Clynder, Hermes got away well and was tangling with Pipers. Iris appeared to be passing to windward of Catriona, but wind shifts and Zoe put paid to that.
The leg from C to A, off the club, had become the beat. Iris did well in the shifts and ducked close behind Catriona. Catriona tacked to cover, got a jib sheet stuck and blew it. Rather than fall into Iris's dirty wind, she tacked away to the Shandon shore. Iris, convinced that was the wrong move, stood on. When the two crossed tacks again, Iris needed binoculars to see Catriona in front. Hermes was between them.
A run back through the start and to G for the second round. Iris set a spinnaker, not easy to handle in the gusty changeable wind, and pushed past Hermes. She tried to gybe it at G and keep it for the reach to C. Her undoing. As she went sideways, Hermes retook the place.
Wind had veered for the final beat to A. Previous experience was not necessarily valid. Iris got back into second and Thia, who had always been lurking, took third.

1 Catriona, 2 Iris, 3 Thia, 4 Hermes, 5 Thalia, 6 Zoe, 7 Ceres.

Pipers, 1 Pompous, 2 Curlew.
Sonars, 1 Charlotte, 2 Grouse, 3 Nona, 4 Mickey Finn
Race photos by Neill Ross

Sunday 31st May

Wonderful weather, but you cannot please all the people all the time. Sailors wanted a little more wind.
Four of us milled around and discussed the possibilities for a course. A good beat was to B, off Silvers, but no wind could be seen on the Clynder shore. Eventually, on the water race officer Charles Darley made an executive decision. One of the longer courses risking the Clynder shore. It turned out alright. There were holes but we were always moving and there were some good patches of pressure.
Catriona was determined to cover Iris. When Iris tacked out early, Catriona followed leaving Thalia to the favoured Shandon shore. Iris seemed to be ahead of Catriona but was further out in the loch where the wind was less good and the tide more adverse. Thalia led round B from Catriona, Iris and Hermes. Hermes suffered from a faulty clip on her spinnaker halyard which was lost up the mast. With no spinnaker and faced with a long run to G in light air, she went home.
Catriona kept her spinnaker full more of the time than Thalia and had the lead at G, on the Shandon shore. There was variable wind on the fetch to C, at Clynder, but no places changed. Another fetch back to the line. Thalia was not concentrating and let Iris through to windward.

1 Catriona, 2 Iris, 3 Thalia. Hermes DNF.

Tuesday 26th May

The Race Officer was missing this evening so that Gordon Mucklow started us on the water.
This was the last race of the spring points and the end, for now, of Garelochs and Pipers racing each other. Catriona was in a strong position. Suilven was in with a shout. She needed to get two or more boats between herself and Catriona. With good wind, Pipers had been dominant in the last few races so that Catriona saw the risk. As it was, the wind was very variable and light in a lot of places. Suilven had no crew and stayed on her mooring.
Pompous got a good start on port tack and crossed Catriona reaching along the line on starboard. Iris went left with Pompous for the beat across the loch to Clynder.
There were large wind shifts and streaks of pressure. It was hard to know who was in front. A boat might be crossing 100m ahead on the opposite tack but huge headers and lifts meant it was an illusion. Catriona managed to tack on top of Iris towards the Clynder shore. Iris tacked in to the shore to clear her air and stopped. Thalia and Pompous were now well up the loch and in the middle but somehow not looking strong. Catriona and Iris battled the random pattern of pressure around the C mark. Wind dying after a gust and also lifting is particularly difficult. Sails flap but bearing away is he wrong thing to do.
Catriona led downwind to Shandon. Better air from behind brought up the chasing pack.
Next, a beat to D, north of Clynder. We all knew what to expect. Teal deliberately stayed out and it paid. She was second and overlapped outside Catriona at D. Downwind to the finish needed concentration but no places changed at the front.

1 Catriona, 2 Teal, 3 Iris, 4 Thalia, 5 Pompous, 6 Hermes, 7 Curlew.

Sunday 24th May

On the water Race Officer Peter Proctor set a course beginning with a beat to B, off silvers. The old adversaries Iris and Catriona tangled with each other and went left, down the Shandon shore. Hermes and Thalia tacked across the loch into better wind.
Iris got the better of Catriona and the two were never close again. Hermes led at B, from Iris, Thalia and Catriona.
The run was trying, with variable wind and, it seemed, light air in the middle. Iris got across to the Shandon shore early and it paid. Catriona kept left and got past Thalia and Hermes.
A fetch to C looked straightforward to start with but lack of wind on the Clynder shore gave hope to those behind. Iris was being swept left on the tide so Catriona went right. Thalia went left and found a streak of wind which promoted her to second. In the battle to round the mark on whatever breaths of air there were, she dropped back to third.
The final leg had every point of sailing on it. It did not suit Catriona, who found a hole whilst Hermes and Thalia found a line of pressure.

1 Iris, 2 Hermes, 3 Thalia, 4 Catriona.

Tuesday 19th May

The Garelochs and Pipers are racing in the same series. This, Iris having retired last week and there being no discards has complicated things. The Pipers did not race on the first Tuesday, so that they all carry a large number of points and are unlikely to win. Except for Pompous. Her owner was Race Officer on the first night, so she gets the average of her points for the other races. The only other contender was Catriona.
Catriona was keen to cover Pompous, which she did. Iris got away well and was comfortably in front. At the first off wind leg, we were to round G, on the Shandon shore, for a beat across the loch to Clynder. Iris rounded a mooring instead of the G mark and the boats close behind, Suilven, Catriona, Pompous, Teal and Thalia followed. Catriona spotted the error and went back, which prompted Suilven. The second wave, Curlew, Hermes and Thia saw what had happened and rounded the correct mark.
At the front, Iris was unable to keep Pompous at bay. The Pipers were still a little faster in tonight's wind. Force 4 perhaps, not quite enough to keep the lee decks wet.
Catriona tried to keep cover on Suilven in the battle for first place. She did not stay close enough and eventually Suilven broke through. Meanwhile, Curlew was undisturbed and able to sail faster in better air. She crossed both Catriona (by a margin) and Suilven. Suilven got the place back but Catriona was helpless. Indeed Thalia got in front for the last but one leg of the last round. Catriona re-passed with the help of difficulties with the spinnaker on Thalia.

1 Suilven, 2 Curlew, 3 Catriona, 4 Hermes, 5 Thia. Pompous, Iris, Teal and Thalia retired.

Sonars, 1 451, 2 Charlotte, 3 Jamie, 4 Nona.

Sunday 17th May

Iris was still suffering from a broken spreader so only four of us competed.
With good wind from the south east, on the water race officer Charles Darley set a course begining with a fetch to A, off the club. Run to D, north of Clynder and beat back. Perhaps being pre-occupied with timing, he was caught out in a port/starboard with Hermes near the line and obliged to take penalty turns. Hermes also took a penalty (she didn't need to) having fouled Zoe as a result of avoiding Catriona.
All this let Zoe away. She led on the first run and Catriona could make no impression on the beat back. On the second round, Zoe did not set a spinnaker, having damaged a fitting on her pole the first time. This let Catriona catch up sufficiently to be in contention. The two battled hard on the last beat. Eventually, Catriona was able to cross on starboard and establish cover.

1 Catriona, 2 Zoe, 3 Hermes. Ceres (her first race of the season and a shakedown) DNF.

Tuesday 12th May

For the spring points series, the Garelochs and Pipers are (experimentally) racing each other with no time handicap. The Pipers are using smaller jibs to make the boats more even. This evening was the first when the Pipers were out (no race last week). It was strong and gusting wind, which suited Pipers better than Garelochs.
The wind was off the Shandon shore, so that Race Officer Chris Roddis was not able to give us a start to windward. We had a reach to A, off the club. Teal was fighting with Pompous and got the better start. Teal was to leeward, though, and had been passed at the mark. Catriona saw Iris as the threat and delayed both their starts so as to be ahead of her. Iris broke a spreader and had to retire.
Offwind to D, between Clynder and Rahane water lapped over the counters, a sign of maximum boat speed. Spinnakers were not set. Catriona was able to edge to windward of Teal.
The beat was from D back to the start. Pipers Pompous and Suilven established a clear lead. Curlew (Piper) got by Teal.
We were sent on three rounds. Fortunes changed on the third. Catriona tried her spinnaker from A to D. Wind had moderated a little but was still too much. She did not gain. Pompous lost the lead to Suilven (who is usually strong), Thalia dropped a place to Hermes and Thia lost out to both Hermes and Zoe. We all felt we had had a workout.

1 Suilven, 2 Pompous, 3 Catriona, 4 Curlew, 5 Teal, 6 Hermes, 7 Thalia, 8 Zoe, 9 Thia.

Sonars, 451, Jamie, Charlotte, Nona.

Race photos by Neill Ross

Sunday 10th May

The start was delayed because Zoe had the B mark aboard and went to replace it.
On the water Race Officer Ufo Sutter sent us on a long course zig zagging across the loch. More by luck than judgement, Catriona was able to get on top of Iris as they were beating along a very biassed line for a pin end start.
The G mark, on the Shandon shore, was next to a moored yacht and hard to spot. The owner of the yacht, in a rubber dinghy, came to tell us how the mark had drifted and tangled with his mooring. We were, each of us in turn, preoccupied with dropping spinnakers and hardening up for the next beat so that we didn't stop. He must have thought us very rude. When Hermes rounded in fifth, he had given up.
Catriona led for four of the six legs but found some light air on the fifth which allowed Iris past. Her position was almost restored at the start of the sixth, when Iris slowed in light air.
Zoe and Thalia fought over third. Zoe just getting the better of it at the finish. Hermes, having trouble with her halyards, was a little way back.

1 Iris, 2 Catriona, 3 Zoe, 4 Thalia, 5 Hermes.

Tuesday 5th May

The wind in the Gareloch is rarely as we would choose it. Often there is too little. This evening, there was too much. No race.

Sunday 3rd May

A bright, sunny, windy day. Indeed Hermes wondered whether it was too windy to race. It wasn't and we enjoyed the afternoon.
Race Officer David Du Boulay set a long course beginning with a beat to E, off Rahane. Catriona learned from her poor start on Tuesday. She was a little early but forced Iris below her and maintained cover. Hermes took to the Clynder shore early. Not fast.
On the offwind legs across the loch to F, off Shandon Church, back to the start and, beginning the second round to A, off the club, no one was inclined to set a spinnaker. Catriona maintained her lead and covered Iris. In a tacking duel near the Clynder shore, Iris cleverly tacked so that Catriona had to pinch to clear a moored boat. She broke free and could not be caught. Iris likes heavy air. Catriona tried a spinnaker on the last leg and it worked. Iris responded, though.

1 Iris, 2 Cartriona, 3 Hermes.

Tuesday 28th April

For six Garelochs, the sanding and painting were over and the racing began. The wind gave us more of a work out than we should have liked on our first outing.
Race Officer Andrew Nicholson started us with a broad reach to D, between Clynder and Rahane. A spinnaker leg. Wind was gusty and backed in the gusts. Rusty crew on Catriona entertained with several spectacular broaches. Having made a poor start, that did not help.
Teal led the way, Iris with a strong crew was second. Thalia had trouble with her spinnaker and fell back. Hermes wisely kept her kite below deck and was showing strongly. Thia had not started well and was a little off the pace.
At D, the fleet hardened up for a beat across the loch to G. Iris and then Catriona were able to get by Teal. Hermes fell into the clutches of Thalia, Goddess of Comedy. She didn't think it was funny.
After an uneventful reach back to the starting area, the second round took us to B, off Silvers. A leg more amenable to spinnakers. Iris had broken her pole and went without. Catriona and Teal caught up only a little. Both wisely dropped their kites for the reach up the Clynder shore to C.
Try as she might, Catriona could not get close to Iris on the beat to the finish. Wind off the Shandon shore is usually fluky and the air around the line was especially variable. Having seen chances against Iris disappear, Catriona was suddenly obliged to defend against Teal. No places changed though.

1. Iris, 2 Catriona, 3 Teal, 4 Thalia, 5 Hermes, 6 Thia.

Sonars 1 Grouse 2 Jamie,3 Nona,4 Charlotte.

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Notes on Racing Rules

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