SORC Round the Isle of Wight - Sayer and Elmarleen victorious

by SORC on 30 Apr 2012 A total of thirty yachts made it to the JOG start line for the 0605 start of the Solo Offshore Racing Club’s seventh edition of its annual RIOW Solo Race. The fleet were well separated at the start with the usual suspects right on the line and many holding back as they sorted their spinnakers for a reach down the Western Solent in a shifty Northerly breeze with wind speeds averaging 10 knots, with flat water and an ebbing tide this made for rapid progress to the Needles.

As the first yachts approached the Hurst the wind Veering to the North East making the final approach a dead run. Asymmetric yachts, Jbellino, Juneau, Rare, Solan Goose and Voador all keeping to the North West side of the Channel between Hurst and the Needles for stronger tide before gybing back across the channel, while Nigel Colley on Sunfast 3200 Fastrak, flying symmetric spinnaker, lead others down the rhomb line nearer the island. With calm waters many chose the gap between the Varvassi wreck and the Needles lighthouse with no reported incident.

Once out of the shadow on the Tennyson Down the steady North Easterly breeze which averaged 11 knots produced a fast close fetch down to St Catherines, the favourable route bending gently inshore to pick up the positive tide close to the Island towards the end of the leg. From St Catherine’s up to Bembridge ledge buoy was a port tack beat with a half mile tack at the end subject to pointing ability, a few of the leading yachts over stood enabling following yachts to observe and use the intelligence accordingly.

This was followed by another close fetch up to Ryde sands and then a shy reach to the finish. With less adverse tide inshore many put spinnakers up and soaked down towards the island some of the slower boats having to drop them to head up round Osborne bay to the finish at Snowden.

The race produced some great battles in similar boats. Steve Dyke on his first solo outing on Sunfast 3200 Ingwe gave Nigel Colley a wake-up call as he managed to stay just ahead all the way down the final leg and holding on to be first home of the three increasingly popular Sunfasts 3200’s racing. A round the Island Match race was also experienced between Charles Emmett’s Sigma 36 British Beagle and Myles Perrin’s Capo 30 Santana, with same IRC of 0.935 this battle continued to the end with Santana finally finishing forty seconds ahead.

In the J105 race Laurence Mead on Juneau, his first time racing with SORC, finished just ahead of Simon Curwen on Voador after a close race right around the Island, Jerry Freeman on his newly acquired Juliette was close behind. Rob Craigie’s J122 Jbellino once again took line honours in six hours forty six minutes, forty seconds ahead of Chris Rustom’s Ding Dong and just a minute ahead of David Cule on another J122 Mint Julip.

Finishing just over an hour later was Will Sayer on Sigma 33 Elmarleen the winner of the Anticipation Cup for first overall under IRC, adding to his tally of success with this boat having won the last OSTAR, Fastnet double handed division in 2011 and the recent Weymouth double.

The three lowest rating boats in class three took all three overall IRC podium positions with Richard Breese on Sonata Impro coming in second and third Contessa 28 Tringa sailed by Chris Flewitt once again on the podium.

Thanks to the ISC for hosting our prize giving and supper and also many thanks to David Giddings and Kirtseen Donaldson our race officers for yet another fine job.

Overall IRC: First Will Sayer Sigma 33 Elmarleen, Second Richard Breese Sonata Impro, Third Chris Flewitt Contessa 28 Tringa.

Class One: First Peter Olden A35 Solan Goose, Second Peter Newlands 40.7 Anticipation, Third Rob Craigie J122 Jbellino

Class Two: First Laurence Mead J105 Juneau, Second Simon Curwen J105 Voador, Third Steve Dyke Sunfast 3200 Ingwe

Class Three: First Will Sayer Sigma 33 Elmarleen , Second Richard Breese Sonata Impro, Third Chris Flewitt Contessa 28 Tringa.

Solo Offshore Racing Club Ltd     Solent Solo Series
RIOW Solo  -  28 Apr 2012     Start Time:  06:05      Class 1
Provisional results
Boat	Type	Sail No	Owner or Skipper	TCF	Finish	Elapsed	Corrected	Place	Points	Comments
					Time	Time	Time
Solan Goose of Hamble	A35	GBR7835R	Peter Olden	1.032	13:02:04	6:57:04	7:10:25	1	1
Anticipation	Beneteau 40.7	GBR7041R	Pete Newlands	1.031	13:07:55	7:02:55	7:16:02	2	2
Jbellino	J122	GBR9868T	Rob Craigie	1.076	12:51:06	6:46:06	7:16:58	3	3
Mint Julep	J122	GBR122L	David Cule	1.075	12:52:58	6:47:58	7:18:34	4	4
Ding Dong	Stewart 37	GBR7878R	Chris Rustom	1.085	12:51:46	6:46:46	7:21:21	5	5
Rare	Beneteau Figaro II	GBR5236R	Ian Hoddle	1.094	13:00:38	6:55:38	7:34:42	6	6
Change of Course	C&C 115	GBR9070	Keith Gibbs	1.035	13:59:22	7:54:22	8:10:58	7	7
SX Girl	X37	GBR9837T	Noj White	1.03	-	-	-		9	DNF
8  boats started of 8 entered

Solo Offshore Racing Club Ltd     Solent Solo Series
RIOW Solo  -  28 Apr 2012     Start Time:  06:05      Class 2
Provisional results
Boat	Type	Sail No	Owner or Skipper	TCF	Finish	Elapsed	Corrected	Place	Points	Comments
					Time	Time	Time
Juneau (Laurence)	J105	GBR1605R	Laurence Mead	1.007	13:02:32	6:57:32	7:00:27	1	1
Voador	J105	GBR722R	Simon Curwen	1.009	13:08:00	7:03:00	7:06:48	2	2
Ingwe	Sunfast 3200	GBR8432R	Steve Dyke	1.002	13:10:59	7:05:59	7:06:50	3	3
Juliette	J105	GBR9405R	Jerry Freeman	1.007	13:13:13	7:08:13	7:11:13	4	4
Fastrak VIII	Sunfast 3200	GBR4690R	Nigel Colley	1.003	13:20:06	7:15:06	7:16:24	5	5
Roxanne	Sunfast 3200	GBR2539L	Simon Mitchell	1.003	13:21:37	7:16:37	7:17:56	6	6
Howling Monkey	JOD 35	GBR4343C	John Twiggs	1.017	13:22:32	7:17:32	7:24:58	7	7
Comedy of Errors (Sam)	HOD 35	GBR735T	Sam White	1.006	13:30:49	7:25:49	7:28:29		10	DNF Wrong side Snowden
Velocity Girl	VQ32	GBR932R	Richard Lett	1.025	13:18:57	7:13:57	7:24:48		10	DNF Wrong side Snowden
Big Doris	Delher 39	GBR9504	Anthony Llewelyn-Davies	1.026	-	-	-		12	DNC
Truant	HOD 35	GBR7580T	Stephen Thomas	1.009	-	-	-		12	DNC
9  boats started of 11 entered

Solo Offshore Racing Club Ltd     Solent Solo Series
RIOW Solo  -  28 Apr 2012     Start Time:  06:05      Class 3
Provisional results
Boat	Type	Sail No	Owner or Skipper	TCF	Finish	Elapsed	Corrected	Place	Points	Comments
					Time	Time	Time
Elmarleen	Sigma 33	GBR1206L	Will Sayer	0.859	13:57:37	7:52:37	6:45:59	1	1
Impro	Hunter Sonata	GBR8064N	Richard Breese	0.808	14:28:52	8:23:52	6:47:07	2	2
Tringa	Contessa 28	Co1551	Chris Flewitt	0.841	14:16:52	8:11:52	6:53:40	3	3
Edith	Elan 333	GBR6831T	Mike Saqui	0.952	13:20:29	7:15:29	6:54:35	4	4
Santana	Capo 30	USA5454	Myles Perrin	0.935	13:44:31	7:39:31	7:09:39	5	5
British Beagle	Sigma 36	GBR3936	Charles Emmett	0.935	13:45:08	7:40:08	7:10:13	6	6
Blustery Day	Ben First 32	GBR7932R	Martin Biggs	0.903	14:04:40	7:59:40	7:13:08	7	7
Fantasea	Dehler 36	GBR9142T	Tony Rowe	0.994	13:27:37	7:22:37	7:19:58	8	8
Nereid	Elan 340	GBR1093L	John Baily	0.977	14:00:17	7:55:17	7:44:21	9	9
Geofon	Maxi	GBR1903	John Ford	0.951	14:25:29	8:20:29	7:55:58	10	10
Wookie	Ben 31.7	9898C	Rupert Williams	0.938	-	-	-		12	DNF
11  boats started of 11 entered

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