ILCAs at the Queen Mary Summer Series Week 3
by Dick Soderberg 18 Jun 09:16 PDT
16 June 2024
22 ILCA7s and 3 ILCA6s went out in a 10-15 knots gusty and shifty westerly breeze, completing one 3-lap race and one 4-lap race.
Race 1
First start was pin biased and a further left shift seconds before the start made it impossible to cross the line on starboard. For the pin-end boats this meant bearing away, gybing and go behind the fleet or stay very still and wait as all had to tack. Mark Lyttle had room to go a second before the signal and the rest followed. Most carried on out on port for a bit until we were headed. Most then tacked and went over to the left side. Those who kept going right got massively rewarded with a 30 degrees clockwise shift. A 60 degrees gain on the boats to the left now struggling back on port.
Dick S having gone way out right rounded first by a good margin, Neil Peters aka Stick Daring who had some benefit of the shift as well rounded second but got his foot caught up and flipped over. He managed to capsize twice that run. How did he make it around Britain?
Dick failed to stay between the fleet and the leeward mark on the run. The fleet coming down on left were blessed with a good gust and he was soon overtaken by Mark Lyttle, Orlando Gledhill and Guy Noble despite a big gap. What was gained in that massive shift was all lost by that tactical error or not seeing and being in the pressure. The laps continued like that with most having big gains and losses.
Mark is very quick to tack on shifts, he sails almost completely flat and very very stable, no pressure or lull seems to change his minimal heel. On the dead run and by the lee most sail with windward heal for balance but on the reach, even almost as low as dead run the top guys sit right in to get slight leeward heel for pressure on the daggerboard and rudder.
On the last run the leader boats went left as on the first run. Now being behind them Dick went right again and this time there was a huge blast coming down the course there and he gained a few positions and finished second. Mark was first. A win, fathers day and birthday all at on once. What a day for Mark Lyttle! Orlando came in third and fleet captain and series leader Tony 4th. Marshall 5th.
Race 2
The second race was equally chaotic in terms of gusts and shifts.
Orlando did not have his best start and had to duck the whole fleet to get off almost last but managed to sail through it to finish first. He was chasing gusts hard even on the reaches and managed to get the beats right as well. Tony came in second to keep his series lead over todays over all winner Orlando. Michael Pryer who also had a good day came in third. Neil managed not to capsize in the second race and was fourth. Commodore James came in as fifth. Tim Crook was 6th in both races.
Andrew Whittaker was first ILCA6 in both.
Thanks to the race committee for conducting two brilliant courses in these conditions making excellent use of the water. Nice to see we now have a photographer on board the committee boat. Thank you Simon ;)
Full results can be found here.