Sailboat 2
The day belonged to James Pollard and his Blaze, his Blaze of glory it is impossible not to write. He started first and finished first, some five minutes in front of everyone else, having lapped a large part of the fleet. Applying the handicaps took him down to third. But it was a grim day; there had been talk of heavy rain and force 6 gusts. The Lakes Trust had failed to provide safety boat cover and so Bob Sampson and Sue Murray had to give up their afternoon’s racing and sit in a chilly safety boat. In the end what rain there was, was not heavy and the winds, highly gusty and variable, came from the southeast at the Dam end and the north east at the top of the Lake! Boat and sail choice was cautious, Jane Anderson joining Vicky Duncalf in Toppers, Nathan Pollard and Linda Spiller putting the smallest sail on their Lasers and John Dabbs, Adam Hilton crewing, flying small sails on his Bosun.
Brian Pollard (with John Weller, a much welcomed return) had full size sails on his Bosun which made him and his crew work very hard! Nathan Pollard started fourth but finished every lap in second and was given first place by the handicap. Jane Anderson started second, stayed close to the faster boats, finished fourth on the water and was rewarded with second place by the handicap.
| Rank | HelmName | CrewName | Class | Rating | Elapsed | Corrected |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nathan Pollard | LASER 4.7 | 1188 | 0:35:52 | 0:30:11 | |
| 2 | Jane Anderson | TOPPER | 1334 | 0:40:40 | 0:30:29 | |
| 3 | James Pollard | BLAZE | 1033 | 0:31:30 | 0:30:30 | |
| 4 | Vicki Duncalf | TOPPER | 1334 | 0:43:53 | 0:32:54 | |
| 5 | Linda Spiller | LASER 4.7 | 1188 | 0:39:20 | 0:33:07 | |
| 6 | Brian Pollard | John Weller | BOSUN | 1233 | 0:41:47 | 0:33:53 |
| 7 | John Dabbs | Adam Hilton | BOSUN | 1233 | 0:42:54 | 0:34:48 |
Pursuit 4
There were no pesky handicaps to demote James Pollard and his Blaze in the Pursuit race or rather they were imposed in advance; James, starting many minutes after the first boat, roared through the fleet to first. By contrast Jane Anderson in her Topper started second and finished second. Linda Spiller stayed ahead of Nathan Pollard and finished third. Brian Pollard’s Bosun finished a long way ahead of the Dabbs Bosun, which, with its small sails, was slow in the now much reduced winds.
- James Pollard (Blaze)
- Jane Anderson (Topper)
- Linda Spiller (Laser 4.7)
- Nathan Pollard (Laser 4.7)
- Brian Pollard and John Weller (Bosun)
- Vicki Duncalf (Topper)
- John Dabbs and Adam Hilton (Bosun)
Grateful thanks were given to Paul Anderson, Officer of the Day, Bob Sampson & Sue Murray in the Safety Boat and to Mandy Pollard who took the photographs.