Roger’s Bowl 13
A stiff, cool easterly breeze with forecast 20mph gusts persuaded the four entrants to
restrict their sail areas: Bob and Sue chose their 4.7 Laser rigs, Geoff his cut-down Solo sail
and John/Linda put a reef in their Bosun. Bob crossed the start line just ahead of Sue, followed by John then Geoff as they all headed for Dam Green. Bob then set a direct course to inlet and got caught in a wind shadow. The other boats, taking their cue from Sue, selected a curved course staying in the windier part of the lake. The result was that all the boats closed up as they rounded Inlet. Thereafter, Bob and Sue
set off for Inlet and the rest of the course, having their own race well in front of the Solo and
Bosun. The wind strength now started to reduce and, with no evidence of the expected strong
gusts, the Bosun and Solo began to regret their reduced sail areas. After the second lap, the
John/Linda team decided to shake out their reef which was accomplished at some cost to
their position relative to Geoff. However, this move paid off as, over the next lap, they
caught and passed Geoff. Meanwhile, with the two Lasers continued their race in close company with Bob generally in the lead, always challenged by Sue, but Bob crossed the finishing line after 4 laps, just 20
seconds ahead of Sue.
- Bob Sampson (Laser 4.7)
- Sue Murray (Laser 4.7)
- John Dabbs/Linda Spiller (Bosun)
- Geoff Floyd (Solo)
Thanks were given to Race Officer Leila Farmer, and special thanks to Dave Perrett who
provided Safety Boat cover.