by Adam Hilton
Mandy Pollard
Barnwell 1
For the first race of the season the sun shone, the waters of Tamar Lake shimmered, but the wind was largely absent. A little flurry of breeze before the off misled much of the fleet into thinking that a fast start might be had by charging up to the line from near the Dam. In the event the wind all but disappeared and these boats were left slack-sailed and took up to five and a half minutes to make their start. Jane Anderson, with a full sail on her Laser was not so unwise, started first, although even she took half a minute to cross the line after the horn blew. She was never headed, although Linda Spiller, with the same boat/sail combination, chased hard and threatened as they reached Pinkie at the top of the course on lap1. Three Bosuns were in the race. The first to start was Roger Heasman’s (new-comer David Longfellow crewing) and his was the first to finish. At the end John Dabbs’ Bosun, John Buckett the crew, was ahead of Brian Pollard with Cilla Gilbert, but that hadn’t been the case for the whole race. Adam Hilton and Geoff Floyd were in Solos which, with their big sails, should go very well in light winds. They finished third and fourth on the water, the handicap particularly cruel to the Floyd boat. Robin Spiller, in his familiar Streaker, was fourth at Pinkie first time around but retired; you need very good pads to kneel in a Streaker for two half-hour laps!
- Jane Anderson (Laser Full)
- Linda Spiller (Laser Full)
- Adam Hilton (Solo)
- Roger Heasman and David Longfellow (Bosun)
- John Dabbs and John Buckett (Bosun)
- Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert (Bosun)
- Geoff Floyd (Solo)
Retired: Robin Spiller (Solo)
Sailboat 1
Over lunch Force 2 or 3 winds had appeared from various points around north and they powered a very acceptable race with three much faster laps. Nathan Pollard joined the fleet in his Laser Full. He started third but soon took the lead, the Laser pointing much higher than anything else as the fleet tacked up to Pinkie. First starting Jane Anderson had radically reduced sail, to a 4.7, and was second at the top of the course and at the finish. The handicap gave her the victory. John Dabbs, Adam Hilton now as crew, started second, lost nothing by being well to leeward of the others and stayed ahead in the Bosun race-within-a-race. The Heasman Bosun led the Pollard sister dinghy at the start and the end of the first lap but not at the finish. Geoff Floyd started his Solo at the back but succeeded in overhauling two of the Bosuns.
- Jane Anderson (Laser 4.7)
- Nathan Pollard (Laser Full)
- John Dabbs and Adam Hilton (Bosun)
- Brian Pollard and Cilla Gilbert (Bosun)
- Roger Heasman and David Longfellow (Bosun)
- Geoff Floyd (Solo)
Many thanks were given to Paul Anderson, for running the races and to Mandy Pollard for taking the photographs.