Sunday started off very pleasant, with a southerly stream of wind running down the far shore. But the various sailors that turned up started to talk it up with mention of the gales that are forecast to come in overnight. Sure enough, the wind did start to swing more to the west allowing Sale Fell to cast a shadow over what was to be a key part of the course. With no driver for the Bates, OD Roy Blackburn was easily persuaded to set the start from the race office, but it meant using 9 as a mark to windward of the start line – not good news, especially with that wind shadow. Of course the shadow persisted as the fleet worked their way across to 4. There were some good gusts to work with but there were lulls too. The beat back to 0 proved to be challenging and the downfall of all the single handers as the shifting gusts resulted in several capsizes. The RS200 and RS400 had that extra bit of weight on board that gave them a better chance of staying upright, and they did (but only just). When the handicaps were calculated William and Lesley were six seconds/lap ahead of Tim Knowles to win their final race of the season together
What will the afternoon hold? Well actually not a lot. The breeze continued to fill in, and the warmth of the clubhouse seemed too good to leave behind so everyone packed up for an early finish rather than venture back on to the water.
The results have been corrected for race 2, in which a guest helm actually won, rather than Martin Wright as previously listed. The effect of this is that Tim is now in pole position, and no-one can catch him.