Sponsors Maiden Marine
The third and final day of the Windermere Mirror Winter Series got off to a tentative start which seemed to be the theme throughout the whole competition (not much wind at all).
John Atkinson, the race officer, decided that it would be a good decision to postpone racing until after lunch which was accepted by all as there wasn’t enough wind to sail in.
When everybody had finally got onto the water, and to the race course, the committee were faced by the daunting task of setting a course in the trickiest of conditions but they managed to do it thanks to the immense skill and experience of the people in the committee boat (thank you Stephen Wilson for your large contribution to this).
So with what little wind there was, we set off up the beat, which was a little one sided, but nevertheless a test of skill and concentration.
As the race went on, it became increasingly fluky and shifty which added to the excitement (and frustration of many) of the race.
In the end sisters Emma and Rachel Grayson came out on top and won with a sizeable lead over elder brother Edward Grayson and his crew Matthew Foster who came second.
There was a tight contest for third position up the last leg between Matt and Ben Lulham-Robinson and Catherine and Ellie Hide. The girls finally drove over the boys to claim third position with Matt and Ben following them close behind in fourth.
To make the day count in the overall results, there had to be more than one race so the race committee set a short course which had an unusual broad reaching start (just to keep us on our toes!).
This race had a little more wind (so we were sailing instead of drifting!) Catherine and Ellie Hide came from behind to win the last race with Edward and Matthew in second then single-hander Rory Nichol in third place.
At the end of the series, Oliver White and William Hide took the main prize of a full set of north sails home, with everybody else getting given a bag full of prizes courtesy of Maiden Marine.
To end the day we had a delicious dinner to complete a fun (if not slightly slow) day.
A big thank you to Dan Nichol and all at RWYC (especially John the chef!) Without these people, this event wouldn’t have happened.
By Matt Lulham-Robinson
