Scottish Optimists -
the home of Optimist Sailing in Scotland
The course on Saturday was a straightforward triangle, with three races back-to-back to reduce the (race officers') exposure to the inclement weather. Andrew McGowan took first place in the first two races, with Kae Clark and Alistair Gray sharing second and third places between them close behind. Race three saw a close contest for top spot between Andrew McGowan and Alistair Gray; Alistair held on against Andrew's challenge to win.
All credit to the regatta fleet sailors for holding out for three races in the miserable conditions. Visitor Jamie Calder (who's bright yellow hull was the only cheery sight all day) won the first race with a comfortable margin from Rachel Mawer, but Rachel reversed her fortunes in race 2 and took the top spot with a comfortable margin over Jamie. Race 3 looked to be a repeat of Race 2 until Rachel was confused by one of Bardowie's famous wind-shifts after a tack on the final beat to the line. Stuck in irons, she was clearly frustrated as the rest of the fleet sailed past, giving Jamie his second win and second place to Alistair Logan.
Sunday dawned a very different day: a bit of cloud, but a bit of sunshine too, and a couple of extra sailors - unfortunately not a lot of wind. A bit of a NNW breeze filled in around mid-day, but remained variable and backed gradually WNW as the afternoon wore on. A wide figure-of-eight course was set around four marks.
Tom Kelmsey took an early commanding lead in race 4, and took first place quite comfortably, followed by Kae and Alistair. Andrew McG's experiment with staying close to the southern shore after the final mark saw him slip to 5th place behind Jack Gillespie.
The vagaries of the wind mixed things up in race 5, which had Ally Gibson pleading with the race officers to shorten the course as he approached the line in third place after the first lap! Andrew McG and Jack G had started well, and took first and second places. Ally was overhauled on lap 2 by Tom and Kae, to finish 5th.
Race 6 saw good starts by Kae Clark and Jack Borrill, building a modest lead over the rest of the fleet by the windward mark, but Tom and Alistair had closed the gap again by the next mark. Kae managed to hold on throughout the race to take first place; Jack was overhauled by the more experienced sailors to finish 6th.
In the regatta fleet, although Rachel won race 4, the lighter conditions clearly suited Alasdair Logan, who won the next two races from Sophie Taylor in race 5, and Rachel in race 6.
| Rank | SailNo | Helm | Club | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | Total | Nett |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 5650 | Andrew McGowan | CCC | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | (5.0) | 1.0 | 2.0 | 12.0 | 7.0 |
| 2nd | 5293 | Kae Clark | RNCYC | 3.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | (4.0) | 1.0 | 15.0 | 11.0 |
| 3rd | 5301 | Alistair Gray | 2.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | (6.0) | 4.0 | 17.0 | 13.0 | |
| 4th | 4794 | Jack Gillespie | CCC | 6.0 | 6.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 | (7.0) | 30.0 | 23.0 |
| 5th | 5708 | Andrew Mitchell | Helensburgh | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 6.0 | (8.0) | 5.0 | 31.0 | 23.0 |
| 6th | 5272 | Tom Kelmsey | CCC | (11.0 DNC) | 11.0 DNC | 11.0 DNC | 1.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 40.0 | 29.0 |
| 7th | 4175 | Jack Borrill | CCC | 5.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 | (9.0) | 6.0 | 38.0 | 29.0 |
| 8th | 4974 | Ally Gibson | CCC | 7.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 5.0 | (10.0) | 46.0 | 36.0 |
| 9th | 5363 | Andrew Mawer | CCC | 8.0 | 8.0 | 7.0 | (10.0) | 7.0 | 9.0 | 49.0 | 39.0 |
| 10th | 4227 | Erin Kelmsey | CCC | (11.0 DNC) | 11.0 DNC | 11.0 DNC | 8.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 59.0 | 48.0 |
| Rank | SailNo | Helm | Club | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | Total | Nett |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 4911 | Rachel Mawer | CCC | 2.0 | 1.0 | (4.0) | 1.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 13.0 | 9.0 |
| 2nd | 5433 | Alasdair Logan | CCC | (4.0) | 4.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 14.0 | 10.0 |
| 3rd | 4 | Jamie Calder | 1.0 | 2.0 | 1.0 | (5.0 DNC) | 5.0 DNC | 5.0 DNC | 19.0 | 14.0 | |
| 4th | 4130 | Sophie Taylor | CCC | (3.0) | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 17.0 | 14.0 |