Dell Quay Sailing Club

Participants in Dell Quay races have found the last few weeks particularly challenging with the stronger than usual winds for the time of year.

Short Race Series 1 to 5 (report published in the Chichester Observer on 11 June 2015)

On Saturday the 7^th June, Race Officer Rob Corfield set a course around three racing marks (Copperas West, Crouchers and Quay) for the first five races of the Dell Quay Sailing Club Short Race series, the winner of which will receive the carriage Clock Trophy.

The first races were held in winds gusting to 25 knots from the south west. The event attracted a varied fleet who sailed five races each lasting about twenty minutes. Chris West dominated the event in his Laser winning 3 of the races and demonstrating some extreme sailing skills to take the series lead overall. 

The star of the racing was however young William Lynas who completed 4 of the races (sailing one lap as opposed to two for most of the rest of the fleet) with 3 third place wins in his Topper. Phoebe Noble in her Laser Radial managed two first places to take second position in the series.

David Ellis and Helen Penfold took two second places in their 2000 dinghy and despite only completing 3 races are in third place in the series.

The sailing was so testing that only West and Noble were still on the water for the last race.

Report provided by Rob Corfield

Evening, Breakfast Breeze and Pursuit Races (report published in the Chichester Observer on 18 June 2015)

The unseasonably windy weather continued to challenge Dell Quay sailors with only the braver members taking part in club racing.

The third race in the evening series was contested in gusty North Easterly winds with over 25 knots of wind in the squalls. Only three boats ventured out to do battle with the weather, substantial weed around the windward mark and a vast number of jellyfish.

The RS400 of Rob Corfield and Tom Dobbs was first to the windward mark despite capsizing after getting caught in a raft of weed. David Maltby, after a poor start, suffered the same fate in his Solo but remained upright and recovered to follow the RS400. David Swift (Solo) was also finding the conditions difficult and retired from the race.

The two remaining boats held their positions for the three laps with the emphasis on surviving rather than fast sailing. The RS400 held a substantial lead, despite not being brave enough to fly its spinnaker, but was beaten into second place by Maltby who took first place on handicap.

The first of the Breakfast Breeze races, aimed at early risers, was no less challenging with force 5 winds gusting at times to Force 6 discouraging many racers from going out. Graham and Lucy Dalton completed the course in their 2000 dinghy to take first place, with Martyn Jones (Laser Radial) second and Malcolm Buchanan (Solo) third.

For the second of the Pursuit races, involving staggered starts according to handicap, wind conditions were considerably calmer and much closer to the seasonal average. After a slow start against the flooding tide with only light wind, a hard fought battle ensued between the Solos of David Maltby and David Swift, who kept together for the first two laps until a sudden drop in wind caused Swift, hiking out hard, to capsize. This allowed Maltby to pull away and take third place on handicap. Simon and Linda Bell sailing a Miracle, the slowest boat in the race, came second but it was Lee and Max Sydenham who took first place in their 2000.

Report by Andrew Horne with contributions from Rob Corfield