South Bank Sailing Club Blog

Thrills and Spills on the Tideway. The three events were sailed concurrently on a superb day showing the club reach at its best. A sunny, breezy day, 15 to 20 mph of wind from the west allowed the Race officer team of Phil Robin and Liz St Clair to set a windward/leeward course between buoys 5 and 1. Two races were scheduled and 33 entrants from Ranelagh, South Bank, Strand on the Green and LCSC, managed to start off the line for the first race without any OCS incidents; thanks to the start line set with a pin end mark to offset the tidal line bias. But plenty of spills and thrills to keep the safety boat team busy; 4 safety boats in all, and entertain the spectators on the shore. The second race was started with slightly fewer starters due to the conditions but again a clean race start, with no incidents. Both races gave tactical challenge to entrants as to which side of the river to choose coming back from buoy no 5 with some big changes in position occurring. Most competitors were e...

– In the Race Box: Joseph Cabon, Kate Paterson – On the Safety Boat: David Fletcher, Matthew Richardson A three-buoy course was laid that, if the wind had been from the south as forecasted, would have given a long run followed by a long beat back and a short reach. But at the beginning of the race the wind was more SW. So the ten boats started with more of a reach. Renato, Sally and Allan all made excellently-timed starts, closely followed by Stephanie and Tara. Heading back to the clubhouse, Allan hugged the eastern bank and gained a good lead. The chasing Lasers made a fine sight as they beat against the wind and tide, with Tara, Renato, Stephanie and Sally in close contest. After a slow start Carla and Ollie had caught up and were now among the pack. Allan started the second lap in a strong first place, with Tara in second, Renato third then Stephanie. Renato overtook Tara during the second lap and set about shortening Allan’s long lead. The first lap had taken approximat...

– In the Race Box: Emma Koe and Mark Fossick – On the Safety Boat: Hugh Spalding and Lydia Tapping Sunday 3rd of May was first race of the summer season and a few days before the general election. It was a bright spring day, although the prospect of the UK being run by communists hung over us all like dark, brooding storm clouds on the horizon. Cue puns about floating voters, racing towards Westminster, low turn-out etc. The race was a round-the-buoys race with wind coming from the South-west and a very strong ebb tide that would decrease as the race progressed. This means that judging when to tack to pass the upriver buoy would be difficult. Also, sailors had to decide whether to tack down-river or try to close-haul along the river-wall as far as possible. On the safety boat, Hugh placed a three buoy course with one buoy near the tall trees, however the wind kept dropping and he decided to remove this tricky buoy and stick to a sausage shaped course, laid out diagonally acr...