Fresh winds at Killyleagh

Fresh winds at Killyleagh

16 May 2012

SHIFTING westerly winds made life difficult for race officer, David Young, and his team at the start of the annual Sail4Cancer series at Killyleagh Yacht Club on Saturday.

This popular event offers six Olympic-style windward leeward races for competitors and a regatta-style course for all comers on the final day, but massive wind shifts on Saturday made it difficult to find just where windward was going to be.

Despite a short delay, the series got under way to a flying start as a fresh westerly breeze sped competitors around the course and heavy showers bypassed the race area with surprising courtesy.

In the big boat IRC1 class, Killyleagh’s Movistar Bleu dominated with two firsts in the first two races, while Apache, from Quoile Yacht Club, performed equally well in the PY1 class.

With the Squib Northern Championships just around the corner, seven local Squib sailors had an opportunity to hone their skills with Quoile’s Warren and Frances Cannon winning the first race in Nimrod and Killyleagh’s Don and Steven Bridges romping home to victory in the second.

Special mention has to go to the restricted sail class where Steven Stewart in Fantisera made it look all too easy as he sailed single-handedly to not only win both races, but while taking photographs at the same time! 

With five races to go, the race committee are still accepting entries and all profits from the event go to the very worthwhile Sail4Cancer charity.  So, if you are sailor with nothing to do on Saturday afternoon, come and support this excellent event and into Killyleagh Yacht Club afterwards for some food sponsored by The Dufferin Arms.

Race 1:

IRC1 – 1st Movistar Bleu, R. Killops, 2nd Le Basculer, M. Spence, 3rd Hindsight II, D. Hynds

PY1 – 1st Apache, J. Gifford, 2nd Cheval De Mer, Barr/Bowsie, 3rd Wandering Angus, R. Kelly

PYRS – 1st Fantisera, S. Stewart, 2nd Finola’s Wing, Galloway/Thompson, 3rd Moonshadow, McNamara/Jones

Squib – 1st Nimrod, W & F Cannon, 2nd Flora, J. & J. Magowan, 3rd Firecracker, D. & S. Bridges

Race 2:

IRC1 – 1st Movistar Bleu, R. Killops, 2nd Hindsight II, D. Hynds, 3rd Flashpoint, J. Murray

PY1 – 1st Apache, J. Gifford, 2nd Wandering Angus, R. Kelly, 3rd Cheval De Mer, Barr/Bowsie

PYRS – 1st Fantisera, S. Stewart, 2nd Finola’s Wing, Galloway/Thompson, 3rd Moonshadow, McNamara/Jones.

Squib – 1st Firecracker, D. & S. Bridges, 2nd Nimrod, W. & F. Cannon, 3rd Flora, J. & J. Magowan.