Tappenden in Blaze of Glory

Members of the Gunfleet Sailing Club were greeted by blue skies and unbroken sunshine last Sunday afternoon 7 April when they took part in the second race of the Spring Series, although a cold south easterly breeze ensured a low wind chill factor.  Twelve boats took to the water including, once again, a number of Cadets.  First casualty was Sonny Hart in his Solution when a technical problem with his centreboard forced him to retire.  Edie White, also sailing a Solution, found he had some early season problems but sorted them out on the water, although this delayed his start by a few minutes.  The competitors reached up the coast in a force three south easterly, with the tide under them, to the Kingscliff buoy from whence they headed out to Seaward on a close haul before reaching back to Kingscliff and heading out once more to Seaward.  There then followed a dead run to AWS, broad reach to the Eastcliff buoy before a fetch back to the line.  In flat seas it proved an uneventful sail and at the end of the first lap it was John Tappenden in first place in his Blaze, followed by Paul Davis in his Solution.  During the second lap Ken Potts slipped into second place in his RS600 but failed to take top spot, whilst Robert Gutteridge was the first Cadet back, taking fifth position overall in his Laser.