John Piles On The Pressure

Gunfleet Sailing Club held the second race in its evening Summer Series on Wednesday 29 June and, after a very closely fought battle, it was John Tappenden that sailed his RS Aero to victory.

It was another pleasant evening that greeted the competitors as they arrived at the Club, with a force three to four south/south-easterly wind promising some good sailing but by the time the race got underway the wind had veered south, with a dash of west in it.  First away were Robert Mitchell and Brian Allen in their Lasers, Simon Clarke in his Solo, and Tappenden in his RS Aero, all on port tack.  Whilst several helms, starting with Eddie White in his Comet, put in an early tack out to sea, a logical step as the tide had just that minute turned and was now flooding, Tappenden stayed his course.  Having started close by the ODM, and forcing a slightly over-eager Andy Dunnett to have to go about and start behind many of the others, Tappenden pointed consistently high and made the first mark, at Eastcliff, in one.  He was followed round the buoy by Ken Potts in his Laser, then Mitchell, and then Clarke.  A reach to the AWS buoy followed before what was intended to be a long beat out to the Seaward mark.  Sadly, with the recent wind shift, coupled with the freshly flooding tide, the competitors all hardened up and made it without the need to tack.  Once round it was a run to the Preston Park buoy, a short reach to the Kingscliff mark, before heading back to the line on a beat.  On this last leg both Potts and Mitchell tacked straight out to sea to gain the benefit of the tide, but Tappenden stuck to his guns and went straight for the line; a move that lost him nothing.  At the end of the first lap Potts had a two second lead on Tappenden, with Mitchell still third.  Yvonne Gough had sailed her Laser well and was just behind Clarke who was holding onto fourth place.  On the second lap Clarke seemed to drop back a little, and Derroll Pedder, in his Solo, closed the gap on all his rivals.  However, at the front of the fleet the battle continued between Tappenden and Potts, the latter remaining in the lead at the end of the second lap; Mitchell only just behind the leading two and Gough now in fourth place.  During the third, and final, lap, Tappenden edged his way into the lead, Mitchell remained third but Dunnett managed to slip into fourth place.
 
Results – Summer Series - 2:
1.    RS Aero – John Tappenden
2.    Laser – Ken Potts
3.    Laser – Rob Mitchell