With Cowes Week cancelled (leaving us as custodians of the Commodore’s Challenge Cup for another season), Royal Southern Yacht Club organised a four day regatta over what would have the been the opening of the big event. The sun shone but the settled high pressure made for mostly light and shifty conditions and racing being abandoned on the final day. Still, it was the nearest thing we’ve had to a holiday in this Covid-19 blighted summer!
We entered Mostly Harmless in the double handed IRC class but when the class was cancelled because of a lack of interest we opted to race as the only double handed entry in the fully crewed IRC Class 2, accepting the inevitable penalty on round the cans courses that Tom had to rush around the boat even more frantically than ever doing the job of several people at once. This applied not only at the turning marks but also between races, particularly on between races 3 and 4 on day 2 when the race officer’s enthusiasm to get the fleet away while there was a breeze left us floundering, unprepared and unable to recover our starting deficit.
Other than a glorious race 2, which we led on handicap from start to finish and secured line honours, our results were undistinguished, leaving us hiding behind our short handed excuse!
This regatta was sandwiched between the RORC Round the Wight race and the Royal Southampton YC Island Double. We retired from the former when approaching Yarmouth. It was blowing 20+ knots and, short of sleep after a very hot and sticky night in London, we figured that we wouldn’t have enough energy left to be safe in the second half of the race. The contrast in the conditions for the latter race could not have been greater and, given the prospect of no wind, we were among the many competitors who decided to stay at home.