The opening races of the JOG coastal series took place over the last weekend of March, when the clocks go forward. This created an unusual opportunity for course setting, allowing for a race out to the east to the Nab Tower on Saturday starting in favourable tide and a race out to the west to Bridge Buoy, just beyond the Needles, also heading out in favourable tide.
The wind was in the east on both days, slightly stronger on Saturday with gusts into the high teens in knots, and generally gentle in single figures on Sunday. The easterly meant that the Lonely Tower Race started with a beat to the Forts, a close fetch to the Nab, a marginal spinnaker leg to the Winner Buoy off Hayling Island and finally a run back to Cowes. In contrast, the Great Escape Race started with a run to Bridge and then a beat back up the Needles Channel and east Solent to the finish.
Racing upwind against fully crewed boats in a force four does not suit a double handed J105 so we were well down the fleet by the time we reached the Nab Tower on Saturday. Sailing double handed with Tom doing his first race since starting to draw his state old age pension, he chose to play safe on the reach to the Winner and not hoist the spinnaker until late in the leg and also elected to race with the smaller A5 spinnaker for the leg back to Cowes. Despite this, we made up a huge amount of ground on the downwind leg to finish at the midpoint in Class 2 only 8 seconds behind our regular mixed doubled handed rivals Purple Mist and 10 minutes behind the other J105, Jacana who were racing fully crewed.
Sunday was another matter, with the light downwind conditions on the opening leg playing to Mostly Harmless’s strengths. By the Hurst Narrows, we were well ahead of all of Class 2. As a result of an excess of caution and deciding to sail deep on the approach to Bridge in order to avoid too many gybes, we lost the lead to Hot Rats at the mark and then steadily slid back through the fleet on the long beat against the tide back to the JOG finish line, once again to finish a the midpoint in Class 2 (but at least beating Jacana this time).