What a great day for sailing.

Yesterday we had 15 DAC Sailors for our Scratch Racing Event. We enjoyed clear skies, 17^oC and a gentle Sou’Wester at 7 up to 21 Km/Hr., (4 to 11 Knots).

There were some lulls around so A sails were the only choice. The occasional downwind run was exciting when the gusts hit.

Winter does give us some very nice days but contending with the afternoon sun can be a challenge. The Sou’Wester gives us little choice.

Most starts had little breeze, so judging the time to cross was tricky. Many boats had a good sail to the first mark with quite a bit of congestion abound.

The last races were made difficult by the Sun, it was a bit of a guess at the top marks. We are considering alternatives with a late course reset which unfortunately takes time and the new area is never as good.

Martin Thearle is sounding his aim at the Nationals, here in August. Martin competed against many of our top sailors to secure a close win yesterday. He had 2 wins and 2 second places to just pip Phil Stevenson and Graham Brown. Phil scored equal points with his 2 wins, his 3^rd place in race 7 was the difference in the countback. Graham Brown is still making minor adjustments and is close to regaining his dominance on race days. Graham had a win and 2 places, most of his finishes within the top 4. Robin Tickner kept those in front on their toes. Robin was not far behind the top 3 with his 3 places and he led a closely spaced bunch of followers. The first 8 boats were only 9 points apart. Noel McPherson and Bruce Paterson shared points to settle 5^th and 6^th place. Each had a win with several high finishes. Always in the mix were Stephen Deane and Judy Evans. Again, Stephen and Judy had a win each for the next places.

Overall with such close scoring, just one penalty can make quite a difference in scores and final position.

Race winners were Martin Thearle 2, Phil Stevenson 2, Graham Brown 1, Noel McPherson 1, Bruce Paterson 1, Stephen Deane 1 and Judy Evans 1.

Martin Thearle took the honours for the day to win 1st place on 23 points after a countback.

Phil Stevenson finished in 2nd place on 23 points.

Graham Brown finished in 3rd place with 25 points.

The Club Championship now has Graham Brown in front from Phil Stevenson and Noel McPherson.

Our next Sail day is Thursday for a Scratch/Handicap Event.

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