Trip on Spring Fever starting 2011-03-26 in BSAApril11
Members’ participation in Portishead Cruising Club race 26 Mar 2011 – report by Don Hirst
Skipper Geoff Louch, crew Bob Buchanan and Don Hirst
What better way to spend a leisurely Saturday morning than participate in a yacht race. The yacht Spring Fever a MG Spring 25 owned by Geoff locked out of Portishead Marina at 08.00 and set sail in a gentle NE Force 3 for the River Avon where we moored to the Portishead buoy just off the Portishead Cruising Club slip at Pill and had breakfast. Much refreshed we headed for the start line at the mouth of the Avon to radio in as competitor and receive the course. This race start was very gentlemanly no carving competitors up on the start line, no cries of starboard etc., At 10.32 we started for Denny Shoal Cardinal flying a spinnaker. All went well as we gained on other yachts but on rounding Denny Shoal Cardinal, dropping the spinnaker to set course for Denny Island a spinnaker sheet caught in the drum of our self furling Genoa several precious minutes were lost untangling the lines before full power could be obtained from the Genoa. We were beginning to overhaul yachts as we returned to the finish line via Cockburn SHM. Race over, we had a very pleasant pie and a pint at the Portishead Cruising Club while we waited for the results. We finished 9th out of 11 which is not bad for a first time in a new boat. An excellent way to spend a Saturday morning and having learned to control loose sheets, next time the other competitors had better watch out; we might take their places.
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