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Hamble River SC, The Bottle Pursuit - 4 May 2016

Published 14:20 on 5 May 2016

The Bottle Pursuit

Twenty boats came out for the Bottle Pursuit which separates the Wednesday Early Bird Series from the Wednesday A Series.

Last week a solitary XOD, "Satu", Andy Hamlet, came out to play. Very much like swallows, "one XOD does not a summer make". So, when XOD "Mischief", Diana Wilson turned up last night along with two Folk Boats, "Fritha" and "Isabel", the Cornish Shrimper "Sonnett" and the X302 "Xtract" it felt as though like the weather, the summer had truly arrived.

The start times for the pursuit races are concocted by the clubs secret (if I told you I'd have to shoot you) handicap committee. It is their challenge to work out when individual yachts must start so that they all finish together at 19.29 hrs. With a Cornish Crimper at one end of the fleet and a Sigma 38 at the other this is no easy task.

Unsurprisingly, the Shrimper "Sonnet" departed first at 18.30 followed by two XOD's, two Folkboats and a GK 24 "Fourthought" at 18.34. "Needlework" Patrick Pym and Peter Smith went at 18.38 and at 18.39 "Anne Louise" Peter Slimming, who had cleaned her bottom at Driver's wharf earlier in the day, left with a clutch of Impala 28's. 18.40 saw a Sigma 33 "Dino Volante", an Impala 28 "Polly", a Nicholson 33 "Mist" and the Link 30, "Blink" give chase.

"Xtract", Dudley Stock, out for the first time on a Wednesday, had trouble making its allotted 18.42 start time. "He's always late" mumbled a knowing member of the Race Team. The Sigma 38 "Light" 18.45, X332 "La Nef IV 18.46 and 1720 "Midnight Cowboy" 18.47 brought up the rear.

For once, RO Trevor Pountain had no problem finding good windward leg to start the race. With the wind just South of South East, hamblewinterseries.com, gave the fleet a good beat against the tide. From here they slalomed back to Hamble Point and ran under spinnaker up the Hamble River to finish off the club line.

The Race Team, rushed ashore to take up position on the club deck to check on proceedings.

First to show off the "School of Nav" jetty was the Impala28 "Cheeky Monkey", Aiden Barr, chasing their first bullet of the year. Another Impala, "Polly ", was close behind along with the newly scrubbed "Anne Louise" and "Needlework" down to leeward. As they closed the line "Needlework" sailed higher across the stern of "Cheeky Monkey", who let them go, and immediately regretted it as "Needlework" crossed first by a matter of inches. "Polly", Ben Meakins & Adrian Cudmore was third.

The sight of the night was "Xtract", La Nef IV" and" Light" in line abreast, spinnakers filled, finishing off the club.

So," How did the secret handicap committee do?" I hear you cry. Well, the first group of yachts finished at 19.31 just a couple of minutes later than planned.

Next week sees the start of the Wednesday A Series, and a rest for the hardy Early Bird Race Officers Dellar and Pountain.

Trevor Pountain