After a four week interruption due to other events being held at CAR, Los Alcazares, 12 SAMM sailors in 5 boats were racing again on October 22nd. In a good ENE wind of 11 to 13 knots the first race start was a bit of a shambles due to radio interference confusing the countdown.
Prior to the start the crew on Vision had to fit a new bracket to the end of the boom and attach the topping lift, out haul and main sheet which took some time. As a result they forgot to lower the lifting keel and crewman Colin had to go below to do this. This was when the main-sheet jamming cleat broke and the main-sheet end went overboard. The skipper, Julian, managed to hold the main-sheet until Colin returned to the cockpit and control was re-established. She therefore started 6 minutes after the signal but her finish position showed an excellent performance to make up this deficit.
The rest of the race was then marred by incidents. Dos went to to mark 2 and had to return to round mark 1, losing the lead. Ginetta hit mark 2 and got tangled in it’s mooring line. Sirocco failed to pass through the gate on lap 3 and had to return, losing ground. All reflected in the widely spaced final lap times.
The second race was much better with Vision crossing the line 2 seconds after the signal and all boats across within 46 seconds. After they overhauled Vision, there was a fantastic battle for the whole of the race between the faster leading two boats, Dos and Cuatro, with the lead changing several times. Eventually Cuatro triumphed. Bringing up the rear, another close battle was fought between Sirocco and Ginetta. This resulted in a collision at the gate at the end of lap 2. No damage and only pride hurt. Then Sirocco lost out by again not going through the gate on lap 3 and then had another near collision at the gate with Vision at the end of lap 4. Not a good race for them.
The honours were shared as Cuatro won the first race with Vision second only for the order to be reversed for the second race with Dos third in both.
Average lap times and results after handicaps applied
First race: Cuatro 405 secs, Vision 456 secs, Dos 502 secs.
Second race: Vision 391 secs, Cuatro 401 secs, Dos 445 secs.
Photo L to R: Cuatro crew John and Jack, Vision crew Colin and Julian
Also photos of Vision and Cuatro
