The Big One Weekend

The plan was to have a pursuit race in the bay followed by a BBQ on the Pontoon. The race was also open to non members but the cup could only be won by a member. Just to complicate matters the first test of the British Lions was being held that morning so the British Legion kindly opened up for us and served us some excellent breakfasts. It’s a shame the match didn’t go the way we hoped but the Lions did score at least one excellent try.

When we got on the water the race was well attended and we had 8 entries. Free Will, JDV, Mahalo and My Cloud represented the club and Cudicious, Minx 2 and Pisces were guests for the day. In order to make the journey to the start less onerous we chose C3 and C6 as the start line which worked very well. The next mark was Puffin to Stbd and back to C1 C2. Pisces led us off closely followed by Cudicious, JDV, Free Will, My Cloud, Seclusion, Mahalo and Minx 2. The weather conditions were excellent with a South Westerly breeze between 15 and 20 knots giving us a fast race. The first boat off Pisces held the lead until after Puffin and was finally caught by Minx 2, the last boat off who was the winner of the race. The first club boat home was Free Will who duly won the Big One Trophy for 2017.

The final placings were:

Place	Boat
1st	Minx 2
2nd	Pisces
3rd	Cudicious
4th	Free Will
5th	Mahalo
6th	My Cloud
Rtd	Seclusion and JDV

After the race we gathered on the pontoon for the BBQ and drinks and had a splendid time. Here are a few photos of the day:

For the full set of photos, take a look at the album here.

All in all it was an excellent day and the next event on the calendar is going to be the Midsummer BBQ Weekend on the 8th July. Unfortunately I am not going to be able to make that one myself so I will be looking for a volunteer to run that. Please email me if you can.

The Summer Cruise is also fast approaching and we have two start dates for that. There will be a more leisurely 3 week cruise and a 2 week cruise. The 2 week cruise will feature a long leg up to Campbeltown if the weather permits it as an experience builder for next years cruise. We are going to meet in Campbeltown on the 16th of July and cruise the Kyles of Bute, the Isle of Arran and pay a visit to the Crinan canal. The start for the three week cruise is the 9th July and the two week leaves on 15th July. If you are thinking of taking part please email me.

So far the boats I am aware of are:

• Happy Daze
• Tessa
• Deva
• Pinch of Thyme
• Pisces
• Free Will
• Pegasus

Stephen Gorst (Sailing Captain)