The long awaited first event of the 2008 season was hosted by Chew Valley Sailing Club on 7/8^th March with the forecast promising some fresh south-westerly breeze. An impressive 39 boats turned out with many new faces in the fleet showing great promise for a Garda year - there are already 65 RS800s entered for Garda!!

The wind looked to be dying off following some squally showers during the briefing but it soon piped up for the first start and was gusting 20kts by the time the class flag fell. First to round the windward mark were Ben Schooling and Tim Hirst in their new boat (1121) closely followed by Pete Barton and Roz Allen (1016) – great to see the dream team re-united and Roz back on the circuit following her time out injured for most of last year.

Some small issues with hoists saw Schooling/Hirst drop back as Barton/Allen pulled out a lead by the start of the second beat. RS700 sailor Tom Offer and Rob Higgins (1009) from the home club showed great pace and local knowledge to pull through to second on the next run and the positions remained the same to the finish.

Race two got underway after a short break – some of the crews taking full advantage of the close proximity of the clubhouse to warm up and grab a drink. Off the line it was Ian Martin and Adam Broughton in Kingfisher Yacht Ropes (800) who showed their big breeze form to lead round the windward mark from Barton/Allen and Spod Olive Joe Crabb in Harken (1083).

The gusty conditions were making lay-line calls pretty tricky and saw many teams drop their spinnakers early and white sail reach into the leeward mark. A few early season handling errors by the top three boats saw Schooling/Hirst capitalise and take their first open meeting race win from Martin/Broughton and Olive/Crabb at the finish with Matt and Mike Chapman (1014) in 4^th.

By the third race, the committee boat was recording 30mph in the gusts and boat handling became a key component of the day. After a two lap, two horse tussle it was Schooling/Hirst who recorded their second bullet. Martin/Broughton were a fair distance back in 2nd following a capsize and Offer/Higgins showed good consistency to finish 3rd. Chris Webber and Bonnie Moody handled the breeze well to round out the top 4.

Sunday dawned with a tricky 12 to 15 knot wind. Race 4 got underway in brilliant sunshine but menacing rain clouds on the horizon – anything could happen!! With the start line just in front of the club and the westerly wind direction, the windward mark was tucked in close to the opposite shore. A quick entry/exit to the mark was therefore crucial to not lose places.

Olive/Crabb sailed a good first beat and managed to pull out a convincing lead by the end of the first run which they held to the finish. With the gusts filtering down the shore an early gybe strategy was working well for a few boats including recent RS400 converts Tom Halhead and Christian Humphrey (1113) who sailed well to take 2^nd on the last run from Neil Baker and James ‘Uzi’ Hughes (1130).

Race 5 and the breeze had increased slightly but there were still a few single wiring holes to be found! Barton/Allen were first around the windward followed closely by Olive/Crabb who had a good battle until the finish, however the positions remained the same at the finish. David and Fiona Sayce (985) pulled some clever tactics out the bag to get inside Schooling/Hirst up the last beat to finish 3^rd and 4^th respectively.

In the final race of the day it was Olive/Crabb who again demonstrated good skill in the tough conditions. A close battle for 2^nd to 5^th ensued with Barton/Allen, Schooling/Hirst, Martin/Broughton and the Chapman brothers all in the mix. At the finish Schooling/Hirst managed to pull through to 2^nd and the Chapmans capitalised on the Martin – Barton duel.

Following some confusion over the final results, it became apparent that Schooling/Hirst had clinched their first RS800 event win by a point from Olive/Crabb with Barton/Allen 3^rd, Martin/Broughton 4^th and Offer/Higgins in 5^th – also winners of the Silver fleet.

Second in the Silver fleet and 6^th place overall went to the Chapman brothers with Ian ‘Basta’ Aldridge and Aaron Barden taking 3^rd in the Silver and 7^th overall.

Thank you to Chew Valley Sailing Club for running a great event. The next event is at Datchet Water Sailing Club on the 5/6^th April – see you there for another massive turnout!!