Results / Fat Face Racing Circuit Paignton SC - 17/06/2006

A beautiful weekend�s sailing! Paignton Sailing Club in the heart of the English Riviera hosted round 5 of the RS 800 Fat Face racing circuit 2006. 32 boats arrived on Saturday morning and while the bay was a flat calm, temperatures were soaring! With very little breeze predicted there was more chat and excitement about Paignton�s infamous water park (and the rubber rings and �slide of death!) than racing, but suddenly the beach master called for us to launch! Race one, 5 to 7 knots of breeze; things weren�t looking so dire afterall! Quickest out of the blocks and spotting that right was the way to go up the beat, it was the familiar front-runners, Nathan Bachelor and James Clarke. A real battle was beginning to unfold in the chasing pack, Phil King & Tom Truman and Andy Cornah & Orwin Murray fighting for second spot. Bachelor & Clarke continued to pull away and after three laps took the first bullet of the day, an awesome result in such fluky conditions. Crossing the line second was Cornah & Murray, King & Truman in third. Race Two and the tactics were clear�.. Hitching onto port seemed to be the way to go and first to shoot out of the blocks were Rob Watson and James Holmes. Top mark and Justin Deal & Sarah Marriott round in second behind Watson & Holmes, David & Fiona Sayce were nipping at their heels in third. Fresh from a 2nd place in race one Cornah & Murray played the consistency card and rounded fourth. By the bottom mark Deal & Marriott sailed them selves into top spot and maintained it to the finish to take first place. Watson & Holmes sailed across the line in second, Sayce & Sayce, third. Race three and the crews gradually got a chance to stretch their legs�. A fraction more breeze was beginning to fill in but the right hand side still seemed to be the way to go�. Top Mark and King & Truman rounded in top spot. Deal & Marriott snuck round in second while Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail 4 Cancer) lead the chasing pack in third. Nicely positioned to gybe off on the Run, Martin & Booth were the first to split to the left. Deal & Marriott followed suit fractionally later while King & Truman stuck to the right and fell into a patch of little breeze. By the leeward mark Martin & Booth (Sail 4 Cancer) rounded in first, Deal & Marriott second, Sayce & Sayce third. After some clever �sinking� tactics from Justin on the penultimate down wind leg, Deal and Marriott stole the lead and maintained it to the finish to take the last gun of the day. Sayce & Sayce sailed brilliantly into second spot while Watson & Holmes kept the overnight points margin tight by securing third place. Out of sailing mode and straight into shore-based activities�. Most of the fleet found themselves in the Spinning Wheel, one of Paignton�s finest watering holes, and cider was the drink of the evening! Fresh from a week in Minorca, Ben Schooling, Ian Martin, Justin Deal and Aaron Barden lead the way to the dance floor. Soon another 20 or so drunken sailors joined in the fun � and a special mention must go to James Ross and the spinning bar stool! Several drinks later and one or two messy kebabs, most of the fleet found their way back to a range of Faulty Towers-esc hotels by 2 am! Day two, race four, sore heads and no breeze yet! With most of the fleet in hangover mode the half ten start proved a challenge in it self! Roger Gaiter, the race officer did a sterling job of getting the first race started- despite an initial general recall! After a frustrating first beat the racing couldn�t have been closer, the top ten all rounding within metres of each other, initiating the usual down wind tussle. Coming out trumps by the bottom of the course were Deal & Marriott rounding just ahead of the usual front runners; Watson & Holmes, Cornah & Murray and Peter Barton & Roz Allen (Henri Lloyd). A huge 30 degree wind shift caught a few people off guard on the final lap, but picking the shifts correctly was Deal & Marriott who crossed the finish line with a huge lead over the rest of the fleet. Watson & Holmes charged over the line in second while Cornah & Murray smacked another counter in with a third. With the wind now coming from a more westerly direction the course was quickly re-laid and the start gun fired once again�. Much more tacking than usual for a typical 800 beat � the shifts were coming through thick and fast. First to the top mark with a convincing lead was King & Truman. Jamie Reed & Alastair Rose proved that their right hand course was a safe choice by rounding in second. Hot on their heels Sayce & Sayce, Barton & Allen (Henri Lloyd) and Watson & Holmes. Lots of place changing down the run and by the finish King & Truman took the bullet, Reid & Rose second, Sayce & Sayce third. Last race of the day and the breeze was beginning to pipe up! Simply loving the stronger breeze, Spod and Jane Olive (Sola/Harken) made some great calls on the first couple of laps to pull out a convincing lead on the rest of the fleet. Again King and Truman were flying round the course keeping the Olives on their toes at all times! And so the finishing order was set, 1st Olive & Olive, second King & Truman, third Barton & Allen (Henri Lloyd) after some good tactical choices down wind and fourth, Sayce & Sayce. Back to shore and a group of very tired and hungry sailors hit the club house for prizes and drinks! With just one point separating second and third spot, the results were tight at the top! Rob Watson and James Holmes took third place after a fabulous display of speed and consistency � their worst result being a sixth! Second place went to David and Fiona Sayce from Hayling Island, another consistent performer! But in first place and with three race wins in their final points tally, were Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott. The biggest cheer of the day went to Adrian Coatsworth and Julia Jenkins for their Silver fleet win. Second place (and competing in their second ever event!) went to Jamie Hilton and Tom Street from Datchet. A huge thank you to our race officer, Roger Gaiter, for setting superb courses and making the long journey to Paignton extremely worthwhile. Despite the cosy boat parking situation, everyone had a brilliant weekend! A final thank you to our sponsors, Fat Face, who gave out their much appreciated vouchers. Next event is Lymington in 3 weeks time, look forward to seeing everyone there! Sarah Marriott