The evening of the penultimate Wednesday of May began with a gusting changeable wind which didn’t settle throughout the racing, writes Chris Clapp.

This made for difficult sailing, but our regular Scorpion sailors were not put off and sailed competitively in the testing conditions.

Andy Hayman did well to the secure the win, despite all the boats leading at different points throughout the race.

All those on the water were glad to come ashore and enjoy a delicious supper prepared by club sailors Simon Price and Emma McFayden.

A gusty north-easterly wind was the order of the day last Saturday.

A weather forecast showed an expected thunderstorm at 3pm, so sailors took to the water with the anticipation that they may have to return to shore as quickly as possible, if necessary.

Happily, the storm did not materialise and so sailing could continue uninterrupted, albeit with the race officers keeping an ever-vigilant eye on the weather conditions from the safety of the crow’s nest.

The first race saw two boats over the line at the start, but they quickly turned around to restart the race to ensure that their result did not get disqualified.

After a slow start by father and son team Chris and David Clapp, they soon found their usual form and were uncatchable, leading all the way and beating the rest of the fleet by over a leg of the course. The second-placed Scorpion was Simon Price and Emma McFayden closely followed by James Salter with Alex Hammond. The two Lasers out on the water had a close fought race with the lead changing a number of times.

Barny Croft managed to win both races just ahead of Paul Wilson.

The second and much shorter race was won by Simon Price and Emma McFayden; again, James Salter and Alex Hammond were just behind. Tim Vause in the only Topper on the water did well to finish both races.

Great to see Nigel Palmer on the water trying out his newly acquired Mirror dinghy.

Bank holiday Monday was a family sailing day aimed to encourage those that wanted to improve their sailing skills to take to the water in a relaxed and fun atmosphere.

Glorious sunshine and a gentle breeze were perfect conditions again for the club Toppers, RS Fevas, RS Qubas and members’ own boats that took part in the day’s sailing.

A full and fun day on the water was followed by a barbecue in the sailing club’s boat park, a perfect ending to a fantastic bank holiday weekend.

As usual, our thanks go to the patrol boat crews, race officers and all those involved in organising the weekend. Good sailing!