Results / Fat Face Racing Circuit Chew Valley SC - 11/03/2006

The first Fat Face Rs600 circuit event of the year came to Chew Valley Lake Sailing Club which certainly did not disappoint. Some new faces and old where amongst the 11 boat line up, with Damon Bower making a year long return to the circuit. Race 1 was started in a light 5-6 knots from the NE with Olly Straker taking the pin end with a port tack flyer and rounding the windward mark first. This was not to last long as Andy Heissig and Jamie Mawson overtook, Andy finding his own private wind to win by a mile in steadily decreasing and particularly flooky airs. Olly managed to take back second and Jaime came in third, hotly pursued by new comers Dave Annan and Paul Champion. In race 2 it was Jamie Mawsons turn to port tack the fleet and take the private wind around with him. The rest of the line up was by no means settled changing right up till the finish. Martin Fear made an outstanding move from apx 10th place by banging to left side hard and rounding the 2nd windward mark in second place just ahead of Andy Heissig and Olly Straker. During lap 2 the wind died completely with Martin Fear taking second followed by Olly then Andy. Chew local Alan Williams coming in 5th. The final race on day 1 was abandoned. Come Sunday morning the fleet was greeted with a bitterly cold 1 degree C, SE 8-12 knots, with a inch or two of snow from the previous evening. The race officers presented the fleets with two options in order to recover the missed race from day 1. Option A, sail 3 races back to back, or option B, 4 races separated by a onshore warm-up. In true RS fashion we chose option C to take all 3 races and see how we felt about the 4th when it came along. Race 3 was clean away and Jamie Mawson managed to tackle the very shifty and fickle airs to round first and lead the whole race, followed Olly, Andy and again Dave Annan gaining a good score in that order. Race 4 saw the breeze build again up to 15 knots with some nasty little gusts coming through. Olly and Andy were over at the start and returned to the line leaving Jamie to win the race untouched. A rising star young Doug Horner was mixing it with the lead bunch and come in a close 4th. Race 5, breeze on! 15 - 20 knots. Olly Straker capsized at the start on the gun leaving Andy Heissig and Jamie Mawson to lead by a country mile. This was the case up till the second and 'final' lap where they both missed the finish line to start lap 3. Olly and Doug cruised through to an easy 1st and 2nd, and another new comer Steven Read from Weston SC was chuffed with a well earned 3rd. The breeze kept building for the final race to a easy 20-25 knots. Starting to feel the effects of the cold the fleet slowly dropped out and crept ashore unable to cope waiting for the final race. For the start of the Race 6 only 4 competitors toughened it out, Jaime Mawson, Andy Heissig who were fighting it out for points believing they had won the previous race. A fatal capsize nearing the finish from Jamie allowed Andy to come through in first. Paul Champion and Tony Mitchell toughened it out too, with Tony finishing in 3rd, Paul 4th. Meanwhile Dave Annan who had suffered a broken halyard in the previous race recorded a gust come through of 37 knots on the clubs gallery anemometer. Jamie Mawson (8 points) broke his long string of 2nd places to win his first 600 event. 2 points behind in 2nd came Olly Straker (10 points) with 2 points behind that Andy Heissig (12 points) in 3rd. Doug Horner's (24 points) 2nd in the 5th race secured him a 4th on count back over Paul Champion and also an award for the best overall newcomer. Finally a big thanks all the team at the Chew Valley Lake Sailing Club who hosted another successful event.