#rssailing – Gifted with a northerly breeze of around 12 knots the DMYC Dinghy Frostbite race committee set a longer than usual trapezoidal course outside the harbour, signalling five laps to the 6 RS 400s and 3 RS 200s that ventured out writes Kevin Brazel.
With a large pin end bias the start was always going to be a combative affair and this was proven to be the case when Rumball and Brazel's attempt at a port tack flyer went horribly wrong, spitting them out the back into the rest of the fleet's dirty wind.
With a strong flood tide the first beat was over as soon as it started, with Rumball making his task harder by picking up a penalty turns. After the madness of the windward mark, the fleet was treated to a long downwind leg in perfect RS conditions. Two boats broke away from the fleet, McDonald and Kingston, with Rumball fighting back into contention with Ryan and Cleary to form a tightly bunched chasing pack. This pack remained with constant changes to the order until Clearly broke away on the "bottom" leg of the trapezoid on lap 3 and unluckily missed out on a huge lift that took Rumball/Brazel and the Ryans into their own match race.
All things remained equal for the rest of the race, with McDonald first, Kingston second, and the Ryans and Rumball following working hard to close the gap.
O'Leary and Williamson continued their dominance of the 200s, having a healthy lead for the duration, followed by the other two boars of Byrne and Totterdell. The heavier breeze really suited the 400s and they were able to get away from the 200s on PY taking the first four places.
Overall the series is still open with three weekends remaining, however Marty O'Leary/Rachel Williamson have an 8 point lead over Emmet and James Ryan, who have a tight hold on second position.
