Liverpool Yacht Club Late Autumn Series - Day 1

Liverpool Yacht Club Late Autumn Series Day 1 © Susie Quinn

The winds were light but that didn't deter the Liverpool Yacht Club and Tranmere Sailing Club racing fleet from heading out onto the Mersey for the start of their Late Autumn series.

The start was tight between the class one fleet with Max Too (Prima 38) & Finally (Elan 350) easing away until Eazi Tiger (Corby 29) popped their kite smartly & efficiently & overhauled then both within 500m of the start.

The fleet though was closely bunched throughout the race with it being more of a drag race to the first marks before wind filled in and afforded all a chance to tack back against a still flooding tide with many fighting for water at each mark.

Class two headed to E2 with Aurora (Shamrock 30) flying from the start and throwing her kite up at every opportunity with deft handling from her crew. Skukusa (Impala 28) fighting to stay with them & they did! Jon Do (Sigma 33) & Trajan (Seawolf 30) had their own a battle within, both finding Dingle at the same time but Trajan fetched down hard on the mark whilst Jon Do clawed her way there, Jon Do respectfully giving way only to tactfully nip inside Trajan after rounding and threw up her kite to pull clear and away. Trajan continued to hang on and finished only 31 seconds behind on the water, was placed 3rd by her low handicap pushing Jon Do into 4th place.

Lady Dorothy (Hunter Horizon 30) sailed well, her dominant crew boss's commands being felt on both sides of the river & Clarevouyant (Achilles 24) despite her size punched well above her weight and finished only 25 seconds behind after times were adjusted.

The Venture (NHC) class were sent all the way to E4 with Class one as we hoped to give them a decent kite run back however the wind veered north so the beat back commenced. Y Not (Beneteau Oceanis 37) had advantage in both boat and crew sizes and rounded both E4 then G3 first to head back to the finish. Aquaholic (Bavaria 30) was never far behind as her skipper Chris Bailey efficiently loped around the marks singlehandedly. Much like a proverbial swan paddling frantically underwater but gliding along the water elegantly. After coming in 5 minutes behind Chris was handed a first on corrected time! Well done Chris!

In class one, Max Too eventually caught Eazi Tiger. Size, power and a cracking kite run to G9 with a blistering turn of speed back to Dingle and onto the finish to gain line honours but Eazi Tiger worked hard too, pipping them by 2 minutes on handicap to gain a first.

Mojo (J105) were 40 seconds behind Eazi Tiger on the water finishing a respectable 3rd with Finally still seemingly snarling behind her with a minute between them too. La Republique (Archambault A31) gracefully chasing, her kite a cerise flag on the horizon.

Hullabaloo Encore (Beneteau 30) hunted both Finally and La Republique & persistence paid off but only by a 35 second difference on corrected time putting themselves in fourth to beat both Finally, placed 5th and La Republique 6th.