Ramsey’s Manx Sailing and Cruising Club welcomed 16 dinghies to its 2021 summer regatta last weekend.

The challenge on Saturday was launching, racing and recovering the boats in the fresh north-easterly wind and its associated waves which were breaking heavily on the beach.

It was a definite case of helping your neighbour and watching out for the odd rogue breaker which always appears at a critical moment when you’re not watching.

Once all were safely afloat, the issue was handling the waves to the maximum advantage in the force 4-5 conditions with wind against tide.

The boats (including two MS&CC trainees, Lettie Hyett in the Feva and Ivan Nicholls in the Tera Pro) soon mastered the conditions as competitors waited for race officer Keith Poole on the committee boat to set the course.

With the blustery conditions and the big waves, a windward/leeward course was appropriate. The waves were pushing the committee boat slowly downwind, favouring the pin end of the start line.

Phil Hardisty (IoMYC) in the National 18 with Chris Hill and Pete Richardson crewing - defending the trophy - nailed it and they were well ahead halfway up the beat, therefore they had a clear run until they started to lap the opposition.

Sailing upwind, the idea was to climb and descend the waves without the boat slamming and while keeping plenty of power on with relatively full sails and by hiking hard. Watching for the competition when crossing tacks was a struggle with the boat helms virtually unsighted in the wave troughs, so you had to be sharp.

The boats then converged at the weather mark. The turn to go back downwind required skilful handling as the boats accelerated sharply and surfed off down the face of the first wave. A firm hand on the tiller paid off and the downwind ride started.

A few Lasers spat their riders out on the rocking and rolling run, but they were all quickly back up ready for the gybe at the leeward mark which also saw a few swimmers testing the water.

The N18 took the first race on handicap after doing a lap more than everyone else and continued in strong form. Your correspondent in his Finn was not quite so sharp at the start and finished just behind some boats that he should have been just in front of.

No big spills but a few moments were experienced so maximum speed was not always achieved and that meant places lost in this field.

Peter Cope and Dave Batchelor (IoMYC, Aero 7s) and Simon Pressly (MS&CC, Laser Radial) took full advantage and led the field after the N18 at the end of day one. Your correspondent was back in eighth behind some fine competitors, young and old. A hot pastie or two at the clubhouse afterwards left everyone feeling much better.

Sunday dawned brighter and lighter and with no big waves and a force 2-3 north-northeasterly breeze so launching and recovery were pleasantly improved.

Sail trim and tactical sailing were brought to the fore as small increments in boat speed and slick mark roundings paid dividends. While the N18 showed no lack of skills, others were able to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and, in my case, get back in front of the boats which are supposed to be slower than the Finn.

The sailing was very pleasant in the sun but sailors did have to wait a while between races for the breeze to pick up from less than five knots. But because of the skill and patience of the team on the committee boat (Keith and Neil Rawlinson), three scheduled races were run and therefore the regatta completed with one race result to be discarded before finalising the results.

As the magnificent regatta tea was being consumed in the MS&CC clubhouse afterwards, the results and prizes were announced. Defending champions Hardisty and crew took their trophy back again and Cope claimed the junior prize as well as second overall.

Pressly was third, Batchelor fourth while the Finn bootstrapped his way up to fifth and Ivan Nicholls made sixth which was well worth a mention.

Many thanks go to sponsor Watling Streetworks and to the women (especially Niamh Poole) for the delicious arrays of foods and not forgetting patrol crews of Emily Kee, Jade Leach, Helen Kee, Peter Hoosen-Owen, Mark Corrin and Ralph Kee. Some photos and the results are on the club website and Facebook page - the results were remarkably close despite the variations in the wind and weather.

The MS&CC Round the Island Race is this weekend, starting at 7am on Sunday.

Jerry Colman