Merlin Rocket South West Series at Salcombe

Merlin Rocket South West Series at Salcombe Yacht Club

by Christian Birrell 18 Apr 03:01 AEST 15-16 April 2023

The Merlin Rocket fleet were welcomed on Saturday 15th April morning to yet another perfectly sunny day in Salcombe for the South West Series spring open – they only seem to serve one type of weather in this perfect corner of Devon.

Equally as characteristic, there was very little wind! That is never an obstacle for the race team at Salcombe Yacht Club though, so the fleet set off for the first race of the day in a light northerly breeze. The husband and wife team of Mary Henderson and Rupert White were first out the blocks, and led the fleet into a very light wind sniggle through the bag. Christian Birrell and Sam Brearey managed to sneak through into the lead halfway up the Kingsbridge Estuary and opened up a very comfortable lead on the fleet. But things are never over until they are over in Salcombe, and what little wind the fleet were enjoying all but shut off, before filling in from behind to re-compress the fleet after an hour of racing. Christian & Sam’s lead was quickly eaten up by the chasing pack, and Taxi Davis and Ollie Meadowcroft briefly took the lead. A couple more 90 degree shifts later and Christian & Sam regained control, and were delighted to see the shorten course flag. Taxi and Ollie followed in second, with Caroline Croft and Faye Chatterton sneaking through into third just before the finish.

The first rule of racing around Salcombe is to always be ready for a major change. True to form, the second race started with the wind now flowing from the south, with the first leg now a beat towards Sunny Cove. Tim Fells and Fran Gifford used their superior local knowledge to lead around the first mark and extend away to an easy victory. The fleet remained very tight all the way down Southpool Creek, but it was another local team in Will & Rob Henderson that picked up a big left shift coming out the creek to sperate themselves from the pack. These two enjoyed a quiet race to the finish, followed in by Salcombe newbie’s Ed Chapman and Hannah Peters.

Day two started uncharacteristically overcast, but characteristically light again. Of course, the sun arrived by start time and it was a day for the two boats being driven by the future Mr and Mrs Gould, who spent the day battling it out for the top spot. In race three, Caroline and Faye rounded in one, with Chris Gould & Sophie Mackley closely behind in two. Chasing them into the bag was a very tight battle between Christian and Sam, Taxi and Ollie, Alex Warren Jonty Freeman, Tim and Fran and Simon Potts and Charlotte Fildes – with continual place changes as the pack exchanged gybes to try and stay in the pressure. Christian & Sam managed to get to the front of the pack by the leeward mark and set about chasing down the real race. Coming back out the bag, Chris & Sophie picked to avoid the tide on the right shore, while Caroline took the left. Chris had got it right, and held the lead to the finish, with Caroline & Faye in two and Christian & Sam in three.

That result set the stage for a final race showdown between three boats. Christian & Sam had sailed a consistent series, but Caroline & Faye and Chris & Sophie had big discards to bring drop from their scorecard. Whoever won the last race out of the three boats would win the regatta. First out was Christian & Sam, who suffered a boat breakage just after the start. By the first mark, it was clear it was going to be one of the Gould/Croft family that would be taking the trophy home. Rivalry is clearly strong in this household, as the two continually traded places throughout the race for the regatta win. Chris seemed to have one hand on the trophy, but rumours are he got a bit concerned about the reception he might get on the long car journey home if Caroline hadn’t won, so he kindly hunted out a few bad shifts until Caroline had got round him. Caroline & Faye crossed the finish line first to take the regatta, and Chris remains happily engaged to Caroline.

A big thank you to Salcombe Yacht Club for putting on another brilliant weekend. Always a highlight in the Merlin Rocket calendar, and a pleasure we get to enjoy twice more this year with Merlin Rocket Week on the 9-15th July and the Silver Tiller (and Black-Tie Dinner) on the 28th October. The next event in the South West Series is Hooe Point Sailing Club on 10th and 11th June.

Overall Results:

Pos	Boat Name	Sail No	Helm	Crew	R1	R2	R3	R4	Pts
1st		38	Caroline Croft		3	?8	2	1	6
2nd		3803	Chris Gould	Sophie Mackley	4	?11	1	2	7
3rd	Blue my Mind	3788	Christian Birrell	Sam Brearey	1	4	3	(DNC)	8
4th	Pokey	3801	Andy Davis	Ollie Meadowcroft	2	5	4	?9	11
5th	Fancy Licquor	3764	Tim Fells	Frances Gifford	?8	1	7	4	12
6th		3726	Will Henderson	Rob Henderson	?24	2	9	5	16
7th	Tiger Tiger	3696	Alex Warren	Jonty Freeman	5	?13	5	8	18
8th		3802	Simon Potts	Charlotte Fildes	12	(RET)	6	3	21
9th		3812	Tom Stewart	Rob Allen	7	?15	8	7	22
10th		3687	Matthew Greenfield		6	6	12	(WAY)	24
11th		3683	Arthur Henderson	Olivia Bell	?11	10	10	6	26
12th		3775	Chris Jennings		9	7	?20	14	30
13th		3799	Paul Rayson	Christian Hill	13	9	?16	12	34
14th	Roberta	3796	William Warren	Megan Pascoe	?18	14	13	11	38
15th	Point N Squirt	3746	James Wells	Anna Aylward	?15	12	15	13	40
16th	Ecstacy	3809	Jon Turner	Richard Parslow	10	20	11	(DNC)	41
17th		3666	John Meadowcroft	Katy Meadowcroft	?19	18	14	10	42
18th		3782	Ed Chapman		16	3	DNF	(DNC)	47
19th	Rockatross	3804	Rupert White	Mary Henderson	14	17	?19	18	49
20th	Puff the Magic Dragon	3641	Mark Waterhouse	Isobel Stewart	?25	16	18	16	50
21st		3770	Jon Steward		?27	19	21	15	55
22nd	Learner Driver	3747	Clive Eplett	Rebecca Videlo	?22	22	17	17	56
23rd		3607	Steve Conroy	Anna Rayson	20	21	?23	22	63
24th	Moondance Assasin	3547	Peter Male	Tim Male	21	23	?24	20	64
25th	Bronte	3663	Nick Yannakoyorgos		?26	25	22	21	68
26th	Island Girl	3725	Andrew Squire	Tristram Squire	?28	24	26	19	69
27th	Monkey Business	3707	Stuart Jenkins	Nicola Scaddan	23	26	25	(DNC)	74
28th		3769	Graham Cranford?Smith	Fiona Cranford Smith	17	(DNF)	DNC	DNC	75