STEVE Axford, the day’s race officer, took what evidence he could from tree tops and the weather forecast and set up a start towards the dam expecting a southerly wind.

In the event, what wind there was turned out to be from somewhere between north and west with the result that the boats drifted towards the line, all bunched up, with the rear of the fleet blanketing the front.

This was the second attempt at a start, the first having been aborted because some helms had not enough motive power to get the right side of the start line!

First over the line was probably Vicki Duncalf in her Topper, or maybe the Pollard family Tasar, but it was Nathan Pollard, using a full sail like the other two Laser sailors in the day’s races, who got to the first buoy (Dam Green) first, followed by Sue Murray (Laser) and Adam Hilton (Solo).

Jane Anderson, in a Topper for the day, got a bit over-enthusiastic trying to eke the last bit of force out of a little gust and capsized, allowing Vicki Duncalf to overtake.

As the fleet dawdled towards Inlet, the big fully-battened sail of the Solo took Hilton past the two Lasers and into the lead.

At the end of different legs of the race, different sailors had problems getting round buoys when the wind wouldn’t help them.

Duncalf suffered at Inlet and the Murray/Nathan Pollard battle got put on hold at Dam Green at the start of the second lap allowing Bob Sampson (Laser) and Anderson to catch up and the Solo to extend its lead.

Anderson then threw away her gain by going the wrong side of Home One and having to come back around. Thankfully for the sake of the fleet’s sanity, the wind filled in (slightly!) for the second lap but by then the Solo’s lead was unassailable.

Murray won the three-way Laser race and the handicaps corrected times brought Anderson’s Topper to one second behind the winner, Adam Hilton!