Please select your home edition
Edition
Maritimo 2023 S600 LEADERBOARD

Byte Open at Spinnaker Sailing Club

by Duncan Glen 15 May 2023 23:07 UTC 13 May 2023

This year the Bytes joined the Solos for their open meeting at Spinnaker on Saturday 13th May and were blessed with a perfect day of sunshine and a decent NE breeze. The wind direction is a good one for the lake enabling the excellent race team (PRO Jonathan Burns and his many helpers) to make full use of the available water. Varying in strength from "not a lot" to mid-teens, and with the inevitable shifts, conditions kept everyone on their toes and provided some excellent racing. Throughout the day the first three positions were consistently shared between the local father and daughter duo of Duncan and Kirsten Glen and our class Chairman Rick Whitehouse from far away Coombs. Everyone kept in close order and it's fair to say that the racing was tight, but very good natured, throughout.

Having sought agreement from the other competitors, Rick used the new prototype main from Hartleys for the event to get a feel for it under race conditions. This provided an interesting test and overall there didn't seem to be much difference in performance.

The start and first beat of race 1 were very tight with Will mixing it at the front end until he succumbed to the first swim of the day. Kirsten seized the lead and, despite being reeled in at one stage, took the first bullet with a big smile.

Race 2 was probably the closest with numerous place changes leaving Rick in the lead for the final round. Duncan managed to gain an overlap at the last mark to squeeze past with Kirsten snapping at their heels - all three finished within a boats length. Well done to Clare for rounding out the top four in this one. The gusts continued to provide some good entertainment for the spectators, particularly on the long run parallel to the shore. This resulted in a few capsizes and at one stage a spot of synchronized swimming at the gybe mark.

As ever at Spinnaker the races are fast and furious so it was back to shore for a well-earned lunch on the terrace before the final two. This also provided the opportunity for the shore crew (thank you Julius) to make running repairs to Annabel's boat - where would we be without duct tape? It was great to see Annabel at her first Byte event and she is certainly one to watch for the future.

Duncan managed to get away in race 3 setting up a "winner takes all" final showdown. Well done to Gabby who took fourth which she put down to hanging out a bit more - a lesson to us all.

Final race decider. Rick reached the windward mark first and promptly hit it, the resulting 360-degree penalty turn put him back into 3rd and out of contention. Kirsten gratefully took over the lead which she held for the first couple of rounds whilst keeping a close eye on those behind. On lap 3 Duncan initiated a tacking duel and managed to break cover. Finding his own private lift, he established an overlap going into mark 5 and took full advantage. Unfortunately, Kirsten then hit said mark enabling her dad to sail off into the sunset (well sun anyway), with a rueful smile on his face, to take the win and overall victory.

An excellent spread (with savory snacks being a welcome addition to the traditional tea and cake) accompanied the prize-giving to round off a great day. Thanks to everyone at Spinnaker for organizing yet another enjoyable day of sailing, in particular to whoever booked the cracking weather.

Overall Results:

PosHelmSail NoClubR1R2R3R4Pts
1Duncan Glen3298Spinnaker‑21113
2Kirsten Glen2950Spinnaker1‑3225
3Rick Whitehouse3748Combs SC‑32338
4Will S3709Christchuurch SC45‑6413
5Gabby Burns3734Spinnaker‑664515
6Clare Mach3565Weston745(DNC)16
7Annabel Taylor2620Spinnaker5(DNC)7618

Related Articles

Byte Nationals at the WPNSA
Blessed with glorious sunshine throughout It was fitting to see the Olympic rings on arrival at WPNSA for the Byte Nationals, this year shared with the Lowrider Moths. The weather gods were kind as we were blessed with glorious sunshine throughout (apologies to those poor early arrivers). Posted on 3 Aug
Classic and CI Bytes at Leigh-on-Sea
Perhaps the forecast limited the number of visitors (one) Leigh-on-Sea hosted their first Byte open meeting over the weekend of 6-7th July. Unfortunately, the adverse weather forecast, with 30-35mph winds predicted for Saturday resulted in a late cancellation of the Saturday races. Posted on 13 Jul
Byte Open at Bowmoor
Cold, mostly overcast and very windy The day of the first Byte Open meeting of the season was cold, mostly overcast and very windy. Seven Bytes braved the conditions for the first race, as many of the local Byte sailors were away on a skiing break! Posted on 1 Apr
Byte Inlands 2023 at Bowmoor
Traditional end of season event shared with the Comets The traditional end of season Byte Inlands at Bowmoor was this year a shared event with the Comets. Posted on 27 Sep 2023
Byte National Championships at Hayling
More CI rigs than CIIs for the first time ever at a Nationals This year's Byte National were held within Chichester Race Week hosted by Hayling Island. This was a new experience for many, being part of a big event, sailing on big courses (legs of 0.8 nautical miles) and sharing a start line with the Aeros 6s. Posted on 26 Aug 2023
Byte Inland Championships at Bowmoor
Finishing the season at what must be one of the friendliest clubs on the circuit A healthy turnout of twenty-two Bytes descended on the azure blue waters of Bowmoor for the traditional end of season Inland Championships. The appeal of these great little single-handers was demonstrated by the diversity of the entry list. Posted on 27 Sep 2022
Bytes at Combs
The fleet can confirm there is enough depth to turtle The Combs Open saw ten keen sailors descend on the sailing club, which was lacking in water but not in close racing. Saturday saw 4 races sailed in a medium breeze that kept everyone working hard, with shifts and gusts to challenge the sailors. Posted on 13 Sep 2022
ILCAs and Bytes at Spinnaker
Opening up the ILCA South Coast Grand Prix Series with a guest class Spinnaker Club held the season opener for the ILCA South Coast Grand Prix Series on Saturday 28 May. For the first time, Spinnaker invited the Byte Class to the club to combine opens with the ILCAs. Posted on 1 Jun 2022
(Oh so POSH) Byte Nationals at Paignton
An extra day for the class during the POSH single handed event This year, the Bytes combined their three day National Championships with the POSH single handed event hosted by Paignton Sailing Club. Having an “extra day” on Friday 6th May gave the fleet the opportunity to get to grips with the venue. Posted on 16 May 2022
Byte Inlands at Bowmoor
Wide appeal of the boat evident at the event The last event in the Byte class annual calendar is the Inland Championships, hosted by Bowmoor SC. Being late in each season, no event took place the previous year, due, unsurprisingly, to the "Covid lockdown of 2020". Posted on 4 Oct 2021
Savvy Navvy 2024Maritimo 2023 S-Series FOOTER