RS100 EuroCup at Yacht Club de Carnac
by Mostyn Evans 1 Jul 18:49 UTC
21-24 June 2024
This was an event where there was going to be good competition both on and off the water.
Five competitors travelled to Brittany with the promise of at least two European competitors, but in the event, only the Brits lived together, raced together and socialised together in sunny Carnac (with the exception of Ian Gregory who wisely decided not to live with the rest of us). Bizarrely, a single RS200 shared our tally forms, starts, courses and results sheets, although no handicapping was applied.
The race officer was worried that the wind would die and that there would be no racing after day two. He sent us out on Friday, indicating that the wind would gradually increase from about 14 to 20 knots. He positioned the committee boat somewhere on the distant horizon and four of the five competitors had a magnificent kite reach out to the start. Sadly, this apparently ripped the slot gasket off Clive Eplett's boat, causing water to shoot up and over the transom, somewhat reminiscent of a jet ski. He turned round and went home.
Having reached terminal velocity on the way out, and knowing that the wind was due to increase, Mostyn also decided not to play. Ian Gregory valiantly pursued Andy Jones in each race in very challenging conditions. He admits to checking the underside of the boat on occasions during racing, whereas Andy was able to stay upright. It probably says more about the conditions on that day to note that the RS200 actually won the second race on the water.
Day two looked to be another windy day and Pippa Evans decided again that it was probably not the best conditions to try sailing an RS100 for the first time, albeit with a 7.4 sail. As it happens, the conditions were fantastic, and the race officer put on four races, turning round the starts in a pretty impressive fashion. We were sailing on the outer loop with the RS200 and the RS700s, with a combined start. The reach across to the outer loop and the reach to the finish were unusually long and usually too tight for the kite, but we were in sunshine with a good breeze of probably 15 to 20 knots.
The conditions suited Andy Jones to a T and he managed to keep ahead of not only Ian Gregory but also the RS200 in every race. Clive Eplett was unable to take the day off as Mostyn had spitefully replaced his slot gasket overnight, and he went out to sail. He warmed up with a 3rd in the first race and sneaked in ahead of Ian Gregory to achieve a 2nd in the second race of the day. Mostyn Evans successfully managed to keep ahead of the RS200, but did not trouble anyone else.
There was a bit of excitement in the third race of the day when Clive Eplett decided that he had peaked too soon and, as the windward mark was the nearest point to the harbour and the bar, he kept going in that direction. This was fantastic news, but only for Mostyn Evans who, as a result, achieved his first (and probably last) ever podium position in a circuit event.
Day three was, as predicted, lighter. We had a full fleet and two races, with Andy Jones trying his best to maintain his picket fence, but these were Ian Gregory's conditions and he stormed through to secure first place in both races. The conditions were also too light to enable Pippa Evans to overcome the disadvantage of sailing upwind with a slightly smaller sail, particularly as the connecting reaches were too tight for her to make up the difference with the kite. Clive Eplett's woes continued as his forward mainsheet block fell off and he was unable to finish race four.
That turned out to be the end of racing as day four was abandoned after the fleet went to sea. The race officer had delayed releasing the boats until he was satisfied that there was 5 knots across the course, but he was outmanoeuvred by the wind which died completely, leaving a lovely sight of 130 beautiful boats on a flat calm sea. Sadly, this meant that all of the work done by Ian Gregory and Pippa Evans to perfect the shape of the 7.4 sail remains untested, but there is always Bala!
Thank you very much to YC Carnac for hosting us to a superb EuroCup both on and off the water.