West Country Boat Repairs RS200 SW Ugly Tour at Exe Sailing Club

West Country Boat Repairs RS200 SW Ugly Tour at Exe © James Blower

"We always seem to end up planing on the way back in (at Exe)" was the opening line from John Teague, SW tour regular, as a fifteen strong fleet of RS200s arrived at Exe SC on Saturday the 28th September, with high hopes despite a fickle forecast and an empty river mouth. We were left wondering if these would be famous last words or would tradition kick in?

After a warm welcome by the club, the fleet made their way onto the water following the very enthusiastic waving of the D flag. A great chance to get some downwind practise on the way to the start as we were lead down the main channel, however with the tide ripping in against us, this downwind practise may have taken a while longer than some anticipated.

Race 1 was away swiftly once the fleets of 2s and 4s had reported to the committee boat out in Lyme Bay. With a U flag setting the tone for the day, the fleet were away with the right-hand side of the beat paying. Launched from the get-go, Duncan & Lorna Glen had gained a comfortable lead by the finish, but behind them the real race was on. Fred & Liz Mainwaring were closely followed by Izzy Cramp & Stuart Jones (a fab result for these guys in their first year on the circuit!).

With the tide still racing, it made for a tighter angle than planned for the finish of the single lap race.

Race 2 saw a more confident race officer advertising three laps - did he know something we didn't? The pin bias line allowed Merrick Stanley & Vic Upton and James Williams & Christophe Dormenval to cross the fleet on port, behind the two boats who'd won the pin. The shifts then really started to come into play on the beat, with David Sweet & Derian Scott playing a blinder up the middle, followed by Fred & Liz and Duncan & Lorna.

A gybe set was the consensus of the leading three boats; but it was all change as James & Christophe (and the very tight pack behind them) went for the straight set and hopped onto the only breeze around to take the lead. Those on the left looked on in frustration as they were left simply bobbing, but spotting a small and steady band of pressure further left, Duncan & Lorna followed by John Teague & Naomi Pound managed to catch up with the pack.

Patchy breeze condensed the fleet at the finish, with Charlotte Cox and Megan Gubb nudging their bow over the gate with the shortened course flag first, closely followed by Duncan & Lorna and Merrick & Vic (who had just needed a warmup race to check out their new ship), with the next 10ish boats all finishing within a few seconds of each other.

West Country Boat Repairs RS200 SW Ugly Tour at Exe - photo © James Blower

Race 3 started with a steadier and stronger breeze that had shifted right - the race team did a fab job at giving us the best courses all day, so hats off to them. Taking the hard right was James & Christophe, leaving John & Naomi out on the left with Merrick & Vic. It was however Fred & Liz, the home favourites, who rounded the windward mark first, with Duncan & Lorna following after playing the middle. The fleet was very tight, with Merrick & Vic, John & Naomi and James & Christophe all rounding closely behind.

This was looking to be the best wind for a race of the day... until it decided to shut off completely on the run to the finish, pre-empting the 90 degree shift predicted for later in the afternoon.

Now this really was a race... of who could drift the fastest towards the finish. Duncan & Lorna took the honours just in front of Fred & Liz, the two boats enjoying a drifting chat about the pattern of recent Exe opens sadly lacking in the wind department.

With the time now being 3:45 and the 3:55 cut-off looming, the tow lines of the finished front six boats were readied in anticipation of a tow back to the club. Much to everyone's delight, a steady southerly breeze then filled in as promised, giving the remaining racing boats a beat to the finish, followed by a lovely reach back to the club along the shore of Dawlish Warren.

Kites were popped at the perfect angle for the plane in that John had promised - turns out this tradition did remain true after all!

Welcomed ashore for the prize-giving with John Teague & Naomi Pound in third, Fred & Liz Mainwaring in second, and Duncan & Lorna Glen getting the overall win. Many thanks must go out to the Race team, safety boats, crew ashore, bar and catering teams for their fabulous hospitality as ever.

Our next, and final, event on the 2024 SW tour is at Chew on the 19th October. Although the overall title is wrapped up, the tour results remain tight, with three events to count and four completed so far, many places are still in the balance. You'll have to be there at Chew to get all the action as teams fight it out for the much-coveted Ugly mugs sponsored by our fab tour sponsor West Country Boat Repairs (Pete Vincent himself). We hope to see you there!

West Country Boat Repairs RS200 SW Ugly Tour at Exe - photo © James Blower

Overall Results:

West Country Boat Repairs RS200 SW Ugly Tour at Exe - photo © James Blower