Musto Performance
Skiffs star at Grafham Grand Prix
The start of 2011 saw four Musto Performance
Skiffs attending the first of four winter handicap events;
The Grafham Grand Prix. Our very own Andy Rice has combined
this event, along with the Bloody Mary, Tiger Trophy
and Steve Nicoloson Memorial to make the Sailjuice Series,
where the combined scores will see an overall champion
crowned as the best winter dinghy sailor.
For those of us who normally only take
part in class racing, these events provide a great opportunity
to see the latest developments in other dinghies and
catch up with old friends.
The Grafham Grand Prix comprises of two
races back to back, with the fleets split across fast
and slow handicap and single handers. The Mustos were
placed in the fast fleet and were represented by Ian
Martin, Andy Rice, Andy Peake and James Sainsbury.
Race one kicked off in a force 2 - 3 and
sunshine. The Saxton 800 led the way round, closely
followed by the battling Ian Martin and Andy Peake.
Their positions changed several times around the two
laps, with Martin coming out in front after a stong
final downwind leg.
The wind dropped to a force 2 for the
second race. Andy Rice this time led at the first windward
mark but was overhauled on the first downwind leg by
Peake who maintained his lead to the finish. Rice held
onto second spot until the final leeward mark, when,
yet again, Martin showed his tactical nouse down the
final run to overhaul him.
The long wait to see the handicap results
then ensued, which provided the time to remove any troublesome
killer shrimps from boats. Andy Peake won the event
with a second and first, followed by Ian Martin in second.
Andy Rice came in sixth and James Sainsbury put in a
very credible performance in his first event against
other Mustos.
Next week, it's the Blody Mary where
I am sure we'll all be adding some fairly hefty scores
to our overall points tally, but will hopefully have
another opportunity to show other fleets the strength
of our class.
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