IOM Scottish Travellers 2014 Event 1 – Levenhall – 29th March 2014

Report by Richard Innos

Score Sheet

YouTube video (by Terry Connell)

Twelve skippers, including newcomer Chris Nichols, assembled at Levenhall for the first race of the Scottish Travellers series of 2014. A wide range of IOM designs were on show including the modified Ska of Bruce Davidson which was beautifully built over the last winter, the Kantun of Gordon Rae and the new Goth MX14 sailed by Gordon Allison. The wind was a raw north easterly, force 2 to 3, very suitable for number one suit. The wind direction allowed RO Richard Ennos (very ably assisted by the race team of John Handley, Sandy Mackay, Nick Cowern, Terry Connell and John Dewar) to set an easily visible course that made use of the western bay of the Levenhall boating pond.

After the usual preliminaries, Alistair Law won the first race with Bruce Davidson, the two BritPops of Ian Dundas and John Owens and the Buzz II of Brian Summers not far behind. Race two saw Ian Dundas out of control at the start, but subsequently regaining contact with his yacht and crossing the finishing line well ahead of the rest of the fleet, only to be disqualified by race officer Richard Ennos. However it was clear that Ian had the boat speed and pointing ability to dominate the rest of the racing, and so it proved. By lunchtime nine races had been completed and Ian already had a healthy lead with Alistair Law struggling for form and Brian Summers belatedly getting to grips with the conditions.

A shift in the wind direction after lunch saw a major rearrangement of the course allowing for a very long beat and run with the windward mark and spreader close enough for the shifty winds off the eastern bank to cause problems for even the most experienced skippers. In this part of the regatta there was a lot of very good tactical sailing throughout the fleet providing a great spectacle for the race team and interested bystanders. There were race wins for Gordon Allison, Bruce Davidson, Brian Summers and John Owens who were sailing very consistently. However none of these skippers could seriously challenge Ian Dundas who was able to recover on a number of occasions from what seemed a hopeless position and never finishing below fourth place in the second half of the regatta. With only one fleet, and infringements being sorted out on the water rather than in protest committees, the number of races sailed swiftly mounted. By four o’clock, when the last race was held, some twenty races had been completed and concentration was almost exhausted.

Overall it was agreed that this had been a very enjoyable opening to the 2014 Scottish District IOM Travellers series. The favourable wind direction and opportunity for setting a long course had provided the fleet with a thorough examination of their sailing skills. Ian Dundas emerged as the clear winner of the regatta with Brian Summers and John Owens in second and third spots respectively.

Top placings were: