After several races with patchy winds, Port Macquarie Sailing Club finally got the requested consistent wind for Race 4 of the Summer Season held on Sunday.

The race started just after high tide with about 10-12 knots ENE which increased during the afternoon helping to build some chop against the opposing tide.

Simon and Elsa Gandy in Up Beat tested out the trapeze for the first time and performed well crossing the finish line first, but were forced back down the fleet by yardsticks.

Paul Robertson took Spellbound out for the afternoon and battled with Warren Sykes in Runamuck at the pointy end of the fleet. Would the results be different if the main sheet didn’t get looped around the cleat at a critical moment of the gybe right in front of the clubhouse?

Jeff Walsh in Serenity and Terry Howard in Flying Dragon also had a great race with neither able to break away from his shadow.

Yardstick results were: Runamuck, Spellbound, Flying Dragon, Serenity, Up Beat, Roger Shipton in Zazoo, and Stuart Symons sailing solo in Elmo demonstrated tenacity and persistence to complete the course.

Steve Bohlsen sailing solo in Interceptor and Steve Couch in Lazybuoy withdrew with injuries, Tony Walker in Deep Purple and Mick and Chris Bullock in Voyager also erred on the side of safety and didn’t finish the race.

With handicaps applied: Up Beat, Spellbound, Serenity, Flying Dragon, Runamuck, Zazoo, and Elmo.

In the catamaran division, Tony Kuhn on Stella battled through post-covid tiredness to finish in front of Rob Barwick on Drift who is finally back on the water with a permission slip from the doctor. Dave Winter on Spica made it around one lap before deciding to call it a day. Handicap results were identical.

Next Sunday will be the Ted Kuhn Cup held over two races starting 11am and 2pm. A BBQ lunch will be available in between races. Simon Gandy is rostered on duty.