Steve's Marine Supplies Centreboard Winter Series, run by the Tauranga Sailing Club, is being remembered for some inhospitable weather, but last Sunday things were different.

Ranging between 5 to 15 knots, the westerly wind had something for each of the 34 boats that turned out. The sun added warmth, when it wasn't behind clouds that looked ready to rain, but held back for the day.
Sailors felt the water bite when they got wet, but race officer Warren Belk was able to keep them relatively happy with three well managed races. It was winter sailing at its best.
The competition was tight within the classes, particularly the Lasers and the Green Fleet. The Lasers were often stem to stern, rule interpretations often exchanged and youth showed no respect for age. Molly Meech made Gary Smith take two penalty turns and his son Phil went on to beat him in 2 races. The four Green fleet sailors showed true spirit. They managed the conditions well to complete three races with very close finishes and sharing the line honours.
Standout performers were Michael Turney, in the Splash, and Trent Rippey in the Optimist Open fleet with hat tricks apiece. Gen Saunders flew the flag for female sailors with two wins and a photo finish for second in the P class. Oscar Rorvik was the most consistent Starling sailor as was Bob Smyth in the Zephyr fleet and Richard Burling in the Lasers.

By Gun Caundle