Light winds were the order of the day for the Richard Glenn Challenge Bowl which was the final regatta of the summer season at Welland Yacht Club.
The poor conditions meant that many competitors stayed in bed leaving only three at the start line.
With the wind blowing from the east, the officer of the day set a course starting up-river going round buoy one before turning round and going up river to buoy two.
Theoretically competitors would do three laps of the course but it was highly likely this number would be shortened.
Keiron Powell in a Laser and Andy Agar in his OK both decided to start on the starboard side of the line, giving them a straight run into the buoy but Richard Stedman opted for the port end of the line in his slower Comet.
Initially it looked like the two starboard boats would be clear ahead but a large wind shift necessitated all three boats tacking just before the buoy, allowing Stedman to round first to start the run up to buoy two.
It wasn’t long before Powell, in the faster boat, overtook Stedman with Agar just behind the other two.
In the shifty conditions the boats gained and lost ground with each other with regularity.
And although Powell rounded buoy two first, his lead was only short with Stedman doing well to hang on.
Positions remained for all of the second lap and with the officer of the day shortening the course, it was Powell who crossed first, shortly ahead of Stedman with Agar one minute behind, however, once handicaps were applied Stedman took the win from Powell.
With the wind increasing slightly for the second race the officer of the day set a slightly longer lap allowing the boats to go further up river in the hope of better wind.
For this race Powell got a perfect start and was clear ahead by buoy one, with Stedman just ahead of Agar.
Powell continued to pull out a short lead but the stretch of water between Shelly’s Bush and the mile straight proved to be a lottery with what wind there was sheltered by trees.
Eventually all the boats cleared this area to complete lap one, with Powell leading from Stedman then Agar.
These positions remained for all of the very slow second lap, with Powell crossing the line four minutes clear of Stedman with Agar a further minute behind.
Once handicaps were applied Powell’s lead wasn’t sufficient and Stedman took the race and the regatta from Powell, with Agar third.
Sunday sees the start of the club’s Frostbite series and also the annual prize giving.
