In June, I competed in the first British Keelboat League Event of the year at Hayling Island Sailing Club. Having done one previous BKL event, I knew what to expect going in. However, I did not realise how much the racing would change just by using different boats. Having previously done the event at Burnham in the 707s, this was my first-time fleet racing the RS21s.
A lack of wind initially on Saturday morning, but we were on the Hotel Boat, so watched the float off before the racing started. From the get-go the racing was so close, many places to be lost and gained with every manoeuvre and the RS21s seemed to be the ideal boat to allow some excellent tactically challenging downwind legs. The asymmetric kites not only meant less pole/hoist issues amongst all the teams, but it also assisted the quality of the racing in the conditions we had.
The breeze built throughout the day just as the forecast predicted, it was at that point when I realised, I was grinning from ear to ear as we were sending it downwind and through the finish line not really wanting to bear away to drop the kite and stop the fun. These conditions couple with some sunshine, topped off with a couple of firsts made for the perfect day one of the BKL at HISC. When we did not think it could get better, we came ashore to discover we were in the lead, a surprise to us all.
Sunday greeted us with a strong breeze and a distinct lack of sunshine, we could not wait to get out on the water and start blasting around in the conditions. Our keenness got the better of us, as we picked up multiple OCS results throughout the day, coupled with some questionable decisions resulting in a lot of spins. The boats worked well in the bigger breeze and the asymmetric kites made that call of when to gybe of paramount importance. One thing that really benefited us over the weekend, was the fact we sail together all the time, it just made our manoeuvres that little bit slicker than some other teams.
This event has highlighted what a great format of racing the BKL is, also the variety in boats and teams means that each BKL event is unique. The most important aspect are the volunteers from the Sailing Clubs and Yacht Clubs whose involvement within the BKL is vital to its continuation. Not to mention the BKL association who along with support from RS, the RYA and kSail, facilitate the running of these terrific events up and down the country. I would thoroughly recommend to get a group together and enter an event if you haven’t already and I might even see you at BKL Finals later this year.