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Last Race at Pwhelli

David Villers-Child reminisces...
It was my penultimate race in a Merlin Rocket, Pwhelli 1970 the largest fleet ever for a Championship, over 200 boats. It had been a breezy but handle-able week a postponed day on Tuesday; had led to an amazing sail in a very brisk breeze in evening sunshine with what were to be the first four boats overall fighting in the evening sunshine a brisk steady breeze with never more than a few boat lengths between us. Wednesday was cancelled and the pressure on Robert Lee-Warner then a novice Race-Officer to fit another race was intense. It was as Spud Rowsell put it �blowing right up you�!

Alan Warren and Barry Dunning were wearing smiles and the rest of us the sort of �over the top� grim looks that the armies of 1914-18 must have had just before dawn. In those days the course was the classic Olympic one of a long first beat followed but two reaches a beat a run a beat two more reaches another beat and a run and then a final beat. After the first Beat and two reaches the fleet, was, well smaller than when started!

The order was Alan Warren followed by Spud Rowsell then came Graham Pike and then us, once again the final order. We approached the windward mark fully expecting to see the course shortened but no it was not. The run was memorable if only because it was the only time when I raced against him in Merlin Rockets Alan Warren declined to set a spinnaker! Rodney Pattison sailing a very wide �special� by Bob Hoare crewed by a Canadian Flying Dutchman sailor did set a spinnaker and must have briefly set a world speed record for 14� Dinghies until that is he set the world record for underwater sailing! As he flew past us he simply sailed into the back of the wave in front and did not exit!

And so we ground on at every windward mark expecting the course to shortened, but Lee-Warner not a good sailor himself and very much the old school of Public School, grin and bear it (This hurts me more than it does you!) types was not to be persuaded. Going up the last beat the 2nd and 4th boats were blown flat and so was the third in the next gust the leader in the third gust. We all sat on the side of our boats exhausted looking at each other rather like a �Slow Bicycle Race� until Spuds nerve broke and he began to pull the boat upright, we all followed suit and remember transom flaps whilst no longer a novelty were still new to the class.

We struggled to the line still in the same order we�d held all the way round as the guns were fired we all lowered mainsails and simply flew home under foresails only. I think around 40 boats eventually finished from over 200 starters, one boat was lost, and a few ended up down the coast at Butlins Holiday Camp to be fetched by road trailers later. No one was drowned.

What if anything did we learn?
Well; that the Merlin Rocket as it was in 1970; was probably as seaworthy as any day racing class irrespective of size. That race officers (And Robert went on to be a fine race officer who did much for the sport.) should consult the competitors and watch the race not just the numbers. Sailing and especially racing is not all that the sport is about!

What did we get out of it? I�m not sure, beyond a memory of an amazing race in heavy conditions that simply went on too long.
I never saw any photographs of that championship if there were any they must be fantastic. The next day I was lucky enough to win my last Championship (or any) race in a Merlin Rocket.




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