The Junior Course - Elmes V Keane

We've now had a couple of Lasers complete a round of the "Junior" course; to Forty Foot and Bulloch marks then back. The idea for the Junior Course was to have a shortened race track that younger sailors might try under supervision, it doubles as a course suited to days when conditions aren't right for the full course.

Two of the harbour's leading Laser sailors have now given it a go. One, Paul Keane, completed the course on a day with a South-East wind. The other, Graham Elmes, picked a day with a strong South-Westerly and showed that wind direction makes a difference!

Graham's time of 24 minutes and 27 seconds eclipsed Paul's initial time of 34 minutes and 36 seconds.

The animation, which covers their routes from the mouth of the harbour to the Bulloch and back, shows how Elmes was able to reach there and back while Keane had to beat out and gybe back. 

The reaching allowed Elmes to hold speeds of 11.2 knots for sustained periods, while Keane only once got above 10 knots on the run.

They're not Moth speeds, but they're sustained speeds.  At a solid reaching pace, a Laser could potentially do the whole course in less than an hour! It's a target!