North Devon YC Wrecker - Instow, Devon, UK, 18th Feb

CONGRATULATIONS to Luca Mitchell on winning the North Devon Wrecker Pursuit Race in his RS Aero 6.  This is the first time an RS Aero has won this event - another summit conquered! We came close as a Class once before, but this time Luca managed to hold off the same Osprey who overtook Greg Bartlett in the closing moments in 2020. Absolute hero!

This is a tale of enthusiasm and persistence, in developing skills and gaining experience, all finally paying off. An inspiration to us all to progress by enjoy our training and  learning something new on every outing. They say the first win is the hardest, watch out for Luca (and Zak!) in 2024!

If you fancy your hand at a new RS Aero conquest, a mixed class event  win never achieved before by an RS Aero, then there are two coming up next month - the Frensham Frenzy on the 3rd and the Exmoor Beastie on the 24th March! 

It was a great weekend for RS Aero 6s across the country with Sam Blaker and Ellie Craig also making the top ten at the 100 boat Oxford Blue. 

Thanks to Luca for his summary;
Two RS Aeros participated in the North Devon Wrecker in a fleet of 18 mixed class boats for the penultimate stage of the Sailing Southwest Winter Series. Zak Mitchell was in his RS Aero 5 and Luca Mitchell in his RS Aero 6. The wind was around 15-18 knots with lulls of under 10 knots in the river.

As the race began a Radial started just ahead of Zak then I followed a few minutes after. As we got into the opening of the channel the wind picked up and it was an upwind to the second mark. Heading onto the downwind Zak was leading and by the end of lap 1 I had the lead off him. By the second lap I had gained a bigger gap over Zak but the faster boats were quickly approaching.

We did a total of 2.5 laps in total on the long course around the estuary and river mouths. The legs were so long I was also doing trigonometry to find each buoy with thick fog and mist!

Going into the last lap it was all closing up at the front with me still leading and the K1s and the Blazes catching fast. On the final upwind  Paul Birbeck in his K1 over took me at the windward mark but on the downwind I managed to take back the lead again with semi planing conditions and nice 2ft waves that suited the RS Aero nicely. As we got closer to the leeward mark with the final minutes counting down the Osprey was coming in hot and there were 4-5 boats in a line behind me all catching. But then the time ran out and I won! 🏆

Photos in the Winter 2023-2024 Gallery

The final stage of the Sailing Southwest Winter Series is at the Exmoor Beastie on Sunday the 24th March. Luca is up to 2nd in the overall series results with Peter Barton needing a good final podium placing to try to catch him!