Eight visiting boats made the journey to Scammonden Water to join 8 home boats on a bright and fairly breezy Sunday morning in early September, some travelling from as far afield as Burton SC and WLYC at Southport.
The inevitable question of what rig choice to use left some local sailors pondering for a while looking at the conditions and the waves on the lake, while the majority of the visitors opted for the 6 rig.
After a short briefing by the race officer the fleet headed off 2/3rds of the way down the dam for a water start. which happens very rarely at this club. The fleet got away clean at the 1st attempt and made their way up to the windward mark in a fresh breeze, the host club laying on a lead power boat to show the way. Scammonden had also painted numbers on the marks especially for this event after realising all but 2 marks were actually unnumbered and known by the local fleet more by their location. An early casualty forced to retire just 200 meters upward from the line with a broken traveller was local helm Ian Turrell after a promising start. Lewis Bacon (junior) of Leigh and Lowton SC took an early lead and was 1st to reach the windward mark sailing with a 7 rig, closely followed by local helm Christopher Smith in a 7 rig and Ian Jones in a 6 rig.
The fleet then headed back down the triangular shaped lake with a series of runs, reaches and broad reaches. Gordon Riddell of Delph SC stayed in contention, as did Wendy Jones both in 6 rigs. The wind direction was southerly and so didn't really give any home club benefit of local knowledge to the home based fleet as it hardly ever blows in that direction in this valley. This wind direction made for long port tacks and short starboard tacks to sail across the course. After just under the 50 min mark of close racing throughout the fleet it was Lewis Bacon that secured victory (on the standard club line) by just 18 seconds over Ian Jones on corrected times, with Gordon Riddell finishing in 3rd. Luke Revell (junior) from Delph SC had a great race and finished in an impressive 5th place in his 6 rig.
The fleet headed for shore and were served up a tasty lunch consisting of farm shop pies and also puddings for those that could fit one in. Scammonden's clubhouse is a converted vicarage for a church on the opposite side of the valley and it is a short steep walk from the lake but offers outstanding views of this stunning valley that attracts many visitors to explore the many paths built and maintained by the local water authority.
The wind had calmed down for race 2. Same course and a start that had a big port bias that not everybody realised, including many of the home boats. Once again Lewis Bacon lead the way, but in this race he didn't get a gap on the chasing pack and Ian Jones was able to win the race after another close fought 4 laps. Local helm Oliver Boocock (who is more well known for his skills in the driving seat of an Enterprise at events nationally) lead a strong challenge and finished 3rd. Poppy Bedwell (junior) from West Lancs YC sailing in a 4 rig made the most of the lighter winds and had her best race of the day finishing in an impressive 5th place.
The third race was sailed back to back and the wind increased once again. The freshening wind took its toll on a couple of boats who had early breakages leading to retirement for both, including Gordon Riddell who had been in contention for a podium finish overall. In common with the earlier races Lewis Bacon lead the fleet on the water with an impressive confidence but couldn't make the gap large enough between him and the chasing Ian Jones. Local helm Mike Goodwin in his black hulled boat stayed up near the front all race but had to be content with a 4th place finish after Wendy Jones stayed up near the standard rigs to secure a 3rd place.
Scammonden couldn't hold its planned open meeting in 2025 due to low water levels and it was pleased to welcome people back in '26 for a fun competitive day of racing on its 55 year old reservoir.
Overall Results:
1st Ian Jones (Dovestone S.C.) ILCA 6
2nd & 1st Junior, Lewis Bacon (Leigh and Lowton S.C.) ILCA 7
3rd Wendy Jones (Dovestone S.C.) ILCA 6
4th Gordon Riddell (Delph S.C.) ILCA 6
5th Oliver Boocock (Scammonden Water S.C.) ILCA 7
8th & 2nd Junior, Poppy Bedwell (West Lancs Y.C.) ILCA 4
9th & 3rd Junior, Luke Revell (Delph S.C.) ILCA 6
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