Yachting, Vol. 2Dufferin and Ava, Frederick Temple Blackwood, Marquis of
History
Yachting, Vol. 2
Dufferin and Ava, Frederick Temple Blackwood, Marquis of
Yacht racing; Yachting; Yachts
It was a wonderful display of fast sailing on her part,
as she finished 8 mins. 13 secs. before 'Valkyrie,' and covered the
distance, 48 miles, allowing for the drifted flagboat at Lepe, in 3
hrs. 40 mins. 50 secs., thus averaging a little over 12-1/2 knots.
An exceedingly brilliant wind-up of an eventful regatta was made at
Cowes on Friday, August 4, when the Royal Yacht Squadron prize was
sailed round the Warner-Lepe course. The competitors were 'Satanita,'
'Valkyrie,' 'Calluna,' and 'Navahoe,' and they started on a short beat
down the west channel in a rising breeze from the west-south-west,
jibheaded topsails being set over whole mainsails. In the first board
'Navahoe' was weathered by each of her rivals, the Yankee being kept
hovering in the wind, instead of being made to feel the weight of it,
the previous day's experience perhaps being the cause. A heavy squall
with sheets of rain passed over before the Western mark-boat was
weathered, and they drove back to Cowes with spinnakers, all but the
Yankee being run on the wrong gybe. From a run they came to a free
reach off Osborne, and went streaking out at a great pace to the
Warner, all except 'Satanita' cracking on jackyarders, but 'Valkyrie'
shifted back to jibheader off the Sandhead buoy. The latter kept pride
of place going east, but in coming back clean full the wind came off
the Island in savage puffs and 'Satanita' was racing up. A regular
flame of wind struck off above the Peel, and 'Satanita' went by the
windward into first place, leaving 'Valkyrie' fairly stuck up.
'Navahoe' and 'Calluna' hung on to big topsails too long, the Yankee
continuing whipper-in and falling down flat on her side in the hardest
of the gushes. 'Satanita,' too, crabbed up badly, but did not heel to
such an angle as 'Navahoe,' and was always lively and manageable in
the puffs; she also got up a higher head of speed the fresher the wind
piped. On the second round it was harder driving between 'Satanita'
and 'Valkyrie' than with 'Calluna' and 'Navahoe,' and after the free
reach to the Warner the first named was 2 mins. 2 secs. ahead or 3
secs. short of her allowance. It was just a clean reach from the Noman
to Cowes, and some of the puffs came off the Island with the rush of a
white squall. 'Satanita' was knocked down flatter than 'Valkyrie,' but
she did not steady her speed, and finished a splendidly fought and
most exciting race with 2 mins. 9 secs. lead of 'Valkyrie,' 'Satanita'
winning with 4 secs. to spare. 'Calluna' was 5 mins. 22 secs. astern
of the winner, and 'Navahoe' 7 mins. 36 secs.
[Illustration: Royal Southampton Yacht Club.
1892. "Warner and Lymington Course".]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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