written by Gerben Hartog on May 25 of 2023 and read by 294
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Last year SCN was approached by the Etchells Club Nederland, asking if we would like to sail with them. They have their home port in Hoorn, where 10 boats are stationed to sail their competitions. We gratefully accepted this invitation. Last weekend was the Hoofdtorenrace and the 3 Solings were hospitably received. Everything was well organized on the shore and we were in the water in no time. The Etchellsclub has its own competition committee and its own starting ship. On Saturday morning, spring had finally started in the Netherlands. Wonderfully sunny with 13 to 20 knots of wind, what more could you ask for. Lovely on the Markermeer with 6 Etchells and 3 Solings. It was decided to start together, which worked out very well. The boats were close to each other and it was a nice battle. The first game was won by the NED33 proudly ahead of the field. The NED33 was in great shape, they also won the other three races that day. Behind that, the second and third place were divided fairly between the NED37 and NED38.
The day ended in Medemblik at Brakeboer where the more experienced sailors used to sleep after the races. Today, delicious steaks and fries are still served and many sailing memories are shared. The evening ended with a delicious dessert and full of good sense for the next day we went to bed.
Sunday the sun was still shining and the wind was 8 to 12 knots, what a treat. At 11 am the first start was on the Markermeer, which was again beautiful. These are the weekends you want to sail. Rudy, Pauck and Ramzi kept the good form from Saturday and won all three games. Behind that there was a battle for second place, which was won by the NED38 just ahead of the NED37.
We have had another good preparation for Europeans in Warnemunde, where we will hopefully meet all our Soling friends again and see a large group of Solings compete on the water to show how beautiful our class is.
Finally, I would like to thank the Etchells club again, we hope to sail our ONK with you at the beginning of October, but with a few more participants.
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