The Salopian Summer 2023

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SCHOOL NEWS
Scottish Islands Peaks 2023
With stories of last year’s battle with the dreaded mal de
mer ringing in their ears, this year’s Peaks Race Team
of six were full of trepidation as we set off on the long drive
north to Oban. Yet all the talk at race briefing was about the
lack of wind, of the need to row, and a possible Monday or
even Tuesday finish … For the school teams this was not the
news we wanted! Sailing is a tricky sport to predict however;
we would just have to see how it all panned out.
At midday on Friday 19 May, Tim Strebel and Hamish
Griffiths were our pair on the start line, ready to run the 4.5
mile hilly loop in this, the fortieth anniversary of the race.
Thirty minutes later they were witnessed bombing along
the final straight, forcing on their lifejackets and paddling
furiously out into the bay to be greeted with wild abandon
by the rest of the team aboard Gertha V. This was our sleek,
Swan 46 that had so gamely housed a Shrewsbury team in
the British Three Peaks Yacht Race the previous summer.
Little did our sailors, Simon and Malcolm, realise then that
they would be persuaded to leave the boat in Scotland for
this next mad cap adventure! For now, though they must
have been delighted with this quixotic decision as we
bounded out into the Firth of Lorn with a decent wind, bright
sunshine and a spot right up at the front of the fleet. Tacking
up the Sound of Mull, it was now the turn of our next pair,
Ellie Leigh-Livingstone and Rosie Morris (with Adult Runner
and Old Salopian, Oscar Dickins) to ensure they were fuelled
and focused for the 19-mile odyssey that awaited them on
Mull: Bein Talaidh. By 5.30pm, the dinghy was hoisted over
the side, we clambered desperately in and paddled ashore
for the compulsory five-minute kit check. Always a nervewracking
experience (failure means a return to the yacht
to collect the forgotten item), the girls soon emerged from
the tent and were off on their way into the wild heart of the
island.
Salen Bay often feels like the calm before the storm; it’s
important for the rest of the team to cook a hearty meal,
play some cards and generally rest up. And yet the YB Races
tracker app was telling us that Ellie and Rosie had somehow
overtaken the Glenalmond boys’ pair near the summit. There
was a palpable sense of excitement back ashore amongst
the marshals as we waited to see if this extraordinary feat
was true. After 4hrs 27mins, through the ethereal mist, fading
darkness and midge clouds, Team Shrewsbury emerged in a
state of sheer delirium. Indeed, such was their euphoria that
they charged straight into to the sea to wash muddy legs,
momentarily oblivious to the need to be back on Gertha as
soon as possible! Back aboard, Archie soon became king
of the galley as he served our runners some thoroughly
deserved hot food. The wind had now (11pm) almost
completely died and so digestion and sleep were easy as we
took the tide gently south into darkness.
By first light (4am at this time of year in Scotland), all the
runners were still asleep, some even on the floor. As so often,
it seemed to take forever to squeeze through the key tidal
gate of Fladda, some of the lighter boats pushed ahead of us
in the very light airs. Spirits rose though as the waft of bacon
permeated through the cabin; possibly the only thing in the
world that can force a teenager out of their bunk! By 3pm
we had finally reached the picturesque village of Craighouse.
Embraced by the stunning Paps to the west and lovely Small
Isles to the east, the pupils had a chance to row ashore here