Epic Thames Valley Trophy win by Henley Sailing Club
by Duncan Mackay 16 May 2013 22:35 BST
12 May 2013
The combined Abbey SC and Henley SC fleet surges upstream towards the top mark at Wargrave during the Thames Valley Inter-Match Shield © Duncan Mackay
The Thames Valley Inter-match Shield, has resumed this week after a two-year absence from the sailing calendar due to floods and bad weather, and been won by Henley Sailing Club. The trophy is open to sailing clubs racing on or around the River Thames and in the past has attracted eager competitors from Goring SC, Dorchester SC, Abbey SC and this year's hosts Henley SC.
The 2013 competitive racing was held on the Wargrave Reach and tested crews from Abbey SC and Henley SC over three, one hour, six mark -courses stretching from Val Wyatt's boatyard in Wargrave to a mark just upstream from Vince Hill's old house in Shiplake. Thirteen boat crews took part in a variety of dinghies including National Twelves, Albacore, Wayfarer, Laser, Phantom, Solo and Enterprise. Conditions were changeable with sunshine, rain and gusty winds from the west and south west. Only one boat capsized but was clearly given extra determination by the experience and the N12 boat Treebore, skippered by Stephen Gent and crewed by Viv Roberts, mastered the blustery conditions to take first place for Henley SC. Second placed crew were Tim and Sue Hunt in one of the three Abbey SC Wayfarers with Tim Saunders and Carol Stitson coming in third place for Henley SC in a vintage N12. The overall club winner was Henley SC with a 9-12 point advantage over their tough sailing competitors.
Peta Bowyer, Henley SC Commodore said, "This was a day of rugged sailing in gusty winds with a highly competitive fleet of dinghies from two of the Thames Valley's best placed sailing clubs. We all enjoyed each other's company on the day and are looking forwards to being invited to compete next year on Abbey SC's stretch of the Thames."
This summer, the annual Henley Sailing Club Open Day is being held on the Thames at Wargrave on Saturday 1 June from 2pm to 5.30pm and everyone is welcome to come and have a go at sailing on the waters of this beautiful part of the Thames Valley. More details can be found on the club's website at www.henleysailingclub.org.uk.
The Commodore added, "We hope that more people will take the opportunity to visit the club and discover our enjoyable riverside facilities, enjoy a sail with one of our experienced helms or, for those who just prefer to watch, there will be cream teas on the lawns and our fully licenced bar will be open too."