Lightning368 Open at Whitefriars Sailing Club
by Rupert Whelan 9 Apr 2014 18:35 BST
5-6 April 2014
In reverse to the normal way of doing things, I really need to start this report with a thank you or two. Firstly, for his sterling work on behalf of both the Lightning and Moth fleets on the Saturday coaching day, John Mills, our safety boat driver, who spent many hours out on the water, happy to do all that was asked of him, and still smiling at the end.
Secondly, to Simon Clark and his team for running the Sunday racing, getting 3 starts off cleanly in gusty conditions, and mostly for keeping the races fairly short! Finally, and most importantly, to Nigel Potter and his small band of helpers. Nigel spent the whole weekend at the club, cooking, serving and cleaning up, and without him, the weekend would have been a much less happy event.
And so to the sailing. On Saturday 5 April, Paul White and Robbie Claridge put on a coaching master class. The wind was perfect, with enough to get planning but not so much that survival was all we could think about. Concentrating mainly on starting and the 1st beat, they were able to raise the game of almost everyone on the water. Now we have to see if we can remember it all!
Sunday dawned in less inviting mood. Those who had camped reported being woken in the night by huge gusts, as they tried to snuggle down deeper into their sleeping bags, and skies were leaden and the mood apprehensive as boats got rigged. The first race lived up to those fears for some, with squalls blowing through which flattened one or two and left many others in pure "survival mode".
However, the front of the fleet as usual took it in their stride, at least almost! Matt Hopkins took an early lead, only to land in the drink on the 1st gybe. From there, it was a 4 horse race, with Paul White, Richard Palmer, Simon Hopkins and Alex Baxter fighting it out, in the end finishing in that order, with Matt Hopkins fighting back to 5th.
Races 2 and 3 were sailed in slightly more benign conditions, but still with huge gusts blowing across the course. With a couple of drop-outs from the original 15, the 2nd race saw Alex Baxter take an early lead, just ahead of Richard Palmer. However, Paul White showed incredible boat speed to not only catch up, but pull well ahead of everyone for another win. Obviously he didn't teach us everything he knows the day before! Matt, Simon and Rupert Whelan were in a chasing pack, sailing hard, when a huge gust ripped Matt's control line cleats clean out of the boat. The man who had fitted them, Simon, Matt's dad, overtook his son to take 4th, while Matt's day had ended.
The 3rd race saw the tightest battles not for 1st place, but for 3rd and for 6th. Alex and Simon had an epic battle, with Simon's extra experience (and weight?) winning out on the line to take 3rd, while Bryan Westley had 6th sewn up until the last beat, when Chris Abela, who had been snapping at his heels most of the race, and Simon Claridge, who put on an amazing finishing sprint, pipped him on the line.
Overall, Paul took the win from Richard, with Simon in 3rd and Alex in 4th. Alex was 1st junior, showing most of the adults a clean pair of heels.
Battle lines are now drawn for the rest of the season. Can Paul carry on his winning ways for a 3rd year? Can Bryan get his revenge on Chris and Simon? Can Matt stop his boat exploding? Will Emma and Tony get to finish a race? All will be revealed in the next episode, at Oxford SC on 3 May.
Results:
1. Paul White
2. Richard Palmer
3. Simon Hopkins
4. Alex Baxter
5. Rupert Whelan
6. Chris Abela
7. Simon Claridge
8. Bryan Westley
9. Sue Thomas
10. Mat Cooper
11. Matt Hopkins
12. Mark Godden
13. Andy Cooper
14. Emma Dodd
15. Tony Hudson