Itchenor School's Week - Day 2
by Alastair Pusinelli 25 Jun 2014 13:14 BST
23-27 June 2014
Day two of Itchenor Schools' Week, sponsored by JDX financial consultancy, provided some more testing conditions, resulting in some exciting racing.
The RS Feva XL class concluded after three excellent races with Hayling College's Henry Jameison and Ben Todd the victors.
Crew Todd, 14, said: "We worked quite well as a team, communicating well. We've known each other a long time but this is first time we have actually sailed together."
Helmsman Jamieson, 12, said: "It was tricky at times because the tide was ripping with massive holes all over the course."
Although they have never sailed together, Todd and Jameison are clearly no strangers to racing with both in the national squads for FEVAs and Teras respectively.
The overnight score left the Hayling College boys just two points ahead of the Kingham Hill team of Joseph Parr and Darcy Curwen after four races.
The first race of the day, race five, finally got underway after a two hour delay after another morning of low winds, with the fleet racing at the third attempted start.
The wind had quickly picked up, resulting in a Portmouth Grammar boat capsizing soon after the start.
But of course Hayling College were the team to beat, but they got the early lead and began to pull away.
However, the chasing pack of contenders Kingham Hill and a PGS boat were in hot pursuit of the Hayling sailors.
Parr and Curwen closed the gap but soon fell away, finishing third, handing Jamieson and Todd a crucial victory with Churcher's College's Birch Tomlinson and Ultan Wood claiming second place.
The high winds continues in race six, and this time it was Churcher's' Tomlinson and Wood who came out of the starting blocks the fastest.
The rest of the fleet seemed to get stuck round the first mark, and it was now a three-horse race between the Churcher's boat, with sailors from Portsmouth Grammar and Portsmouth High.
Similar to many of the races so far, the winners have been hard to catch with Tomlinson and Wood finishing well ahead of the rest of the fleet.
The final race was much delayed due to multiple capsizes and turn turtles but Kingham Hill were once again out of the traps quickly, chased by Farmors' Will Spurway and Ed Cunlan, Portsmouth High's Grace Summers and Isobel Clark.
Kingham Hill extended their lead throughout the three laps and won the race comfortably, and had to wait and see where the Hayling College boat would finish. Prior's Field's Alice Handley and Georgina Simm crossed the line in seconds but crucially Hayling College's Jamieson and Todd finished the third, handing them the overall victory.