DeMay Vintage Open at Hunts Sailing Club
by Mike Liggett 10 Jun 2015 15:30 BST
5 May 2015
DeMay vintage Merlin open at Hunts © Nikky Evans
A total of seven Merlins turned up for the vintage DeMay event at Hunts Sailing Club, however in the fresh south-westerly wind Mike Liggett elected not to risk sailing 235 "Squirrel".
Race Officer, John Coppenhall, set a course with two windward legs and a couple of off-wind runs/reaches, which made full use of the lake.
In the first race, Jon Cowper, sailing Mike Liggett's other Merlin 1939 "War Horse" was an early leader but was to surrender the race to Stuart Jenkins in 3560 "Luka" by the finish. However, with application of DeMay handicap, Jon claimed victory with Tim Bury in 1066 "Ten-Sixty-Six" in second place.
In race two, Jon took both "line honours" and the race on handicap, closely followed by Nick Crickmore in 2972 "Nitro".
The third race saw Tim Bury take an early lead but he was soon reeled in by the chasing bunch. Nick Crickmore powered through and had his best result just edging out Tim, who had to be content with second place. Jon Cowper faded badly in "War Horse" finishing 4th, however with 2 firsts was able to claim overall victory.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | Club |
|---|
| 1 | 1939 | Jon Cowper | Rob Smithies | Hunts |
| 2 | 2972 | Nick Crickmore | Richard Holmes | W and OB |
| 3 | 1066 | Tim Bury | Pat Kuenzler | Banbury |
| 4 | 3560 | Stuart Jenkins | Nicola Scaddan | Hampton |
| 5 | 1189 | Ben Marshall | Sel Shah | Thames |
| 6 | 723 | Mervyn Allen | A N other | Tamesis |