RS200 Northern Tour Round 5 at Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club

On Saturday 13th June 2015 4 visiting boats joined 8 home boats for round 5 of the 2015 RS200 Northern Tour. The fleet were greeted with a 3-5 knot breeze with the prospect of this dying completely later in the day.

Race 1 started in a light and shifty breeze with Phil & Naomi Smith (Bassenthwaite) winning the port end to lead at the windward mark closely followed by Jon Chapman /Wendy Martin (Budworth) and Matt & Andrea Bromley(Budworth). Positions were held on the first downward leg with the leaders splitting tacks up the following beat. Jon/Wendy took advantage going up the right with shifts and strengthening breeze to lead for the following lap. On the final downwind leg Phil/Naomi challenged hard and with numerous gybes were lucky to pip Jon/Wendy on the line. Matt/Andrea made up the top 3 with Keith Escritt / Andrea Clough (Yorkshire Dales) recovering from an OCS to 4th.

The OOD wasted no time in turning things round for race 2 which got away at the 2nd attempt. Jon/Wendy continued to show great pace leading at the windward mark from Keith/Andrea. At the bottom of the run Phil/Naomi had joined the front 2 to fight it out up the following beat. Phil/Naomi managed to find some extra pressure on the left hand side to take a decent lead which they held to the finish, whilst Jon/Wendy and Keith/Andrea battled it out and eventually finished in that order. Graham Tullet & Natasha Lister (Royal Windermere) completed the top 4.

A fantastic lunch was had by all and whilst the fleet tucked in, as forecast, the wind disappeared. After a half an hour postponement the wind returned from the opposite direction and the OOD promptly set about trying to get the remaining 3 races in. Nobody knows what Richard Whiteley / Lucy Wade (Yorkshire Dales) had for lunch but it saw them return to more usual top form in the afternoon.

Race 3 started in what appeared to be a building breeze but by the 2nd lap it looked like it was starting to die out. The front 3 disappeared into the distance with Jon/Wendy dominating from start to finish and Richard/Lucy taking 2nd from Keith/Andrea. With the wind fading it looked like this may be it for the day with Jon/Wendy leading with a 2,2,1.

The weather gods changed their mind though and the breeze was turned back on again allowing for race 4 to start, this time under the black flag at the 2nd attempt. Keith/Andrea continued their return to form leading at the windward mark from Jon/Wendy and Richard/Lucy. With the wind shifting through 90 degrees at the end of the 1st run the skewed course made passing a challenge, albeit by this stage Keith/Andrea had already managed to build an unassailable lead. Jon / wendy tried a brave move around the now leeward side of the gate but lost 4 places and allowing Phil/Naomi to break through to take 2nd and keep the series alive, Richard/Lucy 3rd, and Ben/Julia (YDSC) coming home in 4th.

Going into the final race the series was between the consistent Jon/Wendy and Phil/Naomi with Keith / Andrea a long odds bet. Phil/Naomi had no intentions of letting Jon/Wendy go it alone and made sure they were never more than a few boat lengths away. Keith/Andrea stormed off up the first beat with Richard/Lucy in hot pursuit, the pair sailing away from the chasing fleet and finishing in this order without challenge. The rest of the fleet had an interesting game of snakes and ladders, Phil/Naomi managing to pip Emma Clayton / Faye Caswell (YDSC) on the finish line for 3rd and with it the series by a point.

Keith/Andrea's 2 bullets in the afternoon elevated them to 2nd overall, ahead of Jon/Wendy 3rd and Richard/Lucy 4th. First juniors and 5th overall were Emma/Faye who sailed consistently well throughout the day and showed blistering pace downwind - certainly ones to watch out for in future.

Winning helm Phil Smith thanked Yorkshire Dales SC, particularly the race officer and his team for putting on a great days sailing in challenging conditions. Next event of the Northern Tour is at Filey SC on the 27th / 28th June as part of their regatta weekend.

Overall Results: