Osprey Nationals at Highcliffe Sailing Club - Runners and Riders

2014 Osprey nationals action © Mike Rice / www.fotoboat.com

With moments to go until the 2015 National Championships gets under way it's time to take a look at the key teams competing this year:

Matt Burge and Phil Angrave 1272 Yabba Dabba Doo: this team have formed up specifically for the event with Matt keen to retain his crown from 2014. This time he is back in a wooden Mk III and is complimented by Phil as previous multi national champion in his own right crewing, these 2 must be among the favourites.

Terry Curtis and Pete Greig 1281 White Knuckles: This pairing came together at the beginning of the year and so far have proved unstoppable. Terry is already a seasoned professional in the OK class and is fast becoming the man to beat in these machines as well, Pete has crewed for many top helms in recent years and brings a wealth of knowledge in tactics and boat trim making them a real contender.

Martin Cooney and Peter Frith 1290 Swiftwun: These 2 need no introduction, they have competed in and won just about anything that they have entered at some point in time and their experience is unsurpassed in this class, they are super consistent and able to find something extra just when it's needed, they will be there or thereabouts and if they can preserve themselves (not literally!) for long enough then they could easily put one over the younger teams.

Chris Gould and Nick Broomhall 1311 Oh- Spray: Hailing from Blithfield and the first Mk IV contender these guys have sailed together now for several seasons and have improved each year to become one of the top teams, whilst not being one of the bigger crews they have worked hard to refine the boat setups and the HD sails to best effect and are blistering quick in most conditions. With light conditions forecast things may just fall into place for them.

Mike Atkinson and TBC 1298 Barking Mad: A wildcard for sure, if Mike can perhaps attract the boats builder Andy Barker into the boat again then they will be a force to be reckoned with, so far no news has reached HQ regarding who will be the mystery team member so we will have to see, the boat is certainly fast enough to win it.

Rob Shaw and Ian Little 1337 Mara: These guys are like Christmas in that most of us only see them once a year! They have a good boat and a proven track record so cannot be dismissed.

Andy Brewer and Richard Hattersley 1207 Schiffino: Another new pairing this year and a fast boat to match, these guys will get heads turning for sure and proved at Poole that they can hold their own against the best.

Alex and Nick Willis 1291 Waimanu: This father and daughter pairing are never out of the hunt and own the last Porter to be built which happens to be very quick off wind, Nick has years of Osprey racing experience and Alex as Wilkinson sword winner also knows where the fast button is on these machines. Watch out for the big Red Kite here!!

George and Harry Odling 1085 Infidel: Again with a light wind forecast this family cannot be ignored, they are custodians over 1 of the most famous Ospreys ever built as well as 1 of the most beautiful, surpassed only by 1297 which is showroom spec! It will be interesting to see where this crew ends up on Sunday.

Keep an eye on the class website and Facebook as well as Y&Y for updates over the next 4 days.