GP14 Midland Bell Open at South Staffordshire Sailing Club
by Mark Fleming 9 Sep 2015 07:41 BST
5 September 2015
Start line during the GP14 Open at South Staffs © Judith Willis
The highly anticipated GP14 Open Meeting was greeted by a Force 2 / 3 and 30 boats participated in what was a day of close racing. Alan Thompson (crewing for Lawrence Creaser) came all the way from Londonderry, Ireland to compete in the event showing the incredible reach that the sailing club has.
Race one started on time at 11:30. The first beat was shifty however Mike & Liz Senior rounded first with a comfortable gap back to second place and the chasing pack. Plenty of rules were being tested as approximately 10 boats came into the first gybe mark with some winners and losers, and some penalty turns being done! As the race continued the fleet spread out with the front five breaking away and having a relatively straight forward race. From approximately sixth position back to twentieth position there was a lot of boats looking over their shoulders as well as trying to attack. The race was shortened after about 50 minutes and Mike / Liz Senior took the win followed by Chris White / Rich Booth. The competitors returned to shore for a fantastic lunch where Justin Smith / Sarah Davies realised that their slow pace was down to not putting bungs in for the first race. Watch this space!
After lunch, the second race was underway after the wind settled and the OOD and race team got a fair start line. It did however have to be done under a black flag, something which Justin Smith / Sarah Davies fell foul to. Although, they were both in good spirits after watching the second race with the beer! The first beat was as shifty as the first race and, again, Mike / Liz Senior were first round the windward mark, closely followed by Nick & Ellie Devereux. Again, many boats arrived at the first gybe mark and rules were again tested. After a sluggish start (and a 720) Dave Young / Ollie Goodhead came surging back through the pack and started to put pressure on the leaders, finishing a credible 2nd in this race. Will Hawkins / Matt Bates also had a fantastic result coming home in fifth place showing that keeping out of trouble and some clear wind is the best way to get great race results. Graham Jones / Annie Hicklin also had a much better race coming home sixth. Mike & Liz Senior took the gun and the event after some fantastic sailing in tricky conditions.
Race three was started as soon as possible after the second race. There was a change of course and this resulted in a new leader around the windward mark. After a typical shifty South Staffs beat, the Devereux's rounded first and were able to build a gap back to the chasing pack. There were some great first beats for the likes of David Morgan / Richard Hodgkins, who were participating in their first ever GP14 event, and Julie Hickin / Annette Fitzpatrick, who rounded around 10th place. Although they dropped back a little, they ended up recording their joint best results. Well done! The event winners, Mike & Liz, were bogged down initially in the pack but broke through and went chasing the Devereux's for the hatrick of wins however they had to settle for second place in this race. James Goss / Nic Booth also broke out from the fleet and gave chase to the leaders and came in 3rd place in the race, which was their best result of the event.
The speech was by the event winner, Mike Senior, who thanked the club and Mark Fleming for organising the event. There was also deserved praise for the Galley staff and the OOD and his race team. Once the event was over, preparations began for the social evening where a live band played and got the clubhouse rocking until midnight and some great food in the form of a buffet was laid on. Alan Thompson was also presented with a bottle of whisky for the furthest travelled for making the journey from Ireland.
On a personal note, I want to thank all the sailors who made the trip from both the north of England and Ireland as well as the one Midland Bell club that was represented at the event. I want to thank my race team and galley staff for ensuring that the event ran as well as it did and to everyone that contributed to the fantastic atmosphere in the day and the evening. I hope to see you all next year!