UKGlobal 2016 Fireball Nationals at Hayling Island Sailing Club - Day 3

Day 3 of the UKGlobal Fireball Nationals was a tale of two halves. The teams launched in what felt like quite a fresh offshore breeze but arriving at the racecourse out in the bay, a rather disappointing 5-7 knots meant people only just arrived on time.

Race 1 was a tactical affair in the light airs and it was leaders Gillard and Anderton who were left trailing as 470 Olympic squad pair Sophie Weguelin & Eilidh McIntyre showed their quality to lead the chasing pack round the 1st mark. They led pretty much all the way to take their 1st win of the series from Birrell & Townend in 2nd and Burge & Wagstaff in 3rd.

Race 2 was an incredible affair. The Wilcox twins Anthony & James rounded 2nd, hot on the heels of Wkeguelin & Mcintyre and managed to pull through to 1st on the second beat. They maintained the lead throughout and despite pressure from the Olympic Squad sailors they held on to claim the win on the longest race of the day, only to find out later when back on terra firma that they were OCS. Noooooooooooo! The Fleet were gutted for them as this was a win for the ordinary folk, or as they put it; "the best and worst race of our lives!". The win went to Weguelin & McIntyre to make it two bullets for them on the day, with Gillard & Anderton taking 2nd and Father/Son team Peter and Tom Kyne taking an excellent 3rd to consolidate their solid position in the overall standings.

In race 3 the wind had freshened to 10-12 knots and there was a typical port end bias on the line. The racing was super exciting as the sun came out, the waves picked up and what has been typical Hayling conditions ensued. Gillard & Anderton won it to take their 6th bullet of the series and wrap up the Championship with a day to go. Birrell & Townend came in second, a position they've become quite used to throught the week and Paul Cullen & Adam Whitehouse came from nowhere to claim an excellent 3rd.

The fleet met back up in the excellent clubhouse for prize giving, with loads of superb prizes, courtesy of sponsor Hyde Sails, distributed throughout the lower half of the fleet. The Mr Fireball Show was rightly won by James Wilcocks who took the plaudits and also a rather tasty rig tension gauge kindly donated by Spinlock. The great band that was put on by the club entertained the sailors into the early hours and there will be a few sore heads today.

The last day's racing is about to get underway and the forecast is slightly suspect. Hopefully today will cap off what has been an incredible and intense four day event.

Results after Day 3: