Aberdeen & Stonehaven Yacht Club Regatta
by Keith Stewart 25 Sep 2008 10:41 BST
20-21 September 2008
Start of the Travellers event for Lasers at Aberdeen © Genevieve Leaper
This year’s Aberdeen and Stonehaven regatta played host to the Fireball and Laser 2000 Scottish Championships and was also a Laser and Laser Radial Travellers.
The racing on Saturday was good with 3 races completed in a light to moderate shifty breeze. Unfortunately the weather on Sunday was poor with little wind and limited visibility, a keenly contested table football competition took place while the race committee hoped for the weather to improve – but it didn’t, and racing was abandoned for the day.
In the Fireball Scottish Championships 11 boats took part including 2 visitors from Shetland and one from Gloucestershire. The racing was very close with Donald Smith and Mathew Richardson winning races 1 and 3 and the Scottish Championships; Ian Priest from South Cerney and local crew Lucy Linguard were very consistent with 3 second places and second overall with Colin Ladd and Keith Stewart with one race win were third.
In the Laser full rigs it was disappointing to see only 3 visiting boats, but with 7 local boats, the fleet of 10 was around the average for the season. In the first race Mark Powell took an early lead (as expected), but on the second lap, Pete Malcolm went left to take advantage of the tide and arrived at the top mark with a big lead which he held to the finish, with Mark second and Mike Gorzkowski third.
In the second race Mark and Mike had a close battle through the race with Mike just crossing first, Mark second and Pete further back in third. Mark made no mistake in race 3, taking the lead early on and holding to the end, with Mike second and Gavin Dunlop third. This gave Mark Powell his 4th event win in the Scottish Grand Prix series, beating Mike Gorzkowski into second on tie break, with Pete Malcolm third.
12 Laser Radials took part, including 2 local boats. Current Scottish Champion Ali Smith started well in race 1, but soon slipped back, allowing Ian Fitzgerald and Nathan Forrester through to first and second, with Ali third. In race 2 it was Nathan who crossed first, with Andrew McKeown second and Edwina Ternan a very good third. Andrew further improved to win race 3, with Anna Gorzkowska an excellent second and Gregor Murray third. Andrew McKeown won overall on tiebreak from Nathan Forrester, with Ian Fitzgerald taking third on tie break from Anna Gorzkowska.
Racing in the Handicap fleet was close with the light variable conditions initially favouring the RS200s. The first race was a close fought match between Ian and Ben Gore (RS200) and John and Hamish Olson (RS200). The Gores crossed the finish line with the Olson’s snapping at their heels, and the 29er of Kirsty Maguire/Angie Fraser coming third.
The second race was similar but this time the Olsons pulled away from the Gores with the 505 of Merv New and Steve Blackburn coming third. In the third race it was Maguire/Fraser who won with New/Blackburn second and the RS500 of David and Emily Smith coming third - the first 4 boats being spread by 4 seconds of corrected time. Ian and Ben Gore took the Handicap trophy beating John and Hamish Olson on discards with Kirsty Maguire/Angie Fraser in third position.
The Laser 2000’s had just 2 boats competing and was won by Robert McCullok and Alma Cudzow from Loch Venacher.
Fireball:
1. Donald Smith and Mathew Richardson
2. Ian Priest and Lucy Linguard
3. Colin Ladd and Keith Stewart
Laser:
1. Mark Powell
2. Michael Gorzkowski
3. Peter Malcolm
Laser Radial:
1.Andrew McKeown
2. Nathan Forrester
3. Ian Fitzgerald
Laser 2000:
1. Robert McCullok and Alma Cudzow
2. Mike and Caroline Heath
General Handicap:
1. Ian and Ben Gore (RS200)
2. John and Hamish Olson (RS200)
3. Kirsty Maguire and Angie Fraser (29er)