British Land-Yachting Series at Brean Landyacht Club

23 competitors travelled from as far afield as Humberside to Weston Super-Mare for the start of the British Land-yachting Series. Numbers were down slightly from the normal turnout due to the forecast but still a healthy fleet of Class 3, Class 5 and Standarts massed for the race briefing early on Saturday morning. Mike Young, Principal Race Officer gave the customary safety briefing and announced his intention to get as many races in as he could.

The wind was fickle and off the land, straight over the sand dunes, and so was reduced in force. Nevertheless 2 races were run, ending with Steve Borrel (Bassingbourne) 1st, Jake Cookson (Hoylake) 2nd with Tim Speirs and Dave Allen fighting it out for 3rd in the Class 3 yachts. The Class 5 honours went to Chris Wright (York) followed by Ian Dibden (Hoylake). The Standarts race was won by Martin Leach (York).

The customary evening events included a fantastic meal at the local restaurant, which was enjoyed by all.

Sunday dawned with no real improvement in the strength of the wind or indeed the direction. Still fickle and off the land. But after a few bowls of porridge and coffee the course was set again.

At this point we must thank Mike Young and his team of Marshals for running a safe and successful event. Without which these events could not be put on. Thankfully, bar the odd stray dog and random horse rider venturing slightly to close to the course, the marshals did not have to deal with any challenging situations.

With patchy wind, the Class 3 race got underway with even these extreme speed machines, normally reaching speeds over 60 mph, requiring regular input from their auxiliary power supply, the pilots legs! But finish they did, with once again Steve Borrel coming home with line honours. Similar experiences were had by the Standart and Class 5 fleets with the eventual winners being: Chris Wright ( class 5 ) and Martin Leach ( Standart ).

Unfortunately for the event to count towards the Championship Series each class must have a minimum of 3 races. Let's hope the wind is on best behaviour for the next round. April 16th & 17th Bassingbourne Barracks, Cambridge. See you there!

If you are interested in a trial sail please feel free to contact Brean Landyacht Club. Regular trial days are run throughout the year with everything supplied for your day including crash helmets and overalls. Go here for more information.