Merlin Rocket Open Meeting at Brightlingsea Sailing Club
by Bev and Paul Aldridge 17 May 2011 12:15 BST
8-9 May 2011
Brightlingsea Sailing Club hosted the eigth open meeting in the Craftinsure Silver Tiller travellers series. The weekend bought glorious sunshine and winds ranging from 5 to 20 knots with some big shifts at times. Whilst the open meeting ran over two days only Sunday’s results counted for the Silver Tiller, but an excellent turnout meant challenging and competitive racing all weekend!
Race one got underway cleanly in a light southerly wind and saw Tom Stewart and Steve Hall start well extending his lead on the rest of the fleet to win by a big margin. First Brightlingsea boat was Piers Lambert and Tim Bees in third place. Towards the end of race two the wind started to die off and the eventual winners were Andy Davis and Tom Pygall, showing their ability is not confined to strong wind sailing.
Off the water the competitors were able to soak up the sunshine with a few drinks and enjoy the hospitality of Brightlingsea Sailing Club which included a home cooked evening meal, Yum!
Sundays racing saw 19 boats on the start line competing for the points in the Craftinsure Silver Tiller Series. The first race of the morning, race three of the open, was sailed in light winds with Davis and Pygall taking control and finishing first, with Stewart and Hall in second place and Matt Biggs and Ben Hollis a consistent third.
For race four the wind increased to 20 knots with awesome reaches. The pairings of Stewart and Hall and Davis and Pygall again contending the top two places. This time it was Stewart and Hall that took the honours with Davis and Pygall second.
Going into the final race it was all to sail for. The wind died back to 10 knots and a big shift, tightening the first reach, so not everyone could fly spinnakers. Stewart however, manged to get past Davis and go on to win overall, leaving Davis/Pygall in second place. Third place went to Biggs/Hollis. Highest placed Brightlingsea boat was sailed by Piers Lambert and Tim Bees who finished in fourth place.
Sunday's Results (for Silver Tiller points):
| Pos | Boat | SailNo | Helm | Crew | Club | R1 | R2 | R3 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | Keyser Soze | 3684 | A Davis | T Pygall | Blithfiled SC/Whitstable YC | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 |
| 2 | Stomper | 3701 | T Stewart | S Hall | Northampton SC | 6 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| 3 | 2 Pints of Larger | 3705 | M Biggs | B Hollis | Blithfiled SC | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 |
| 4 | Slippery When Wet | 3693 | W Rainey | K Miller | Shoreham | 4 | 4 | 5 | 13 |
| 5 | Snorter | 3627 | D Willett | P Nicholson | Brightlingsea SC | 11 | 6 | 3 | 20 |
| 6 | Snakey B | 3671 | P Lambert | T Bees | Brightlingsea SC | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| 7 | Cool Cookie | 3620 | A Bines | D Gentry | Brightlingsea SC | 12 | 5 | 9 | 26 |
| 8 | Carbon Footprint | 3716 | S Lengy | G Lengy | Blithfiled | 2 | 8 | DNC | 29 |
| 9 | IF | 3686 | P Aldridge | S Bines | Brightlingsea SC | 13 | 10 | 6 | 29 |
| 10 | - | 3688 | C Bond | J Bond | Brightlingsea SC | 10 | 11 | 11 | 32 |
| 11 | Salmon en Croute | 3702 | D Salmon | I Garwood | Wembley | 8 | OCS | 8 | 35 |
| 12 | Enchanted Evening | 3666 | C Jordan | G Jordan | Brightlingsea SC | 16 | 9 | 10 | 35 |
| 13 | Fluff Bum Baby Love | 3719 | N Barnes | A Barnes | Brightlingsea SC | 14 | 12 | 12 | 38 |
| 14 | Merlin Yellow | 3687 | S Foote | S Foote | Maldon Blackwater SC | 15 | 13 | 13 | 41 |
| 15 | Revenge of the Sith | 3723 | C Bines | D Gibbons | Brightlingsea Sailing Club | 5 | DNS | DNS | 43 |
| 16 | Rioja 'n Roll | 3717 | D Charlton | C Charlton | Brightlingsea SC | 9 | DNF | DNS | 47 |
| 17 | Blue Velvet | 3645 | J Deacon | J Deacon | Cookham Reach SC | 17 | 14 | DNS | 50 |
| 18 | Cream Cracker | 2997 | J Steward | N Yannakoyorhos | Fishers Green | 18 | 15 | DNS | 52 |
