Harken 29er Grand Prix Round 1 at Rutland Sailing Club

Harken 29er Grand Prix Round 1 at Rutland © Suzie Hammett

Harken 29er Grand Prix Round 1 at Rutland © Suzie Hammett

Harken 29er Grand Prix Round 1 at Rutland © Suzie Hammett

Fifty 29ers travelled to Rutland Sailing Club to kick-off the first Harken Grand Prix of the 2016/2017 season in some challenging and physically demanding conditions. At this time every year the 29er "old guard" leave and new sailors step up to the plate while a host of newcomers join the fleet.

The first day set the tone for the event with a breeze of 20+ knots blowing constantly which lasted throughout the four races during the day, with some much windier gusts scattered around the course. Nick Robins and Billy Vennis-Ozanne smashed the day with a 1,1,1,2; the last race being won by Hannah Bristow and Emily Covell who had 2,2,2,1. These two boats sailed some incredible first beats and their speed was unmatched by almost any boat in the fleet. James Hammett and James Eales sailed a consistent 3,3,3,4 to hold 3rd overnight (13 points), 4th was new pair Bobby Hewitt and Matthew Leckie (22 points), and 5th was Hamish Taylor and Rory Rose (23 points), all these boats putting in consistent top 10s. Best starts of the day went to Harvey Martin and Tristan Payne who tricked the fleet with two brilliant port end flyers.

Most of the fleet thought the second day would bring slightly more forgiving conditions, and on the sail out to the course the wind was sitting around 12-15 knots. However, hope of an easier day were dashed by the start gun and the sailors were met by similar conditions to the first day. Nick and Billy dominated again with three bullets and a third winning the event comfortably discarding a 3rd to sit on 8 points, followed by Hannah and Emily who had 6 seconds throughout the event with 13 points. James and James finished 3rd on 22 points. 4th were Aaron Holman and Josh Dawson on 34 points , 5th were Bobby/Matthew and 6th George/Freddie.

The first girls, Hannah and Emily won by a significant margin, 2nd all-girl boat was Bella Fellows and Anna Sturrock in 11th fighting off Freya Black and Orla Mitchell who finished in 12th. Ryan Bush and Louis Gibbs won the juniors with Chris James and James Hall in second, and Emma Tardew and Anna Rowe in third. Top mixed pairing was Sarah Jarman and Nick Devereux.

Well done to all the sailors who competed and to those newcomers who had to face very tough conditions for their first outing. Thanks also to Rutland Sailing Club for hosting the event and sponsors Harken as well as Rooster who helped with some spot prizes. Harken GP 2 takes place at Weymouth on 8/9th October where the 49ers will also be competing and a great chance to catch up with some ex-29er sailors.

Overall Results: