Henri Lloyd Royal Lymington Yacht Club Spring Series - Day 1

The Royal Lymington Yacht racing season started last Sunday morning 25th March with the first two races of the Henri Lloyd Spring Series.

The crews of the 30 yachts competing had the pre-season cobwebs blown away by the brisk northeasterly in what, for most of them, was the first race of the season.

With winds ranging from 12 to 18+ knots, race officer, Jenny Wilson, set a challenging series of courses in the Western Solent.

For the first race, with the tide turning from the ebb to the flood, Jenny Wilson set a series of medium length windward/leeward rounds in a race lasting about 1 hour 20 minutes. For the second race with the tide flooding more strongly, shorter W/L legs with more round demanded faster crew work with lots of mark roundings and spinnaker “trawling”.

In IRC1, Peter Schofield’s HOD35 “Zarafa”, winner of this winter’s Solent Circuit, won both races convincingly.

In the Folkboats, the largest of the Spring Series fleets, Jeremy Austin’s Tak, helmed by Ado Jardine freshly returned from East Africa won both of the opening races. Behind Tak the racing was close particularly in the second race, with several place changes at the leeward mark as boats provided plenty of action for the race officers to observe from the nearby committee boat, Chartwell.

Eventually, in race one Crackerjack, helmed by Stuart Watson, came second with Simon Osgood in So! third. The second race saw Bossa Nova, Michael White in second and Padfoot helmed by Chris Hills take a well-deserved third place.

Peter Schofield, winner of Class 1, said after the event “excellent courses and ideal weather gave us extremely good racing. What a perfect start to the season!”

After the first two races of the Royal Lymington Yacht Club Henri Lloyd Spring Series, Peter Schofield in Zarafa (HOD35) is leading Class 1. The Swan41 Philippides 2 of Richard Balding is ahead in Class 2 and the Contessa English Rose owned by Ray Mitchell has tied with Contessa Catherine of Robin Milledge first place in IRC3. Jeremy Austin’s Tak leads the Nordic Folkboats.

Event Video:

Click here for video of the Folkboat fleet from Malcolm Donald.

Week 1 Results:

Race 1:

Class 1 (IRC):
1st Peter Schofield, “Zarafa” HOD 35
2nd Chris and Hannah Neve, “No Doubt” Beneteau 34.7
3rd Robin Kemp, “Runaway”, IMX40

Class 2 (IRC):
1st Richard Balding, Swan 41 “Philippides 2
2nd Jeremy Baker “One Life” Sunfast 37
3rd Stewart BROUGHTON, “Penultima”, And Sunfast 32

Class 3 (IRC):
1st Robin Milledge, “Contessa Catherine”
2nd Ray Mitchell, “English Rose” Contessa 32
3rd Dennis Bates, “Roller Coaster”, First 32

Class 5 (Folkboats):
1st Jeremy Austin, “Tak”
2nd M Jones/S Watson,” Cracker Jack”
3rd Simon Osgood, “So!”

Race 2:

Class 1 (IRC):
1st Peter Schofield, HOD 35 “Zarafa”
2nd Robin Kemp, IMX40 “Runaway”
3rd Martin & Maureen Gee , Elan 40 “Deuce”

Class 2 (IRC):
1st Ricard Balding, Swan 41 “Philippides 2”
2nd Stewart BROUGHTON, Sunfast 32 “Penultima”
3rd Jeremy Baker, Sunfast 37 “One Life”

Class 3 (IRC):
1st Ray Mitchell, “English Rose” Contessa 32
2nd Robin Milledge, “Contessa Catherine”
3rd Dennis Bates, “Roller Coaster”, First 32

Class 5 (Folkboats):
1st Jeremy Austin, “Tak”
2nd Michael White, “Bossa Nova”
3rd Chris Hills, “Padfoot”