Laser South Coast & Wessex Grand Prix at Sutton Bingham Sailing Club
by Chris Jones 24 May 2012 07:43 BST
20 May 2012
The South Coast and Wessex regions combined for a joint open meeting at Sutton Bingham near Yeovil on Sunday 20th May. The event attracted 16 entries and conditions were near perfect with a 10-15mph breeze providing for some very close racing.
Standard and Radial fleets started together and the wind direction enabled race officer Chris Bottomley to set a good beat up the Halstock leg of the T shaped reservoir, followed by two short reaches and a long run. Shifting winds created plenty of opportunity for place changes during the three races.
In race one Richard Lymposs (Papercourt) and Robert Dyer (Sutton Bingham) took an early lead but were later disqualified for rounding the leeward mark in the wrong direction. This allowed John Ling (Upton Warren) to take line honours from Chris Jones (Sutton Bingham). Rob Jamieson (Sutton Bingham) led home the Radials.
Front of the fleet in race two was contested between Dyer, Ling, Jones and Nigel Rolfe (Frampton). Dyer showed good pace to fend off Ling and open up a commanding lead, whilst a tactical error resulting in turns dropped Jones from 2nd to 4th. Ben Rolfe (Frampton) sailed a great race to finish 6th and first Radial, with Jenn Botterill (Sutton Bingham) 2nd Radial.
The final race was a battle between seasoned campaigner Ling and the youthful determination of Dyer for full rig overall victory. Ling triumphed showing why his name is emblazoned many times on the trophy already. Ben Rolfe led again from Botterill in the Radials with Tracy Neal (Sutton Bingham) showing consistent improvement during the day to secure a 3rd place.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Club |
|---|
| Standard Fleet |
|---|
| 1 | 200920 | John Ling | Upton Warren |
| 2 | - | Robert Dyer | Sutton Bingham |
| 3 | 197782 | Chris Jones | Sutton Bingham |
| 4 | 201870 | Nigel Rolfe | Frampton |
| 5 | 189331 | Richard Lymposs | Papercourt |
| 6 | 123680 | Peter May | Spinnaker |
| 7 | 184354 | Robin Pitt | Upton Warren |
| 8 | 157410 | Mike Riley | Sutton Bingham |
| 9 | 195287 | Rob Bunce | Hurst Castle |
| 10 | 181711 | Terence O'Neill | Seafarers |
| Radial Fleet |
|---|
| 1 | 193781 | Ben Rolfe | Frampton |
| 2 | 185712 | Jenn Botterill | Sutton Bingham |
| 3 | 143576 | Rob Jamieson | Sutton Bingham |
| 4 | 157555 | Tracy Neal | Sutton Bingham |
| 5 | 197494 | Ellie Hitchings | Chew Valley |
| 6 | 200683 | Emily White | Castle Cove |