505 National Championships at South Caernarvonshire Yacht Club

by Charlie Walters 19 Sep 2012 23:13 BST 6-9 September 2012

South Caernarvonshire Yacht Club hosted the 505's between the 6th and 9th September, and gave 4 memorable days sailing. Winds were South - South Westerly on all 4 days. There were only 2 modes of sailing: Moderate and light conditions (Friday and Saturday), and full-on wind and waves (Thursday & Sunday). All 8 races were completed, with the 2 discards helping those of us who had a bit of a mare on the first day. Courses were 3-lap courses windward leeward.

Across the 8 races, race wins were shared between Mike Holt and Rob Woelful (4); Martin Hodgson and Adrian Miles (1) Ian Pinnell and Ben McGrane (1); Tim Rush and Sam Pascoe (1); and Andy Smith and Alex Davies (1).

Mike Holt and Rob Woelful visiting from the USA (of course to us Mike is still an Essex boy) sailed impressively. Known internationally for speed in breeze and waves, so it was that every time the wind blew, then Mike and Rob beat a hasty path to the front of the fleet, and then Foxtrot Oscar'd off into the distance. In the lighter breezes (races 3 - 6) however they were mid-pack, which allowed other crews to catch up in the general classification.

Ian Pinnell crewed by last minute stand in Ben McGrane sailed a consistent regatta with no result counting outside the top 4 to record the overall win. This was all the more impressive, as this was Ben's first ever race in a 505. Of course, it would be wrong of me not to mention the one blot on their scorecard... or was that the side of the guard boat? Overall a great regatta performance across all wind conditions, from 2 quality sailors.

Tim Rush and Sam Pascoe were the highest profile victims of the breezy races, with a capsize on both days 1 and 4 putting them back in the rankings. In the lighter breezes, they had exceptional straight line speed and coupled with astute tactics, they battled for the lead in most of the lighter wind races - winning once. Overall 5th place was unfortunate, as they started the final day in second place with a good shot at the title.

Vince Horey and Christian Diebitsch sailed a quiet regatta - under the radar, but racking up enough second and third places to look good in 3rd place overall. A very consistent performance.

Russ and Andy Short must be delighted with their all round pace - especially considering that Andy's time in the boat has been challenged recently by Dad-ish duties! With flat water and lighter breezes as their forte, their performance on the final day was probably their finest championship result in waves and breeze - certainly a team to watch over the next couple of years as the whole package starts to come together.

Martin Hodgson and Adrian Miles have really stepped up their game in the lighter breezes over recent years, and they followed a great performance at the recent world championship in France to take the most popular race win of the regatta. Working middle / left on the first beat (the rest of us had plainly not read Jim Saltenstall's Abersoch guide!), they led by more than a minute at the first mark in 8 - 10 knots, extending down the 1st run. They maintained a solid lead throughout race 5. This was backed up with consistent finishes and discarding a 7th place.

Of the rest: Andy Smith crewed by Alex Davies (he of the Olympic flag hoisting duties at Weymouth), Jim Hunt and Norman Byrd, and (French visitors) Philippe Boite and Ben Thomas all flirted with top positions at moments. However the quality at the front of this fleet meant that good first rounds were rarely enough to guarantee success.

Matt and Daniel Hart showed excellent form on several first beats, and specialised in making hot angles downwind pay in even the lighter breeze races. Harry and Simon Briddon performed well in the breezier conditions - Harry winning the under-21 prize again, and I think taking the whole fleet's best wishes with him as he aims to gain inclusion into the Finn Olympic squad.

All other crews had tales of woe/joy across the differing conditions, and travelling crews from France and the USA gave the fleet a truly internationally feel.

The Endeavour Trophy went to Chris and Mark from Stokes Bay, sailing 7755 – hopefully their performance will inspire more owners of older boats to come along to next year's Nationals. All that remains is to thank SCYC for their fantastic hospitality, and Tim Little and team for good race management. We will be keen to come back for more.

2013 will see a Worlds in Barbados, a European Champs in Holland and another 4-day British nationals. The quality of sailors in the top 7/8 places is now ridiculous, and could easily read as the entry list to the inter-class Endeavour trophy - or even a previous winner's hall of fame. With a healthy 2nd hand boat list available, we expect to see you soon.

Overall Results:
If you finished in the top ten at the 505 nationals then enter your Gear Guide information here

Pos	Sail No	Helm	Crew	Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	Pts
1	9094	Ian Pinnell	Ben McGrane	Northampton	2	4	3	1	28	2	2	2	12
2	9002	Mike Holt	Carl Smit	San Francisco YC	1	1	10	5	7	8	1	1	16
3	9006	Vincent Horey	Christian Diebitsch	King George/RYA	3	2	13	10	6	3	3	3	20
4	9079	Tim Rush	Sam Pascoe		14	5	7	2	2	1	13	5	22
5	8935	Russ Short	Andy Short		6	9	4	9	3	5	5	4	27
6	8963	Martin Hodgson	Adrian Miles	Stone SC	7	6	9	7	1	13	4	6	31
7	9063	Jim Hunt	Norman Byrd		5	3	14	8	5	4	8	9	33
8	9088	Andy Smith	Alex	Notts County	9	10	1	6	8	9	6	10	39
9	8835	Charlie Walters	Dougal Cram		16	28	6	3	9	7	12	12	49
10	8906	Harry Briddon	Simon Briddon	Ogston SC	4	15	11	14	10	14	7	8	54
11	9085	Matt Hart	Daniel Hart	Shotley SC	13	8	15	11	16	6	9	7	54
12	9075	Philippe Boite	Benjamin Thomas	CVSQ/SRH	28	13	2	4	4	10	28	28	61
13	8793	Mike Malt	Alex Knight	Weymouth	28	28	8	15	11	11	11	13	69
14	8905	Stuart Turnbull	Jason Lunn	Burton SC	11	17	12	17	14	15	10	16	78
15	8945	Neil Rabbits	Adam Kenney	Burton SC	28	7	16	13	15	28	17	11	79
16	8650	Terry Selfe	Alan Montague	Stone SC	10	14	19	18	17	12	18	18	89
17	8881	Roger Deane	Niall Ferguson	Rock/Draycot	8	11	21	24	20	19	14	17	89
18	9039	Tim Bird	Rich Nurse	Burton SC	28	16	5	12	13	17	28	28	91
19	8834	Peter Bennett	Adrian Howe	Shoreham SC	12	28	18	16	23	16	15	15	92
20	8749	Alastair Milton	Charles Milton	Helensburgh YC	15	12	25	20	24	20	16	14	97
21	8497	Bill Hooton	Dennis Cartwright	Burton	17	18	20	19	19	18	28	28	111
22	8860	Bobbie Johnson	Tony Merry	Burton/Teesdale SC	18	19	22	21	21	22	19	19	117
23	8780	Martin Wright	Miles Thomas		28	28	23	23	12	21	28	28	135
24	8419	Pete Mallaband	Darrel Samanjoul	White Friars SC	28	28	17	22	18	23	28	28	136
25	7755	Chris Fox	Mark Fox	Stokes Bay SC	28	28	27	27	22	25	20	20	141
26	8583	Patrick Moore	Paul Bambridge	Tata/Port Talbot SC	28	28	24	26	25	24	28	28	155
27	8591	Dave Bell	Ian Merryfield		28	28	26	25	26	28	28	28	161