Solo Open at Marconi Sailing Club
by John Salmon 20 Sep 2012 20:48 BST
16 September 2012
Twenty competitors gathered at Stansgate on Sept 16th for the event on the river Blackwater estuary for this Eastern Region and Sea Series event.
A triangle / sausage type course was set in Stansgate Bay to the west of the club, and race 1 was started in force 3 to 4 winds in a short chop caused by wind against tide. The strong spring tide on the day dictated tactics with the leading boats hitting the right corner on the beat. Steve Ede worked his way through to the front on the first lap and held his advantage, chased home by Mark Maskell and Nick Marden.
Race 2 took a similar pattern with Ede establishing a comfortable lead, but with Marden beating Maskell to reverse the first result, and Robert Laurie claiming fourth.
Conditions changed for race 3, as the ebbing tide caused flatter water and favoured the left hand side of the beat. Still in a brisk force 4, Ede again emerged with a commanding lead to take his third win of the day. Maskell again claimed 2nd while Laurie came through for a good 3rd place from an improving Peter Matthews. Mike Taylor claimed his second 5th place of the day to emerge as the leading Marconi helm.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Helm | Club | Sail No | R1 | R2 | R3 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | Steve Ede | Ardleigh | 5225 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2 | Mark Maskell | Blackwater SC | 5012 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| 3 | Nick Marden | Bough Beech | 4388 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 5 |
| 4 | Robert Laurie | Tollesbury | 5134 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 5 | Mike Taylor | Marconi | 4247 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 6 | Peter Matthews | Waveney & Oulton | 4487 | 7 | 11 | 4 | 11 |
| 7 | Paul Playle | Island Barn Resvr | 5046 | 5 | 7 | DNC | 12 |
| 8 | Godfrey Clark | Fishers Green | 4803 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 12 |
| 9 | Trevor Smith | Thorpe Bay | 4269 | 9 | 12 | 6 | 15 |
| 10 | James Mead | Fishers Green | 5158 | 11 | 8 | DNC | 19 |
| 11 | Andy Anderson | Paxton Lakes | 4506 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 19 |
| 12 | Roger Smith | Marconi | 4601 | 12 | 14 | 8 | 20 |
| 13 | Patrick Overs | Paxton Lakes | 5138 | 10 | 15 | 11 | 21 |
| 14 | John Salmon | Marconi | 4699 | 14 | 9 | 14 | 23 |
| 15 | Bryan Spencer | Marconi | 4535 | 15 | 16 | 13 | 28 |
| 16 | Peter Playle | Marconi | 4044 | 16 | 13 | DNC | 29 |
| 17 | Steve Connolly | Marconi | 4716 | RTD | 17 | 15 | 32 |
| 18 | Pete Playle | Marconi | 5046 | DNC | DNC | 12 | 34 |
| 19 | Claire Clark | Fishers Green | 4215 | 17 | DNC | DNC | 39 |
| 20 | Dave Clarke | Marconi | 3190 | 18 | DNC | DNC | 40 |
| 21 | Tim Halhead | Marconi | 3961 | DNC | DNC | DNC | 44 |