Please select your home edition
Edition
Leaderboard FD July August September 2023

SW Laser Grand Prix and Masters event at Beer Sailing Club

by David Stockton 10 Jun 2015 11:51 BST 7 June 2015

The fifth event of the South West Laser Grande Prix at Beer was held alongside a category B masters qualifier on Sunday 7th June. The forecast for the event was not good and a number of potential competitors did not travel.

Twenty one sailors competed and the first race started in a force 3 North-westerly across 3-4 knots of tide. The boats on the right-hand side of the course benefitted from a 20 degree shift half way up the first beat, the wind slowly died leaving the pack at the front with nothing and the chasing boats catching up quickly in a steady breeze.

In the Standard fleet Alastair Ley from Wier Wood took the win closely followed by Robert Dyer and Ben Flower. In the Radials Greg Bartlett was the first to cross the line in front of Steve Smith and Mark Stitson.

After waiting for half an hour for the sea breeze to overpower the gradient wind, it settled in a south westerly direction for the second and third races.

The fleet split at the start of the second race, with those keeping out of the tide on the right hand side also benefitting from a bend in the wind giving them a commanding lead at the first mark. In the Standard fleet Dave Stockton and Paul Scullion had their own race at the front of the fleet with Dave taking line honours, further back after many place changes James Green took third. Hilary Thomas won the radial race closely followed by Neil Dunkley and Roger Williams.

With the tide having turned for the start of the third race the left hand side of the course was looking more favourable and those who started on the left were also blessed with a good shift for the first half of the beat. Paul Scullion rounded first with Dave Stockton in close attendance and the following pack not far behind. Greg Bartlett had a great first beat in his Radial and rounded the first mark in the top five boats.

Scullion and Stockton pulled away from the fleet due to lots of luffing and shouting going on behind them. The right hand side paid on the second beat with those going left loosing huge distances, this stretched out the fleet but did not change the positions at the front of the fleet. Paul Scullion won in the Standard fleet followed by Stockton and Pete Sherwin. Greg won in the Radials with Neil in second place again with Steve Smith in third.

Thanks must go to Geoffrey Adkin and his team for setting good courses in the prevailing conditions and of course for all members of Beer Sailing Club who helped on the day.

Standard rig results:

1st Paul Scullion – Restronguet
2nd Dave Stockton – Wimbleball
3rd Rob Dyer – Restronguet

Radial rig results:

1st Greg Bartlett – Starcross
2nd Neil Dunkley – Looe
3rd Steve Smith – Chew Valley

Related Articles

ILCA Grand Prix at Bowmoor
Another reminder to read the instructions carefully, and note the buoys carefully Twenty-one ILCAs turned out at Bowmoor Sailing Club on Saturday September 20th for their ILCA Grand Prix meeting. It counts towards both the Wessex Grand Prix series and for the Thames Valley series. Posted on 23 Sep
Fortaleza World Sailing Championships announced
Test event in January 2026, and the real thing in January 2027 World Sailing has confirmed the dates for Fortaleza 2027 World Sailing Championships as 22-30 January 2027, with a Test Event being held one year prior. Posted on 23 Sep
2025 Dutch Water Week overall
From experiment to future The Dutch Water Week concluded today with the pilot finals of the Sailing Grand Slam (SGS). Posted on 22 Sep
ILCA Announcement
Protecting the one-design integrity of the class ILCA's mission is to protect the integrity of strict one-design sailing—the principle that ensures every sailor competes on equal terms. This principle, enshrined in the ILCA Fundamental Rule, has been the foundation of our class's success. Posted on 21 Sep
2025 Dutch Water Week day 4
At the end of the city's main shopping street, spectators could watch the racing The penultimate day of the Dutch Water Week brought Olympic-class sailing and windsurfing right into the heart of Almere. Posted on 21 Sep
ILCA open meeting at Frensham
22 sailors were faced with an incoming storm but no sign of wind upon arrival 22 sailors were faced with an incoming storm but with no sign of wind when they arrived on Sunday morning for one of the Thames Valley ILCA open meetings. The start was postponed for a short time. Posted on 21 Sep
Enter now for the 2025 ILCA U21 Europeans
Last week to apply for the record-breaking event The 2025 ILCA Under 21 European Championships & Open European Trophy will be held in Split, Croatia, from 18-25 October 2025, and it's shaping up to be a record-breaking event, with 240 entries already received. Posted on 20 Sep
2025 Dutch Water Week day 3
Britain's Micky Beckett continues to lead the ILCA 7 fleet Day Three of the Dutch Water Week, the last stop of the Sailing Grand Slam 2025, brought sunshine and light winds to Almere. Posted on 20 Sep
Formia to Host 450+ Sailors for ILCA Master Worlds
Sailors from 31 nations have arrived in Italy The 2025 ILCA Master World Championships officially kicked off today in Formia, Italy. This year's event has drawn over 450 sailors from 31 nations, making it one of the largest gatherings of the ILCA Master community worldwide. Posted on 19 Sep
2025 Dutch Water Week day 2
Some fleets are testing new race formats and scoring systems Day two of Dutch Water Week once again delivered classic Dutch autumn conditions: strong gusty winds, grey skies and occasional rain showers. Posted on 19 Sep