Kielder Water Sailing Club September Open

The Laser start line at the Kielder Water September Open © John Scullion

The weather gods, it seemed, were in two minds as to whether to support KWSC's Open meeting on 10th and 11th September. Saturday had light winds from the west – or from the south-west, depending which part of the course you were on.

Race officer Peter Hawkin set a triangle-sausage course to catch the best of what wind there was for all three fleets; the Ospreys, the fast(ish) handicap fleet and the Lasers. However the races got progressively shorter in the frustratingly light winds, in order to make sure everyone could finish in reasonable time.

The Laser Grand Prix was a single-day event with three races. They had some good close racing, with fifteen boats in the fleet including two Radials and a 4.7. Third in the Laser fleet was Andrew Hewett from St Mary's Loch, second Simon Wilson of KWSC, and first prize went to Neil Garrison of Bassenthwaite. Harry Myers of Derwent Reservoir was first junior, placing a respectable 7th overall.

Neil Garrison, Laser winner at the Kielder Water September Open - photo © John Scullion

Saturday night was convivial as competitors and helpers alike enjoyed a delicious meal of Northumberland Hotpot, followed by a choice of lemon or chocolate caramel torte, followed by cheese and biscuits and washed down in many cases by draught beer. It was lucky indeed that no-one had to move very far or fast before the next morning. As the evening went on and sensible people retired to bed, the rest took on the challenge of tasting and improving on the "Kielder fruit cup", a tequila-based cocktail invented on the spur of the moment from the ingredients available at the bar. The consensus of opinion was that it definitely needed improving, but that this was not achieved by adding large amounts of "rhum" to it.

Fast-forward to the next morning (although I am assured that the clear night skies at times showed the Milky Way in all its glory and many shooting stars).

A hearty breakfast of bacon-and-egg butties set the sailors up for their two remaining races on the Sunday. The wind was, thankfully, stronger than on Saturday, having backed a little to south-westerly and with some strong gusts keeping the competitors alert.

There were eight Ospreys sailing, including Graham Thumwood's Beastly Whizzer which he had bought on the south coast on Monday and sailed on Kielder for the first time on Friday, incidentally breaking a small but important part – but being a boat-fixer, he was able to sort it out in time for the weekend's racing. The Osprey event was part of the Lakes and Borders and Scottish and Northern series, attracting racers from as far away as Hayling Island. Alex and Nick Willis evidently felt they had to justify the 400 or so miles travelled, so Alex took the prize for first lady as well as coming fourth overall in the Osprey fleet. Third prize went to Alastair Raynard and Rob Burdekin of Carsington, second to Alan Henderson and Alastair Barrie of Prestwick, and a very convincing first place for Kielder's own Rob Shaw and Ian Little.

Rob Shaw and Ian Little, Osprey champions at the Kielder Water September Open - photo © John Scullion

The handicap fleet comprised four Javelins – three of them from Carsington who had travelled up to keep Geoff Brown company on his birthday weekend – three Supernovas, a Tempest, a Flying Fifteen, a Laser 4000 and a Contender. The Javelins showed great form and some very close racing, snapping hard at the heels of the Ospreys whose start was three minutes before theirs. James Harrison and Stewart Mitchell in the Tempest put in a strong performance, coming 7th overall despite only being available for two of the five races over the weekend. Two of the three Supernova helms were sailing borrowed boats, honing their skills in the light winds on Saturday to cope with the heavier weather on Sunday. James Nohl in particular demonstrated some great sailing, achieving fourth in the handicap fleet in an unfamiliar boat.

Nick Arran and Andy Cross in their Javelin at the Kielder Water September Open - photo © John Scullion

The top three spots, however, were all taken by Javelin sailors, and all from Carsington – third place for Chris Davies and Lorraine Ball, second for Cliff Sagar and Brian Dixon, and first Nick Arran and Andy Cross. We hope they come to race at Kielder again soon as they seem to do so well here – indeed Nick and Andy commented that "every time we come we have fantastic racing here", which together with Alan Henderson's thanks on behalf of the visitors for a "lovely warm welcome, great catering and great beer", pretty much sums up the whole weekend.

Thanks are due to many people for this weekend, including Helen Shaw for the fantastic food, Peter Hawkin for his work as Race Officer which made the whole thing possible, all those who helped on and off the water and who are too numerous to mention, and to the Pennine Brewery who provided the prizes (and the beer). But most of all we would like to thank those who came to Kielder to take part in the Open, and who made it the friendly, exciting and competitive event that it was. Looking forward to seeing you all again next year!

Overall Results:

Laser Grand Prix

Open Handicap

Osprey