Laser 4.7 Inland Championship at Rutland Sailing Club

Matt Beck, Laser 4.7 Inland Champion © UKLA

The Laser 4.7 sailors arrived at Rutland SC on Saturday morning to flat water and no wind. The mirror which was the reservoir did not look particularly appealing. The lack of wind resulted in a frustrating day of waiting around until racing was abandoned at around 1.30pm.

The next day looked to be the same and around ten of the 4.7 fleet went home as they thought there would be no racing again. However, the wind filled in from the south west at around 6knts and everyone rushed to get changed, rigged and on the water.

We drifted out to the race course with hopes of doing some racing after so much waiting. The first start was a black flag with pin-end bias. Matt Beck was the nearest to the pin and executed one of the best starts. Alex Schonrock also had a good start further up the line. The right-hand side proved favourable up the beat with more wind and a good shift. Around the windward mark, Schonrock was in first, Eve Kennedy in second and Beck in third. The wind died slightly on the run, but Beck caught a gust and overtook Kennedy and then Schonrock. Unfortunately, he was yellow flagged at the bottom of the run. This meant we rounded the leeward mark with Schonrock in first, Kennedy in second and Beck in third. The second beat had a left shift and a slight increase in wind, resulting in a windward mark rounding of Schonrock, Beck and then Kennedy. The wind proceeded to decrease on the run to almost nothing and Nick Welbourn crept past Kennedy. In the end, Schonrock finished first, Beck was second and Nick Welbourn was third.

At 5knts, the second race was even lighter than the first and it was a black flag start again. There were good starts from Beck, Oliver Sturley and Schonrock. Sturley and Schonrock tacked off to the right at the beginning of the beat while Beck continued on his original course. Beck and Kai Wolgram caught a gust on the left whilst Sturley and Schonrock were stuck on the right. This meant Wolgram and Beck led around the windward mark with a large lead. Sturley, Kennedy and Schonrock were stuck at the back. Beck proceeded to overtake Wolgram on the run and extend his lead substantially on the second beat. Welbourn caught up with Wolgram and challenged him on the second run but didn't succeed in overtaking him. Beck got so far ahead that he was mixed with the Standards and beyond reach. The finishing positions were Beck, Nathan Lumbard and Welbourn.

Overall Results:

1 Matt Beck (3pts)
2 Nick Welbourn (6 pts)
3 Abigail Clarke (10 pts)

Full results are available here.