Please select your home edition
Edition
P&B

2017 Dinghy Rope Solo Midland Series - Mid-Season Report

by Nigel Davies 5 Jul 2017 14:29 BST 5 July 2017
(l-r) Chris Brown, Nigel Davies and Ian Ingram currently 1st 2nd and 3rd in the 2017 Dinghy Rope Solo Midland Series © Nigel Davies

We are now in the Summer break after holding seven of the eleven events in this year's Dinghy Rope Solo Midland Series. I'm pleased to say the series is going well with well-run events and good turnouts, averaging 26 boats per event.

Title sponsor this year is Dinghy Rope, they will give the first 23 series qualifiers a £25 gift voucher to use in their online shop. Dinghy Rope sell all types of rope, chandlery and clothing so there will be plenty to spend your voucher on.

Fernhurst Books are sponsoring the Vintage Boat prize. At each event, the first boat with a sail number under 5000 receives a free Fernhurst Book.

There will also be series prizes proved by the Solo Class Association.

Now onto the racing, getting to the top of the fleet seems to get harder each year as the turnouts and the quality of the sailors goes up. So far there has been a different winner at each event. The ability to sail in all winds and lake sizes will be the key to winning the overall series.

After some close racing in all conditions currently Chris Brown is in first place followed by Ian Ingram and myself Nigel Davies in third.

Stand out moments so far this year has been the big fleets for the Midland Areas at Draycote, the joint event at Carsington, the big winds of Northampton, heat at Shustoke and the quality of the food and Cakes at all events.

2017 Dinghy Rope Midland Series: (top ten after 7 events)

1st Chris Brown
2nd Ian Ingram
3rd Nigel Davies
4th Bob Suggitt
5th Richard Blunt
6th Paul Bottonley
7th Brian Fisher
8th Oli Wells
9th Kev Hall
10th David Badger

Richard Blunt in 5th is leading the Fernhurst Books Vintage Boat Category.

The Midland events and information are posted on the Solo web page and on Facebook group ‘Solo Midland Area’ so please take a look and come and join us, we are in the middle of the country so none of you have far to travel!

The next event is Notts County on the 2nd of September and I look forward to seeing you there.

Related Articles

Ferry Marina Solo Inlands at Grafham
Oliver Davenport is untouchable right now Grafham Water Sailing Club would be our hosts and with a forecast of moderate winds and an air temperature enhanced by an airstream directly from Somalia. Posted on 10 Sep
Solo Northern Series at Elton
What more could you want from a sailing Open Meeting? What more could you want from a sailing Open Meeting? A dedicated, friendly and technically proficient organisation, a pleasingly full patch of inland water, good breeze and joyous but tough competition throughout the fleet. Posted on 1 Sep
Ferry Marina Solo Inlands Preview
The penultimate major event of this Solo season We are just one week away from the penultimate major event of this Solo season and the Inland Championship at Grafham Water is arguably the biggest event of the year if you are salt water intolerant. Posted on 31 Aug
Scottish Solo Travellers at Royal Tay
Sailors met with a bright sunny day and a steady force 2-3 breeze The Scottish Solo fleet travelled to Royal Tay Yacht Club for the next round of the series and were met with a bright sunny day and a steady force 2-3 breeze blowing from the west. Posted on 28 Aug
Salcombe Yacht Club Three Creeks Challenge
Which punishing order of creeks were the sailors sent on? SYC has put on a lot of sailing so far this season, and after two busy weeks of regattas, if you thought there would be a forced rest day on Saturday, you were mistaken. Posted on 18 Aug
Salcombe Yacht Club Regatta 2025
Recent renaissance of the Salcombe Yawl fleet makes for a post-Covid record attendance This year the total number of all boats competing in the Salcombe Gin sponsored Salcombe Yacht Club Regatta was a post-Covid record and the recent renaissance of the Salcombe Yawl fleet an astonishing and wondrous sight. Posted on 11 Aug
Noble Marine Solo class Nationals overall
Oliver Davenport's feat of winning every race sets a new record in the class So, after three full on days of racing and with eight races completed, Oliver Davenport was crowned Noble Marine Solo National Champion, his feat of winning every race setting a new record in the Solo class. Posted on 8 Aug
Noble Marine Solo class Nationals day 5
Oliver Davenport wins overall, discarding bullets, as final day is lost to 30kt winds We had made it to Day 5 and with six Championship races under our belts, all won quite comfortably by Oliver Davenport, there was a degree of lethargy amongst the sailors, understandable given that they had been gruelling tests of stamina. Posted on 8 Aug
Noble Marine Solo class Nationals day 4
Oliver Davenport now has 6 bullets With two days lost through strong winds, competitors and race management had been glued to their phones all morning, checking various weather apps for some kind of sign that a window of opportunity would miraculously appear over the east of Scotland. Posted on 7 Aug
Noble Marine Solo class Nationals day 2
Gusts of 55 knots buffeting the town of East Lothian With racing already cancelled for the day, hulls tied down with masts removed, the sailors eased themselves into day 2 with the breeze building to boat-breaking proportions by the prescribed 1pm start time. Posted on 5 Aug