Enterprise South West Area Championship at Looe Sailing Club
by Alice Driscoll 21 Oct 2017 21:44 BST
7-8 October 2017
Enterprise South West Areas at Looe © Paul Gibbins
Congratulations to Enterprise National Champions Jeremy and Becca Stephens, who continued their winning streak at the 2017 South West Area Championships held at Looe Sailing Club on 7 – 8 October.
Always a popular venue, this National Circuit event attracted entries from as far afield as Ogston in Derbyshire and the Midlands. Saturday saw three great races with Looe local sailors Francis and Enid Marshall the only people to maintain a race lead from start to finish.
"We had a great day's sail, very shifty and combined with the tide, which seemed particularly strong on the start line, kept everyone fighting hard for every place won or lost," said one competitor afterwards.
In exciting Force 3-5 winds with waves to match, the fleet was continually swapping positions thanks to the usual Enterprise 'nip and tuck' one design racing for which the class is renowned. After the legendary Looe hospitality on Saturday night, the fleet awoke to a timid one to three knots of wind on Sunday. This resulted in the second day's racing being cancelled.
Despite only one day on the water, Looe as ever provided a great venue for the fleet, backed up with some excellent prizes from Speed Six, Rooster, Allen and Astins Trophies which meant everyone left with a smile. It was also an excellent first outing for the latest Peak Dinghy Enterprise, sailed by Matt Rawson and Vicky Gomm from Ogtson SC.
Jeremy and Becca Stephens went on the following weekend to represent the Enterprise Class in the Endeavour Trophy, coming a very respectable 15th out of the 30 national champions taking part.
The next major event for the Enterprise Class is the Norths / Peak Winter Championships, taking place on 11-12th November at Northampton Sailing Club. 19 Enterprise have already entered, along with 6 Larks and 18 Scorpions – marking a continuation of the successful SMELT format combining classes to ensure excellently-run, well-attended events. Let's hope they have got the bar well stocked!