Osprey Welsh and Midland Championship at Blithfield Sailing Club
by Ian McDonald 29 Apr 20:57 BST
28-29 April 2018
Blithfield commodore Paul Hollis presents the Blithfield Osprey Cup to Chris Gould and Nick Broomhall © Tim Male
The open and beautiful water of Blithfield reservoir in Staffordshire welcomed 19 Ospreys. Visitors from Wales and both the North and South coast confirmed the enthusiasm of the fleet.
Winds were moderate on Saturday which gave close racing. Special mention to Alec Mamwell and Arthur Butler from Coniston finishing third in race 1. All sailors retained some energy for the evening, attempting to consume a week's calories in local hog roast and home made puddings is hard work!
More wind on Sunday showed the depth of quality in Ospreys. The class has welcomed the new epoxy mk5, but spread through the front half of the fleet were the earlier upgraded mk4 hulls and also mk3 wooden boats up to 30 years old - Ospreys don't wear out! This was further confirmed by two each of mk3, 4 and 5 finishing in the top six at the end of racing. Well done to Paul Heather and Jonathan Osgood from Teignmouth CYC for third place in race 4 in their beautifully varnished mk3.
A special mention must be made of the race team led by Pro Bill Watson who have worked together for some years to provide excellent racing.
Overall Results:
1st Chris Gould and Nick Broomhall (Blithfield SC)
2sn Terry Curtis and Peter Greig (Castle Cove)
3rd Richard Marshall and Nick Willis (Poole)
4th Steve Leney and Paul Keeling (Blithfield SC)
5th Roger Blake and Jamie Blake (Great Moor SC)
6th George Odling and Harry Odling (Plymouth)