Yorkshire Dales Skiff Open
by Ian Escritt 10 Apr 11:24 BST
6-7 April 2019
On 6th & 7th of April YDSC held its first ever Skiff open meeting as part of the Scottish and Northern Skiff series. Eleven Musto Skiffs made up most of the fleet, the rest being as diverse as a Norfolk Punt (Skiff version), and a RS500.
Competitors were met by thick fog, which gave people a chance to tuck into bacon butties provided by the club's new caterers, they continued to keep everyone well fed all weekend.
PRO Richard Clayton must have set the course using "the force" as no one could see the water. The fog cleared and sure enough the buoys were in just the right place!
Race 1 started in a very light breeze and it was local Ian Escritt (your reporter) who nailed the start and led for a lap before he realized it wasn't a Laser he was sailing. Another Ian (Trotter) slid through to win on the water by a big distance, but when the handicaps were calculated it was Mike Saul and Oliver Kent in their RS500 who took the win, followed by Trotter, Colin and Oliver Murray in a Punt, Escritt managing to hold on to 4th.
Race 2 saw the wind increase slightly allowing Trotter to stretch his legs a bit to take the win, with consistent Saul/Kent 2nd and a delighted Terry Pressdee who got the shift of the day 3rd.
Race 3 saw the Murrays pick their way around some wacky shifts to win, Josh Moran 2nd, Trotter 3rd.
Race 4 Stuart Keegan must have got rid of the bucket tied to his boat as he dramatically improved to win followed by Moran. Escritt and Trotter had a photo finish Escritt taking it after the PRO got something caught in his eye.
After day one it was Trotter, Murray, Saul/Kent, Moran.
Sunday brought a different feel, gone was the shifty 3 to 8 mph breeze, replaced by a 10 to 18 mph blast. Musto Skiffs dominated the day with more wins for Trotter and Keegan, good results for Moran and Pressdee, whilst the Punt's massive rig struggled.
Overall Ian Trotter was always in charge whilst Stuart Keegan recovered from a poor start to take 2nd, Josh Moran 3rd and Saul/Kent 4th.
More Photos:
Overall Results:
| Pos | Class | Sail No | Helm | Crew | Club | PY | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | MUSTO SKIFF | 546 | Ian Trotter | | Derwent SC | 849 | 2 | 1 | ‑3 | ‑4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| 2 | MUSTO SKIFF | 384 | Stuart Keegan | | Derwent SC | 849 | ‑10 | ‑11 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 |
| 3 | MUSTO SKIFF | 481 | Josh Moran | | Ullswater YC | 849 | ‑5 | ‑5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 13 |
| 4 | RS 500 | 1040 | Mike Saul | Oliver Kent | Yorkshire Dales SC | 963 | 1 | 2 | ‑6 | (OCS) | 5 | 4 | 6 | 18 |
| 5 | MUSTO SKIFF | 385 | Terry Pressdee | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | ‑9 | 3 | 5 | ‑6 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 20 |
| 6 | Norfolk Punt | 94 | Colin Murray | Oliver Murray | Invergordan Boating Club | 885 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 5 | ‑10 | 9 | (DNF) | 22 |
| 7 | MUSTO SKIFF | 334 | Ian Escritt | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 4 | ‑9 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 8 | ‑10 | 30 |
| 8 | MUSTO SKIFF | 167 | Stewart Walker | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 7 | ‑10 | 10 | 9 | ‑12 | 6 | 5 | 37 |
| 9 | MUSTO SKIFF | 75 | Callum Escritt | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 6 | 8 | ‑12 | 7 | 7 | ‑13 | 9 | 37 |
| 10 | MUSTO SKIFF | 82 | Jonathan Lister | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 8 | 6 | ‑14 | (OCS) | 6 | 10 | 8 | 38 |
| 11 | MUSTO SKIFF | 286 | Stephen Smith | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 8 | ‑14 | ‑12 | 12 | 46 |
| 12 | VORTEX | 1041 | David Smith | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 914 | ‑13 | ‑14 | 11 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 54 |
| 13 | VORTEX | 1160 | Ian Craven | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 914 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | 9 | 7 | 7 | 57 |
| 14 | MUSTO SKIFF | 253 | Phil Whitehead | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 12 | 13 | 9 | DNF | 13 | (DNC) | (DNC) | 59 |
| 15 | MUSTO SKIFF | 410 | Simon Byrne | | Yorkshire Dales SC | 849 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 11 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | 67 |
| 16 | 49ER | 1068 | Ian Craven | Will Jones | Yorkshire Dales SC | 697 | 15 | 15 | 15 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | 79 |
