Hobie 16 UK National Championships at Poole Yacht Club
by Hazel Beard 4 Jun 2019 14:50 BST
The Hobie 16 UK Nationals returned to Poole Yacht Club on the 25th-27th May, 41 years after the club hosted the very first Hobie 16 Nationals back in 1978. The event was a huge success with perfect twin-trapezing conditions over most of the three days.
17 crews attended with some travelling from as far Aberdeen, other talented Hobie sailors joining the regatta from the Royal Channel Islands Yacht Club fleet in Jersey and there were also five boats from the local Hobie fleet at Poole Yacht Club.
Due to the success of the regatta and the positive feedback from sailors and spectators alike, The UK Hobie Class Association have committed to host the event again next year at Poole Yacht Club with sponsorship already secured from Wildwind holidays and The Hobie Centre.
The regatta attracted a mix of ages of crew and boats, with some of the older crew and boats scoring some of the top places in races throughout the regatta. Proving that a well maintained and well sailed Hobie 16 of any age can perform in this International one design class.
On the first day of racing the boats launched to a mirror smooth harbour, the scheduled time of 12.00 was put back 30 minutes whilst the sailors waited for the wind to kick in. The wind arrived and then slowly built to a steady South Westerly of about 16 knots over the course of the afternoon. Andrew Boyd and Kim Troll dominated the regatta right from day one securing 1st position in all three races on the first day. Lloyd Crisp and Claire Marion held second place after the first day racing followed by Mark Farrow a seasoned Hobie 16 racer who was racing for the first time with his 14 year old son Johnny.
The first day ended with a fantastic party with live band sponsored by Wildwind holidays. The party was well attended not only by competitors but also by Wildwind staff and clients, the Hobie Centre Team and members of Poole Yacht Club.
The following morning the sailors appreciated the 11am post party start time and got on the water to a good breeze of 18-20 knots with some strong gusts coming off the land that were to catch out a few of the sailors on their approach to the windward mark off the Arne peninsular. During the 4 races there were a few capsizes with crews rushing to right their boats in an attempt to maintain their position. Andrew Boyd and Kim Troll continued to dominate the second day securing two more first places in the first two races and a fourth (their discard) and then a second. Mark and Johnny Farrow ended the four races in second place and local Poole sailor Jacobo Miquel with his crew Thomas Clayton crept up into third place.
The final day of racing on Monday delivered gustier conditions as the wind swung round to the west and varied between 14 and 20 knots. The wind funnelled off the land at Arne causing some surprisingly strong gusts and a few more sailors were caught out en route to the Windward Mark. The last two races did not alter the placings and the event ended with Andrew Boyd and Kim Troll as the winners, second place went to Mark Farrow and his son Johhny and third went to Poole Sailors Jacobo Miquel and Thomas Clayton.
For all the results and photos as well as the date for next year's event see the event website nationals.hobiecatcentre.co.uk
The Hobie sailors are now turning their attention to forthcoming European Championships in La Rochelle, France from the 17th to the 27th of July. hobieclass.com/2019-hobie-multiworlds-and-europeans
The Hobie Worlds takes place in Fort Lauderdale, USA from the 1st-16th November, 2019 hobieworlds.com