Miracle Open at Girton Sailing Club
by Gillan Gibson 25 Jun 2019 06:47 BST
22-23 June 2019
With a forecast of sunshine, seven visiting boats joined two club boats for this popular weekend meeting.
Saturday
Sunshine, however, brought little wind, and what there was was distinctly shifty. The ability to spot what there was and avoid the flat patches was key, as was the skill to take advantage of any gain luck brought your way. As well as the changing direction and windspeed there was the local wind effects found on inland waters and being in the right place at the right time mattered. Places chopped and changed in both Race 1 and Race 2, which were sailed back to back in the afternoon, and there was a mix of final placings so nothing could be forecast for the next day.
The only dependable forecast was that of a delicious pie and pea supper appreciated by all.
Sunday
Wayne Atherton and Angela Sweeney joined the fleet for the Sunday which had a bit more wind, but not much more! Again the wind was notable for its flukiness so places frequently changed during the races. The variety of finishing positions for the two back to back races in the morning, added to Race 1 and Race 2 results meant a number of boats had the opportunity to win overall. The fleet launched for the 5th and final race after lunch. As with the other races the Race Officer used the whole area of available lake and there was the opportunity for a good long spinnaker run back to the Committee Boat.
Overall
With three races to count Graeme Watts and Helen Jacks were the clear winners, but it took countback to place Jonathon and Jess Willard second ahead of Wayne Atherton and Angela Sweeney.
Overall Results:
Pos | Helm & Crew | Club | Sail No | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | Pts |
1 | Graeme Watts & Helen Jacks | Staunton Harold | 3813 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
2 | Jonathon & Jess Willars | Welton | 3834 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
3 | Wayne Atherton & Angela Sweeney | Delph | 3383 | DNC | DNC | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
4 | Simon Reddecliffe & Mark Atherton | Delph | 4007 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
5 | Ben & Zac Williamson | Welton | 4009 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 11 |
6 | John Tippett & Kathy Boulton | Draycote | 4020 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 16 |
8 | Dave & Jean Reed | Girton | 4052 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | DNC | 19 |
7 | Andrew & Beth Addington | Girton | 1358 | 7 | 6 | DNF | DNC | 7 | 20 |
9 | Gillan & Kenneth Gibson | Thornton Steward | 3670 | 8 | 8 | DNC | DNC | DNC | 26 |