Hadron H2 National Championships at Herne Bay Sailing Club - Overall

After two days of grey skies and brisk winds, the final day dawned with sunshine and a light to moderate Easterly breeze - much to the relief of many in the fleet.

With just two races scheduled to complete the eight race series the 22 competitors were efficiently marshalled by the Herne Bay SC beach crew and racing got under way at precisely 11am.

Nick Craig had an almost untouchable lead and his win in the seventh race confirmed his position as 2021 H2 National Champion. Another win for Nick in the last race confirmed what we already knew - he is a master at his chosen sport. Second place was still up for grabs, though, and Richard Leftley nailed two second places but could not sufficiently close the gap on Richard le Mare, who finished third in both of today's races. Roger Ewart-Smith (Itchenor SC) managed to hold on to fourth place in spite of producing his two discards in the lighter stuff.

Nick Craig wins the Hadron H2 Nationals at Herne Bay - photo © Keith Callaghan

Two new trophies were available this year - for lightweights and heavyweights. These went to Robin Parsons and Richard le Mare respectively. The Masters Trophy was won by Barry Wolfenden (Bough Beech SC), who finished fifth over all. The Grand Master's Trophy winner was David Maclean (Itchenor SC) and the Ulysses Trophy for helms over 70 was won again by Kevin Connolly (Deben YC).

Over 50 volunteers from Herne Bay SC contributed to an outstanding event which competitors hugely enjoyed both on and off the water. It's the second time in the short history of the H2 class that the club has hosted our championships and we are like old friends now. On the water, PRO Dougal Henshall and his team ran a superbly organised race schedule. All in all, a great championships with a record turnout for the class.

Overall Results: