The Liverpool Lash 2006 at Liverpool University Sailing Club
by Louise Needham 22 Nov 2006 06:43 GMT
18-19 November 2006
Eighteen teams from all over the country for the Liverpool Lash team racing at West Kirby © Louise Needham
Eighteen teams from all over the country entered the Liverpool Lash 2006. This was the second time Liverpool University Sailing Club had run this team racing event and we were again indebted to the West Kirby Sailing Club for their help in its organisation.
Most teams arrived on Friday night for an excellent social held in Liverpool City centre and after only a couple of hours of sleep, they arrived at West Kirby Sailing Club for sausage sandwiches and the 9 am briefing. The weather was sunny but very windy, (a gusty force 5) resulting in a postponement of the first race. Three flights of Fireflies with cut-down sails were launched for a round robin comprising of 153 races. Change-overs by the West Kirby RIB crews and a well organized beach team were highly efficient. Despite the earlier delays due to the wind, we managed to run 67 races on the first day and the prizes were still all to play for by Saturday night. The evening entertainment began at the legendary Cavern Club followed by more partying or, for the less adventurous, an early night.
Sunday brought perfect wind conditions for team racing and with 86 races left to sail, the teams had another very early start. After lunch the wind strength increased and a sail change was required. All 153 races were completed, which meant that every team had sailed 17 races, an excellent achievement for a University run event.
Overall Results:
1st West Kirby
2nd Bristol 2
3rd Manchester 1
Big thanks go to West Kirby SC for the loan of two flights of boats and all their help and support. Special mention to Jim Bramley for his help leading up to and throughout the weekend, and to Richard Cornah for his time and effort put into making this happen.