Please select your home edition
Edition
Craftinsure 2023 LEADERBOARD

GP14 Midlands Championship at Staunton Harold Sailing Club

by Charles Saunders 11 Oct 2021 06:25 BST 9-10 October 2021

Delayed from April, the Craftinsure and Robline sponsored Midland Championships was rescheduled for 9/10th October. With a forecast of very light winds on the Saturday but a decent breeze on Sunday the event attracted a 9 boat entry - alas, mainly for illness reasons only five boats could sail.

The Saturday brought the promise of a breeze as we unpacked and rigged in the sunshine, but sadly it died to nothing by the start time and after a postponement, Race Officers Becky Priest and Grahame Newton sensibly abandoned racing for the day and re-scheduled an extra race on Sunday.

After an excellent chilli con carne lunch, this allowed exploration of the delightful surrounding countryside including Calke Abbey and the highlights of Melbourne - including a micropub! Hugh got in some practice for his imminent marathon, so saw rather more of the countryside than the rest of us. The overnight campers and vanners then enjoyed either the local fish and chips or an impromptu barbecue in the evening.

Sunday dawned as per the forecast, bright sunshine with a much better breeze in prospect, though from an awkward direction. However, race officer Grahame Newton and his team got the fleet away on time utilizing mainly the western end of the reservoir. Hugh and Malcolm pulled out an early lead, but the battle for 2nd, 3rd and 4th was keenly fought, ending with Tomasz 2nd, Darrell 3rd, John 4th.

In Race two the lead was more closely contested with Tomasz and Darrel both having spells at the front, but the finishing order was the same. More delicious food over lunch with Shepherds pie on the menu and plenty of tea.

New courses were set for races 3 & 4 as the wind had shifted round a bit, but the gusts and shifts were as fickle as ever, large gains and losses could be made with the wrong tactical choices. In Race 3 Tomasz successfully executed a port flyer at the start to cross the fleet into an early lead, but gradually Hugh reeled him in and despite doing turns for a collision finished 1st again. The rest of the fleet had some good tussles but the finish placings remained the same as in Races 1 & 2.

No port flyer in the final race but again nobody could rest on their laurels, because the boats behind would pounce. Though the results don't suggest it, the racing was closer than it looks on paper. Robline had provided the prizes (many thanks) and at the prize-giving Hugh also thanked all the volunteers for putting on the event and other competitors. All in all a very pleasant weekend in a beautiful location, with enjoyable competitive sailing, albeit on the Sunday only.

Overall Results:

PosSail NoHelmCrewClubR1R2R3R4Pts
113721Hugh DevereuxMalcolm BirdBudworth[1]1113
213237Tomasz SzakolaChris LomaxWelsh Harp[2]2226
314072Darrell SleepCharles SaundersStaunton H[3]3339
413785John RobinsonGraham SmithStaunton H[4]44412
512170Lesley FreemanSusan WebbTrimpley[5]55515

Related Articles

Junior GP14 team wins Southport 12 Hour Race
An amazing day with great competition from teams of all abilities The conditions were looking strong for this year's Southport 12-hour race at Southport SC with 12-15 kts constant and gusts up to 30 kts which provided a real challenge for the junior and youth teams taking part. Posted on 8 Jul
S2S Race at Leigh & Lowton
Sunrise to sunset racing dominated by West Lancs teams The S2S is a team event held annually in June at Leigh & Lowton SC in GPs, Ents and Fireflys starting at sunrise (4.40am) and finishing at sunset (9.40pm). Posted on 23 Jun
GP14 Southern Travellers at Frensham
Flag etiquette blunder shocks fleet With a good forecast of 10-17 knots and promise of blue skies the GP14 Southern Travellers travelled to Frensham to join a strong local fleet. This was the first time that Frensham have held a GP14 Open during the summer months. Posted on 17 Jun
GP14 Munster Championship 2025
A favourite venue of the class doesn't disappoint The 2025 Munster Championship returned to Cullaun Sailing Club, the centre of Munster Sailing and the recent recipients of Irish Sailing's Club of the Year. Cullaun and its small lake is a favorite of the GP14 fleet. Posted on 14 Jun
GP14 Northern Bell at Budworth
The day proved that you really can have a blast at Budworth! A very memorable day was had by all at Budworth on Sunday 1st June in what turned out to be an eventful GP14 Open Meeting. The day had been eagerly anticipated at the Mere with 25 boats entered, 20 of which were from the club. Posted on 6 Jun
Llandegfedd GP14 Open
Sharing the lake with a stand-up paddleboard GP added an extra dash of jeopardy We were warmly welcomed to the stunning reservoir in the posh bit of South Wales by Sharon and Paul Freeland of Llandegfedd SC. Sharing the lake with a stand-up paddleboard GP added an extra dash of jeopardy. Posted on 3 Jun
International sponsor 2025 WLYC 24 Hour Race
The event will take place on 13th-14th September 2025 at Southport Marine Lake West Lancashire Yacht Club (WLYC) is thrilled to announce International yacht paint as the headline sponsor for the 2025 WLYC 24 Hour Race, the UK's premier dinghy sailing endurance event. Posted on 27 May
GP14 Ulster Championship at East Antrim
An unexpected set of great conditions at Larne Lough Sunshine, high tide, beautiful breezes - not generally the GP14 Class's mental picture of Larne Lough, but that's how it was in the weekend 17/18 May for the GP14 Ulster Championships. Posted on 24 May
GP14s at Bolton
From a cloudless sky, a huge 25 knot gust descended vertically to capsize three boats The fleet of sixteen GP14s including six visitors were greeted by a balmy 21 degreesC, sunshine and a 9 knot breeze gusting up to 12 knots from the south east, champagne sailing conditions. Posted on 19 May
GP14 Midland Bell at Staunton Harold
The odd complete lull and and a few serious gusts just enough to get planing Bright sunshine and a shifty wind greeted four eager teams for the Midland Bell event at Staunton Harold. Two teams from Trimpley and one from Nantwich and one home boat (borrowed) with a scratch pairing made up the fleet. Posted on 14 May