Miracle Midland Area Championship at Staunton Harold Sailing Club
by Graham Watts 30 Apr 2022 17:19 BST
23-24 April 2022
Staunton Harold hosted the Midland Areas on the weekend of 23rd/24th April, and with the weather forecast, the price of fuel and the remains of Covid, we knew there would be a low turnout.
There were three boats on Saturday, and after watching the GP's upside down in the morning, one boat decided not to go out and another boat had to find a crew after his crew didn't fancy it. So race 1 saw Graham Watts & Helen Jacks plus Paul Robinson & local junior Arthur Collier (who had never been in a Miracle) take to the water.
Graham & Helen led from start to finish after Paul & Arthur decided it was too much for them and headed in.
Race 2 was held back-to-back and only Graham and Helen took part.
After a fish and chip supper and more boats arriving, things looked good for the Sunday, also the forecast was looking a bit better.
Race 3 the winds were slightly less than Saturday and Wayne Atherton & Angela Sweeney were first at the windward mark, closely followed by Jon & Jessica Willars, Hannah & Tom Metcalfe-Smith, Graham & Helen with Paul & Arthur not too far behind. This was also how the boats finished.
Race 4 again it was Wayne & Angela followed by the others around the windward mark who were changing places amongst themselves, until Jon & Jessica broke away and reeled in Wayne & Angela and overtook them on lap 3 and held onto the lead to take the race win. Wayne & Angela, Hannah & Tom were close behind.
Race 5 was held after lunch with 3 boats only having 1 point between them. Again, it was Wayne & Angela first away on the triangle/sausage course, with Jon & Jessica plus Hannah & Tom hot on their heels. Jon & Jessica looked like they might have got into the lead until they realised they were heading for the triangle mark instead of the sausage, which let Wayne & Angela keep the lead and take the win and championship, which they had never won before.
On a plus note, young local Arthur, who took a swim on Sunday was not put off and is now on the look out with his Dad for a GRP Miracle.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | Club | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 4121 | Wayne Atherton | Angela Sweeney | Delph SC | (DNF) | (DNF) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 2nd | 3834 | Jon Willars | Jessica Willars | RYA | (DNF) | (DNF) | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| 3rd | 4114 | Graham Watts | Helen Jacks | SHSC | 1 | 1 | ‑4 | 4 | (DNF) | 6 |
| 4th | 3805 | Hannah Metcalfe‑Smith | Tom Metcalfe‑Smith | Thornbury Sailing Club | (DNF) | (DNF) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| 5th | 4123 | Paul Robinson | Arthur Collier | Whitefriars SC | (DNF) | (DNF) | 5 | DNF | DNF | 19 |
| 6th | 4020 | John Tippett | Kathy Boulton | Draycote Water SC | (DNF) | (DNF) | DNF | DNF | DNF | 21 |